Celebration & Perspective

Celebrate with me - do a little dance - you too, Heines! Those Virginia people dance too, right? Hee,Hee

Call your neighbors and share the joy!

I am feeling BETTER!!! That's right, folks. I hit the twelve-week marker this past Monday and almost instantly, like a cloud had lifted, I started to feel better. I still have flashes and times of nasuea, but it's not what it used to be.

I had already noticed a difference in my mornings and afternoons being less nasueas the past two weeks, but the evenings contined to be VERY rough for me, with lots of throwing up.

However, the past two nights have been great, with the nausea that I do feel being managed by chewing a piece of Orbit Mint Gum (bless that little piece of gooey gum!)

And suddenly, I am able to sit at my computer, and actually feel the will to type words and sentences. To want to communicate - indeed, to catch up even. I think I might even be able to go out on a date with my husband in the evening.

So, watch the blog. I may have to blog in several short snapshots to catch everyone up (inlcluding myself) and get current with everything that's going on.

So, praise Him with me. He is SO incredibly gracious! He is the God who holds our hand as we puke in the toilet and dances with us as we do happy dances of thanksgiving when its finally over.

At one point in my first trimester, I was on some WONDERFUL little meds called Zofran, a nausea reducer that is now commonly given to chemotherapy patients. As I lay near the toilet, night after night, somtimes crying from the sheer exhaustion of battling hour after hour of nausea and throwing up seven times in row, God would remind me to pray for these patients, these people, who fight and battle for their lives from this very same position.

So I am, in my computer incompetence, wanting to link a few blogger sites of places where you can go, and see the journey of some of the these amazing Christians, trusting God with their very lives, as they battle cancer in its various forms and stages. You can start with www.especiallyheather.com (I am SO sorry, I DON'T know how to hpyerlink yet - I'm sure it's something simple...Tracy, can you show me? I need your help!)

Here you can follow Heather's story as she posts about living and coping with brain cancer. Her posts regularly have me on my knees and in tears.

You can also go over to marisavanderveen.wordpress.com for her blog called Life. Marisa is dealing with an advanced breast cancer diagnosis.

There are so many others that God has put in my heart and mind lately. Most of you know that my friend Joy battled cancer and graduated to heaven this past December. She is still in my heart, and her husband, Adam, still in our familys' prayertime.

So join me in my celebration(I LOVE it when my sisterchick Brandie does her happy dance! :) and join with millions of other Christians as we storm the gates of heaven for these sisters in Christ.

Still Moving...

Wow, has it really been 26 days since I've blogged? Yikes! The last few weeks have been full - first vacation, and upon my return, weeks of heavy duty morning sickness, and then some family adventures which I'll expound upon later.

I am approaching week 12 of my pregnancy in a few days, so I should start to feel some relief here soon, but in the meantime, I have taken a brief break from life. I haven't called, I haven't e-mailed, I haven't blogged, and I haven't had much life happening outside of the pukiness of the bathroom.

So, I just wanted to let my wonderful bloggity friends know that I am coming back and returning tomorrow with pictures and stories of our wonderful vacation and SO much more that has happened since then!

See you tomorrow!

Pherengan To The Rezzzcue...

I haven't found my way over to my keyboard very much lately. I'm still spending most of my days feeling sick and "blobby".

Thank you to all of my dear bloggy friends who have given me such wonderful encouragement, support, and advice. I have been taking the anti-nausea medication Phrenegren (spelling?) for the past week or so, and while it does help to knock the edge off, it doesn't stop me from...ahem...tossing the cookies, so to speak.

It also makes me extremely sleepy (it's main side effect), making it difficult for me to operate heavy machinary or kitchen appliances...

OF which the warning label explicity warns against BOTH...HA!

Soo, in light of my family's vacation to San Diego next week, I called in the very selfish request for at least one week's worth of the little gold nuggets called Zofran. Will zofran make me zzzzz....?

It's not supposed to. It's supposed to be the expensive little miracle in a bottle. And me?

I just want to be able to not be sea-sick while my family is sea-side.

I will continue to keep everyone updated, and will cause further posts to turn away from my tummy and towards other blessings in my life!! :)

More Rejoicing!

Just a few more pics of the girlies playing in the puddles after the rain!

 

SPLASH,SPLASH,SPLASH!!

 

 

I had to take this picture of the cat! He ran outside just as the rain was starting to fall, and of course, immediately came back inside. THIS is the look he gave me, like it was MY FAULT that it was raining! I cracked up!!

Rejoicing In The Rain!

It's finally arrived - Mosoon 2007. The time when that wet stuff that the rest of the nation knows as RAIN makes a stop in Phoenix, Arizona.

All I can say is - YAAA-HOOO!!!!

And despite being so sick that walking from one room to another can cause dry heaves(sorry...not a pleasant thought, huh?) the girlies and I had just had to stand on our front porch and welcome in the first few rainstorms of the summer monsoon season.

K-Bug had the idea to grab hers and Lorelin's jackets (it was their rain-coats, of course! :) and to put on some hats (You have to have a rain-hat, Mommy...no pics, but I wore a hat too). Last, but not least, K-Bug got out her bearly-used (hee,hee) Care Bears umbrella.

 

So, we stood on the front porch and watched as the storm rolled in.

 

At the first hint of thunder, K-Bug said, "Let's go back inside now", but little sister Lorelin would have braved the elements head-on from the driveway if I would have let her.

As it was, the wind blew so much that we managed to get plenty damp right on our front porch. Look at all that rain!! (this is the part where I prayed that I wouldn't drop the digital camera while trying to capture said rain on film..:)

 

After the storm was over, we, of course, had to go out and splash in the puddles!

 

I am thankful to report that the weatherman is calling for a high chance of rain all week, and even now as I write, I hear the sound of raindrops falling.

Thank you Lord for the rain!!

Roughing It...

I wish I was talking about camping...

Truth is, my morning sickness hit hard over the weekend, and has not let up for a second of relief. I was quite sick with both of my girl's pregnancies, and I guess this one has decided to not be an exception.

I don't remember my other sickness being around-the-clock though...I am literally up at all hours, visiting the bathroom.

Bless my sweet K-Bugs's heart, she has been so sensitive today. As she has found me bent over the toilet, she has given me back rubs, covered me with her blankets, and offered many words of encouragement.

"It's Ok, Mommy"
"You alright, Mommy!"

She even left once and came back with one of my cooking magazines with a "Here's something for you to read, Mommy"

I think Lore-lin is a bit mystified as to why Mommy is in the bathroom so much, but she has proceeded to follow her sister's lead and bring toys and what-not in to me. :)

I have my first OB appointment tomorrow, and I plan to ask for ANY further relief they can give me, as I cannot forsee being completely house (or bathroom)bound for the next two months. I must take care of my girls, and still try to some-what run a household.

In the meantime, I am literally flat on my back, and praying for the weeks to quickly roll by. I know God's grace will carry me, because I can't carry myself. :)

Gather My Insecurities...

I don't ever desire to use my blog as my whining place, and there is a big part of me that believes that is part of my issue. However, I do desire to be transparent, and it's that part of me I hope comes out.

I am feeling insecure right now.

There..I said it..

And I really dislike the feeling.

I feel insecure about my body, which is already undergoing changes. I don't feel pregnant..I just feel overly pudgy at this point.

And, so many days, I wonder, if I'm too much or not enough for those people around me, especially my friends and family. You know the dance - trying to be "just right" and balanced in all of your relationships, all the while wondering if you really are.

So, I went searching last night, and the God who bends down and listens to me whine..ahem...pray...gave my heart the reassurance that it needed.

Romans 8: 38-39 - "And I am convinced that nothing can ever seperate us from his love. Death can't, and life can't. The angels can't, and the demons can't. Our fears for today, our worries about tomorrow, and even the powers of hell can't keep God's love away. Whether we are high above the sky or in the deepest ocean, nothing in all creation will ever be able to seperate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord." (NLT)

Nothing...not hormones or my own insecurities. I aslo found this great verse.

Psalm 52:8 - "But I am like an olive tree, thriving in the house of God. I trust in God's unfailing love forever and ever." (NLT)

Again, what a relief. My trust is not in myself, but in God's amazing love, which, if you didn't catch it up there, we can NEVER, no, not EVER be seperated from.

After reading in my Bible a bit, I opened up the book Captivating (by John and Stasi Eldridge) and, turning to the back, my eyes fell upon some encouragement that, again, God knew my heart needed.

"As a woman who has been ransomed and redeemed, you can be strong and tender. You speak to the world of God's mercy, mystery, beauty, and his desire for intimate relationship. You are inviting; you can risk being vulnerable, offering the weight of your life as well as your need for more because you are safe in God's love."

There it was again. I am safe in God's love. I thrive in God's love. I can't be seperated from His love.

Those are all really great reasons to JUST BE ME - pregnant pooch and all.

I'm ending this post with the lyrics of a Reliant K song called "For The Moment I Feel Faint" (go download it. It's not a typical sounding Reliant K song. It's very acoutic...really nice)

Lord, I gather all of my insufficiencies and place them in your hands...

Am I at the point of no improvement?
What of the death I still dwell in?
I try to excel, but I feel no movement.
Can I be free of this unreleasable sin?

Never underestimate my Jesus.
You're telling me that there's no hope.
I'm telling you your wrong.

Never underestimate my Jesus
When the world around you crumbles
He will be strong, He will be strong

I throw up my hands
Oh, the impossibilities
Frustrated and tired
Where do I go from here?
Now I'm searching for the confidence I've lost so willingly
Overcoming these obstacles is overcoming my fear

I think I can't, I think I can't
But I think you can, I think you can
I think I can't, I think I can't
But I think you can, I think you can
Gather my insufficiencies and
Place them in your hands, place them in your hands, place them in your hands

Busy Summer...

It's been a few days since I've blogged, but we've been a busy little crew, especially these past few weeks. I've actually had to watch the calendar to make sure that we still have a few mornings still at home. Here's just a peek of what we've been up to.

 

This is a picture of the girls in their Gymsters class. Each Monday, Teacher Lonnie (or Lom-nee, as my girls pronouce it) comes to the Valley Cathedral Church (a church in the West Valley) and leads the kids in lots of fun and phsyical activies. The program includes learning all of the scientific names for our body parts (both girls go around chanting...patealla bones, patella bones, our knees are our PA-TELL-A BONES!!) and also includes sign language. It's fun to have the girlies in an activity that they can both enjoy together.

 

Here's Lore-lin playing with a ball in her Gymsters class.

 

Here's both girlies...it's hard to tell from the picture, but they are trying to hit the balls with the big, giant plastic hands.

We've also been beating the heat (or at least trying to) by spending as much time in the water as possible. Here's a pic of the girlies and I at a breakfast/swim party at a friend's house.

 

This morning, we went to Bounce U with my church's MOMS group, and each week finds us at swim lessons for K-bugs. I'll try to post more pictures of the Smith summer fun sometime soon..

Sleepy And Weepy..

Now, I just know that you cruised on over to the blog to hear even more about my little ol' hormones, and are just absolutely riveted to hear a play-by-play of all of my cranky, weepy, pregnant moments.

So, not to dissapoint...

I watched Charlotte's Web last night with K-bug and let's just say that I was swallowing many lumps and wiping away tears for quite a few...okay....all...of the heartwarming scenes in the movie. It's just that that pig IS SO DOGGONE CUTE and the friendship between Wilbur and Charlotte is just SO BEAUTIFUL...and...well...

I am just really pregnant. The Hormone Express has definitely arrived.

Warm and fuzzy cereal commercials have me grabbing for a Kleenex.

Now, I am normally what you might call a passionate and emotional person, but add a bucket of hormones, and I am like a Water Wiggle looking for a place to land. My dear hubby is very supportive. He hands me a few pieces of chocolate and pats my back, and works-out often to support his own sanity! :)

HA! Seriously, although I am what you might call a "tad" bit more emotional than normal,overall I have been feeling just fine. My tired body has blessedly been able to induldge in daily naps...

Do you hear that?

That was my bed...telling me that it's time...

Better go nap now.

One last note, my dear hubby told me last night. "Girls are strange sometimes, and pregnant women are even stranger..." Guys, if you agree with this, don't tell me or any other pregnant woman. It might start us to crying(for the record, I didn't cry when he said this...I laughed) and well, a pregnant woman's emotions are indeed a "strange" thing..

Wide Open Spaces

 

Wide open spaces. Expanses of land or water. My heart drinks in the glory of the Creator whose hand crafted such beauty, and a part of my soul wakes up to breathe.

I am almost clausterphobic somtimes in this endless concrete jungle, with buildings in the West Valley of Phoenix springing up overnight. And then, I see a picture like this, and, even for a moment, I stop.....

Plain and simple. Wide open spaces make my heart come alive.

What makes your heart come alive?

Feeling Sluggish...But Hungry

 

Blargh.....I feel like I'm moving through molasses syrup as the news of my pregnancy has made me stop and take notice of what I thought was just some uncommon fatigue these past few weeeks. That fatigue is probably here to stay for just a few more weeks more, eh? :)

I have been napping when the girls nap, and climbing into bed before my dear hubby each night (and believe me, that does not EVER happen!)

Thankfully, though, all the nausea that I had been feeling these past few weeks is gone. The doctors don't think is connected to my pregnancy. I do, bu we won't be able to tell until I have an ultrasound done sometime in the near future.

Anyway, the nasuea has gone away and my tummy is surprisingly "even" feeling. However, as my nausea has abated, my love for food has increased dramatically. Last night, as we stood around the snack table at Bible study, my friend Brandie (who is also brand-new pregnant) and I had a TEN-MINUTE CONVERSATION ABOUT FOOD.

No kidding...

And it was a passionate conversation that went something like this:

Me: Oh, I just LOVE Guacamole, don't you?
Brandie: I totally LOVE it! I could eat it on everything. What about sour cream?
Me: I ADORE sour cream! I wish I had some right now!
Brandie: Me too! How about some more tahini dip?
Me: Oh, I just LOVE this Tahini dip.
Brandie: Me too! Here, have another pita chip...

Our hands were basically blurs as we had a continous motion of food from the table to our mouths during the conversation.

All-you-can eat salad bars would tremble at the sight of these two hungry mommas...

And I just have to say, that although my dear hubby is already calling me "The Pregnant Princess" I am just absolutely craving a Banana Creme Italian Soda with extra cream......

Maybe my Prince Charming will pick one up for me on the way home from work?

Happy Birthday Honey!

 

All of the family (both sides) and many friends all went in together to get my dear hubby a Nintendo Wii for his birthday. We gave it to him at his birthday party (at Chuck E Cheese, thank you very much) today. He was VERY surprised and almost little-boy giddy about it by the time we got it home. Thanks everyone!

Oh, by the way, that's not the announcement. Look below for that...hee.hee..

Guess What?..or Should I Say Guess Who?

 

Ok, so this is a really lousy shot, but if you kind-of squint and turn your head sideways, you can see TWO little lines that indicate the doctor's results of a pregnancy test taken this past Friday morning.

If you can't see (again, bad picture), I'm sure you can guess that the results were POSITIVE!! We are expecting one more little Smith-let, with a due date set for March 19.

Some of you might be shocked (I am), others may have thought this was coming (I did...it's weird how I feel both. We have been leaving the results of having baby number three in the Lord's hands, and we are so thankful that He has seen fit to bless us crazy Smiths with one more little life.

I wonder so many things right now. Can I do this? Really? Some days I feel as though I am barely able to keep it all together, and other days I feel as though I can conquer the world.

I hear my girls laughing just now...oh wait..now Lore-lin's crying (be right back) and I wonder if I can do all of the sibling stuff x3.

But then....

Then I pat my tummy, and smile, and already love this tiny little life with all of my being (great...now I'm starting to cry...DADGUM HORMONES...) and think everything will be wonderful.

With God leading the way...it's going to be an amazing ride. Thank you all for being the family and friends crazy enough to come along for the ride. :)

So Blessed (And So Were They!)

 

Hello All...although I did ask many of you to be in prayer for my sis-in-law Carmen (pictured above) and her trip to Guetamala, I didn't get to post all of her information here before she started out on her mission trip. She returned safely to my brother's arms (thank you Lord!)late on July 3rd. I haven't yet had the chance to talk to her personally yet (I'll have to rememdy that soon), but I have heard (through my Mom) that her trip was full of ups and downs. I know that Carmen was busy the entire time she was there. She was busy before the trip even began, as she was asked to translate many of the English Bible Study materials into Spanish for their use on the trip. She particpated in adult Bible studies, and played an important role in the Vacation Bible Schools that were held for the children and teens there. These blessed children got to have my sister-in-law love and hug on them as she helped them create amazing crafts (can't wait to see pictures!). Carmen has one of the biggest hearts out of ANYONE I've ever met, and her love for Chris and sharing Him with others is her life's passion. She is extremely bright (she speaks multiple languages fluently) She is one of the most intelligent, warm, compassionate, caring people I've ever met, and I am so blessed and proud to have her as my sister-in-law. I know that she will tell me that she was the blessed one to have been with the people of Guetamala, but I believe that they were as equally blessed to have her there with them too.I haven't yet heard if she'll be posting about her adventures on her blog, but check out her wonderful writings at http://sinedeosinespes.blogspot.com/

Happy Fourth

Hello Everyone...hope that everyone had a safe and happy Fourth of July! This was the first year that both of our girls have been old enough to stay up late enough to enjoy the fireworks (or maybe they could have done it in years past, but their parents were big sissies and didn't want to deal with tired, cranky kiddos)

Anyhoo, the whole day was very family-oriented for me - just the way I like it! My hubby went to a movie/lunch with his Dad and the girls and I hung out with my parents - first at the grocery store, then in the kiddie pool in their backyard, and finally for a big BBQ lunch. The girls went down for a late, looong nap (had to get them all ready to stay up and see the fireworks), and my hubby and I mangaged to sneak a tiny nap in as well. My sis drove all the way from Oklahoma for a visit, and she arrived around 5:30 p.m. (a fourteen hour drive all by herself!!) After she had rested for a few hours, we were all ready to pack up the van and head out to see some fireworks!!

I love fireworks...I could watch them year round - and I often do, thanks to Sunset Point, a fabricated western town owned by a local resort and located just west of our housing development. People rent out the location for parties, which often end with fireworks...it's awesome!! Where was I? Oh yoh....the Fourth


So, we armed ourselves against the record 116 degree weather with frozen bottles of water in a huge icechest, and drove the five mintues to down-town Litchfield Park. (my orginal post included a very long rant inserted here about the heat in Phoenix, but I took it out. It just made me sound whiny...and why be whiny when you can be cute?)
It was all pleasantness from that point on. We found a great free parking spot with no problem. We settled down in a great spot under a tree in front of the pond, with a great view of the pond's new fountain. A small group of people had brought their remote-control boats and the girls watched with delight as the little elctronic boats scooted back and forth on the water. I had bought some glow bracelets and necklaces for the girls, and they oooed and ahhed over them as we all put them on....

ok, so I bought some for myself too..don't you think that glow jewelry stuff is SO MAJORLY COOL?!)

Around 9:00 p.m. the fireworks started - on both sides of us. Behind us, the city of Goodyear shot of their fireworks from the Goodyear Community Park. In front of us, Litchfield Park shot their fireworks up and over the pond, reflecting the bright poofs of light on the water. It was loud...it was bright...it was...AWESOME! Both of the girls delighted in the colors and sizes of the all the fireworks. After twenty minutes (and two awesome finales!) the last firework fell, and we fought the traffic for our short drive home.

On the way home, I told K-bug about why we celebrated with fireworks. She latched on to the phrase "I love freedom" and went all around the van asking family members, "Do you love freedom, Daddy?", "Do you love freedom, Nonna?" Everyone affiremd that they did, indeed love freedom.

We are so blessed, and for all of you who continue to serve our country and keep us free, we choose to remember and pray for you all. Our gratitude is deeper than words can say.

Thanks for loving freedom!

What Goes Around Comes Around..

I remember when I was little, getting up in the middle of the night, and creeping, creeping, creeping, ever so quietly into my parent's bedroom. Tiptoeing over to my Mom's side of the bed, I would touch her arm.."Mom?" Let's just say that she was um...surprised...to find me only inches from her face. The following response usually went something like this:

Mom: GASP! GAAAH!!
Dad: What? What is it? Who is it!!??
Mom: Stacy....you scared me!
Me: Mom, I need a drink of water....(or to go potty, etc..)
Mom: (still panting): Ok..ok...

Now, I will admit that, although I hadn't meant to surprise my Mom, I always found my parent's response just a wee bit funny.
Last-night my dear hubby and I went out on a date. My Mom had put the girls down to bed, and while we usually let them both have sippy cups of water, she had forgotten to give them one when they laid down. I awoke at 3:30 a.m. in the morning to a little touch on my arm, accompianed by a little voice asking, "Mommy?" The following scene went something like this:

Me: GASP! GAAH!
Hubby: What? What is it? Who is it!!??
Me: K-Bug...you scared Mommy!
K-Bug: I need a drink of water Mommy
Me(still panting): Ok....ok....

Eventually my heart resumed a normal pace, and we got K-bug settled back in bed with a sippy cup. I had to laugh as I thought of the old adage that "What goes around comes around." I suddenly had sympathy for my poor Mother being awakened in such a manner. As I got older, my Dad made a point of telling me that I could get a drink of water or go potty "all by myself like a big girl" without first getting their persmission. They eventually got their uninterupted sleep, and I gained the confidence of doing things on my own.
Although K-bug is still young enough to need my help, I have asked her to first call out from her bedroom before stealing down the hallway to bore her tiny eyeballs inches from my face. I don't know if my heart can take too many midnight visitors! :)

Update Tummy Ache...

Hello All,
Just wanted to send out a quick post to let everyone know that I had an ultrasound done yesterday on my abdomen. My doctor's office called this morning to let me know that everything had come back all clear. YEAH!! While I am bafffled on the one hand, I am very thankful on the other. Thank you Lord that so many things that could have potentially been "serious" have been ruled out. I will go back to see the doctor in another week, so if I'm still having the pain/nausea I'm guessing we'll take a new course.
Thank you to everyone for your continued prayers.

Being Filled..

As most of you know, the Lord currently has me stuck smack-dab in what is one of the hottest places in America. I wonder if the weather forecasters ever get bored working in Phoenix. You know those little hooks that they say to keep you tuned in to their station...things like, "Is the hot weather going to hold? I'll have the forecast coming up in just a few minutes!" And you think "DUH!!" in your head, even as you "stay tuned" to hear the forecaster give you the predictable summer forecast of 10,000 degree weather. (sorry to sound so caustic...being baked at 112 degrees for two weeks running makes me a little cranky) I think the weathermen (or women..:) hold out for what is called the "monsoon" season - a wet couple of weeks/months where Phoenix finally starts to see some of the wet stuff actually hit the ground.
Until the rains come though, many previously filled streams in the Phoenix area simply dry up.
The tell-tale signs of a packed dirt cracking under the sun can be seen in washes around the Valley. They are more than a little depressing to behold - hollowed out pieces of earth empty and devoid of water. EMPTY.
The Lord has been speaking to me a lot lately about what it means to be filled up with Him. And how I can get that idea across to myself - not only spiritually, but emotionally as well. I could make this the Stacy-climbs-on-her-soapbox and declares the three spiritual truths to being filled, but I don't have a soapbox......and really, why a soapbox...when a five point sound system connected to a REALLY SNAZZY power-point presentation with loads of TOTALLY ROCKIN' clip art would work much better :)
So, no presentations. Instead, let me open up my heart to you for just a minute. I can tell you that the closer I get to HIM, the more I am able to recognize when I'm running on empty. When I'm feeling empty, I often start looking to other people to "fill me up". The end result? People, intentionally or not, often let me down. Ever been in a room filled to the brim with your friends and still felt alone..empty? I have.
Or, instead of people, I start looking to other things to fill me up. Things like stories in books, television programs, or shopping trips. The end result? If I'm using these things to try to fill myself (instead of just for enjoyment/relaxation), then it's like trying to fill a river with a dropper. The enjoyment is not enough to "fill" me.
Water - and imagery involving water, is everywhere in God's Book. I went to http://www.blueletterbible.com/ and looked up every reference to water. It occurs 460 times! Some of you will be familiar with the story in John 4 where Jesus refers to himself as living water. John 4:14 states - "But whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst. But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life. (NKJV)" Those of us who have made the choice to be Christ-followers never have to worry about that part of our spirit going dry. We have everlasting life...it springs up in us.
The type of empty I'm talking about comes from not drawing from that living water on a daily basis - allowing that living water to heal us, sustain us, and overflow from our lives into the lives of others around us.
So, if we are feeling dry, where do we start? With Him.
Psalm 107: 35 says "He turns a wilderness into pools of water, And dry land into watersprings. (NKJV)" God can make something out of nothing, or in this case, bring water where only emptiness existed before. We can turn to His word with the expectation that He will use it to speak to our thirsty hearts. God promises this -
Isa 55:10-12 "For as the rain comes down, and the snow from heaven, and do not return there, but water the earth, and make it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower and bread to the eater, so shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth; it shall not return to Me void, but it shall accomplish what I please, and it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it. For you shall go out with joy, and be led out with peace; the mountains and the hill shall break forth into singing before you, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands."
Wow! Isn't that awesome! Think of it this way. When you sit down to read the Word, the God of heaven and earth sits down beside you, with His arm wrapped around you, and uses the Holy Spirit to speak truth to your life - specifically your life, your circumstances, etc. And that water reaches down to your soul, begging you to dig your roots into Him and His word. As you do, God promises this - Jeremiah 17:8 "For he shall be like a tree planted by the waters, which spreads out its roots by the river, and will not fear when heat comes; but its leaf will be green, and will not be anxious in the year of drought, nor will cease from yielding fruit. (NKJV)"
Another way to fill yourself up is to daily be in prayer. Talk with God like a child talks to their Daddy, delight yourself in all of His creation, praise Him for all he's done, and rest in His grace. Also, pour out your fears, cry your tears of dissapointment, and give him your angry words. Basically- give it ALL to Him. Psalm 68:19 says "Praise the Lord; praise God our savior! For each day he carries us in his arms. (NLT)" Choose to let go and climb up into His arms.
So, my encouragment? Don't run around on empty. Don't run from the grace, peace, joy and love this is available to fill you up and fill all of the empty places within you. I'd like to end with two things. One is a poem that I wrote many years ago, on a dark night when it was, strangely enough, actually pouring down rain in Phoenix. The second is Steven Curtis Chapman's song Dive. My prayer is that you will go deep with God - and come up soaking wet!

Rain
Falling freely
Pours over my face
My lips, my eyes
My nose, my chin
Bathing my shoulders
My arms, my hands, my fingertips
Drenching wet
Shaking
Praying
Praising
The rain is the grace of my God
And I am getting wet

More VBS Pics...

The Preschoolers Hear A Bible Story...

Lore-lin riding one of the "decorations" in the main auditorium

One of church members owns a local Chik-Fil-A restaurant. On the last night of VBS, he brought his cow costume down and dressed-up for the kids. Lore-lin is NOT to sure about this cow, though..

K-Bug LOVED seeing the cow, and gave him lots of hugs and high fives!

Vacation Bible School - Wild RIde!

I'm just now getting my bearings after a wild n' wooly week of Vacation Bible School at Compass Church, where I was a "Crew Leader" for a wild bunch of elementary-age kiddos. In hind-sight, I would say that the commitment to be there each and every night was a LOT for our little family of tots and preschoolers, but my dear hubby was committed to be as flexible as a bendy-straw....and made it possible for our family to fufill the role. The theme for our Vacation Bible School was western. It was called "Avanlanche Ranch - A Wild Ride Through God's Word!" Each night, a different animal helped us to remember a different truth about God. Let me see if I can remember..
1. God is real - Buc The Horse
2. God is with us- Shadow The Dog
3. God is strong - Range The Buffalo
4. God is awesome - Skye The Eagle
5. God is in charge - Boss The Longhorn Cow

WA-HOO! I remembered them ALL! Anyway, the songs, stories, crafts, games, etc. for each night all centered around the showcased Bible point. One of the GREAT things about our VBS is that they included preschoolers, who did their own version of all of the activities the "bigger kids" were doing. So, my sweet K-Bug got to experience her very first Vacation Bible School. My "flexible"hubby came and took lots of great pictures of our girls on the final night of VBS. I wanted to share a few of them with you!


The Preschoolers were called "The Prairie Dogs" Here's K-Bug with their mascot!

The preschoolers joined all the other kids for an opening time of worship each night..

Here's K-Bug making a "sheriff star" craft project..

This was K-Bug's teacher, Miss Hannah. I know that she tirelessly loved on my daugter all week long! THANK YOU!

Tummy Ache - Update

Hello All,

After a loong twelve days of nausea and stomach pain, I finally made my way to the doctor's office yesterday. He asked a long litnay of questions, and took two vials of blood to test for a whole gamut of ailments. He says it is probably one of three things:
1. Severe Heartburn (manifesting itself in my tummy/back...weird, huh?)
2. Gallbladder Issue
3. Ulcers
The GOOD news is that I just got a call back from the doctor's office about an hour ago, and ALL of my bloodwork came back clean! Thank you Lord! I know that the doctor was testing for some of what could have been more serious culprits behind my issues.
He is sending me for an ultrasound test as well, so I'll let everyone know what we find out there. Thanks to ALL of you as you have prayed for me and this health problem. God is so good, and I'm quite sure we'll get to the bottom of it yet.
Please continue to pray as I do still deal with this still mysterious nausea and stomach pains.

Tummy Ache

Hey there... I've got all these blog posts just swimming around in my brain, waiting to be typed out (do you fellow bloggers notice that you start to view different events, funny happenings, or sayings as "Ooo...I've got to blog that." :) Anyway, today my blog will just be informing everyone that the longer posts will have to wait - due to my tummy-ache...ooo- that rhymes if you read it just right in a sing-songy kind-of voice...
Anyhoo....
For the past few days I've had a nauseous stomach after the hour of 5:00 p.m. Now I know what you all are thinking, and just so you know I took a prego test which read very negative and I've had a very normal cycle this month already. Soooo.... what gives? Today is the first day that I've kind-of felt nauseous during the morning/daytime hours too. I was up from about 3:30 a.m. to 5:00 a.m. last night with just waves of sickey-feelings. Amazingly, I still have a normal appetite, and no imminent feelings of tossing my cookies... I just feel plain sea-sick. I will get through this weekend one way or the other (the other being that this is a stomach virus which chooses to pass of its own accord). If my tummy is still rebelling on Monday morning, I'll call my primary doc to try and get some relief.
I would please ask for prayers for my tummy issues. I'm due to work a full week of Vacation Bible School at church all next week....in the evening hours.... please pray that I'm feeling fully back on my feet by then. Blessings!

Happy Birthday Lore-lin!

Hooray, hooray, today is the day - Miss Lorelin turns two! (okay, so yesterday was the day, I'm a little delayed in getting out the post...:) You might be able to tell a little from her picture, but Lore-lin is a rather long-legged girl, coming in at the 99% percentile for her height at the last pediatrician's check-up. More than her height though, Lore-lin has grown up and into our hearts in SO many ways. Here's just a snapshot of our beautiful girl:

Favorite Book: Twinkle, Twinkle (Christian Mother Goose Version)

Favorite Food: Cold Cereal

Favorite Program: Little Einsteins

Favorite Toy: Anything that Sissy is playing with!

Favorite Comfort Item: Fuzzy striped blanket

Favorite Saying: "Wazzat?" (what's that?)

Lorelin IS: Very Snuggly

Lorelin IS NOT: In diapers anymore - It's Pull-Ups now as we PT

Lorelin Enjoys: Bubbles, balls, puzzles, swimming, and playing outside

Lorelin Does Not Enjoy: Trying new foods or meeting new people

Lorelin LOVES: To play with her family &

WE LOVE LORELIN!! Happy Birthday!

Think Cool Thoughts...

Well, folks, here it is...summer in Phoenix. Today is actually supposed to be in the high 90's - everyone here is talking about how "cool" it is today (evidence that the heat really does warp our minds), but the rest of the summer will be in triple digits. It's like baking in a large oven set to BROIL...To be honest, I DREAD the summers here. I'm definitely a chilly-weather kind of girl. I will take a winter sweater and pants over shorts and tank-top anyday. The heat seems to sap my energy, and make my cranky. SO, in a spirit of postive thinking and being THANKFUL, I decided that I would focus on those things that I like, even love, about the summer season. :)
1. Sandals - all of those adorable sandals and cute flip-flops in twenty different colors! And what a great excuse to get a pedicure and show off your well-manicured tootsies!
2. Watermelon - I plain ol' love watermelon! And it's a summer fruit, to be sure. I have GREAT childhood memories of the watermelon festival that our little church used to host each summer.We had seed spitting and watermelon eating contests among other things - it was a BALL!
3. Sno-Cones - Another fond childhood memory - getting sno-cones after spending a day at the pool...a special treat! If there was a Sno-Cone shop near us (don't you think there would be more in Phoenix?) my kiddos and I would probably try a new flavor every week. My favorite as a kid was called "Tiger's Blood" (mmm, sounds yummy, right?) It was a cinnamon-cherry combo...
4. Swimming - Cooling off in the pool has always been a favorite past-time. With K-bug taking swim lessons for the first time this year, both of my girlies are both turning into regular little fishies who LOVE to be in the water!
5. Sun-Dresess - to go with the cute sandals and flip-flops of course. While I am NOT a big shorts-wearer, I love the comfort, ease, and cuteness factor of a sundress. Thanks to gifts from my family and friends, I was able to hit the racks at Old Navy and find two dresses that I love! (my Mom has asked me if I plan to wear them every day, and I could give some attention to other items in my wardrobe...but I digress...)
6. The Beach - I love the beach anytime of the year. But my entire family always gets the urge to migrate toward San Diego in the summer, and so, of course, we are headed back this August for another round of san, sun, and surf (and Sea World too...)
7. Fourth Of July - Really, truly, one of my favorite holidays on the calendar is fourth of July. I love remembering and celebrating our country's independence. I love that everyone wears red, white, and blue! I love the BBQs and all of the trimmings. But most of all, I love, FIREWORKS! As a matter of fact, it's hard to tell who gets more excited about seeing them - my kiddos or me.
8. Iced Tea - This is one of my favorite drinks anway, but nothing tastes quite so good when it's super-hot outside. I'm currently drinking a Herbal Rasberry-Blueberry blend. I'll try new flavors (most of them fruity) all summer long. Come over and have a glass with me!

I'm sure I could think of even more, but to be honest, I'm feeling better already. Happiness, even in the midst of a Phoenix summer, is a choice. Dear Lord, thank you for filling my cup of joy to overflowing and for blessing me with so much more than I deserve. May I refresh myself daily in You!

Now it's your turn! What do YOU love about the summer?

Operation Missionary: Kamie

Hello All! I just wanted to ask everyone to pray for my forever friend Kamie (on the far left-hand side of the picture above) as she gets ready for a six-month stint on the mission field in Guatemala. She will be leaving the first of July and will not return to the states until late December. Kamie and I have been friends since grade-school, and have enjoyed many adventures together. Now Kamie is going out on an adventure of her own. She will travel from place to place in Guatemala with a ministry team called Cocina del Amor, helping to coordinate in-coming ministry teams and working directly with the people however she is needed. Kamie will be leaving behind family, friends, her job, and MANY comforts of home (including electricity) to go out and serve God with all of her heart. My dear friend, I am so VERY proud of you, not just for serving, but for loving God enough to follow wherever He leads. I will miss you, and I will be praying for you. I am asking you, all of my bloggity friends, to be in prayer for her too!

P.S. My other forever friend, one Miss Lori, is on the far right-hand side of the pic. I wanted you to see both of them, as they are star players in a story that I will be posting soon! ;)

The Whole Truth

Have you ever had an experience where you are 1000% sure that you are being truthful about something, but there's no way to prove it? That was my experience today when I took a book back to the library. See, I got a call a few days ago stating that one of my library books was overdue by at least two weeks. I knew this couldn't be possible, as I had specifically taken all of the books back to the library at the same time and had a librarian physically re-check them. I DO remember thinking at the time that the librarian seemed very distracted and I wondered if she had really re-checked them all, but I had the girls with me, I was ready to go, etc...Now, I know that I don't exactly have a mind like a steel trap, BUT I KNOW with everything in me that I had that specific book in my possession that day, because I remember wanting to return it, when Kaelyn asked if she could take it home again.
Anyhow....
I took the book back to the library today thinking surely they would understand that these occurred charges and the crazy idea that Stacy-is-a-bad-book-checker-and-we're-putting-it-on her-permanent-record were simply not due to any fault of my own. Hah! That would mean that the said library lady would have looked at me like she actually believed me, instead of like a criminal trying to make up a "dog ate my homework" story to get out of paying the PIDDLY $1.80 fine!!
I didn't care about my pocketbook, I just wanted her to believe me! "Are you sure that you didn't just leave the book at home that day?" she asked me in a rather sarcastic voice that implied that she didn't believe a word of what I had told her.
Now the Lord has been convicting me lately about kindness and about being Christlike in all social situations. So, what I said and I what I really wanted to say conflicted at this point. I chose to just let go. I truly didn't want to be unkind, so I said in a voice that I really hope was a lot less perturbed than I felt, "Yes, I am sure, but I will pay the fine. How much did you say it was again?"
This whole experience caused me to drift back to another experience where a look of disbelief DID cause me to say what was on my mind to a total stranger. My dear hubby and I had been married a little more than a year when the possibility arose (despite b/c) that we "might" be pregnant. Now, I didn't think this was the case, but you know how you always want to be sure.
{Keep in mind for this story - Most people tell me that I look younger than I actually am, but when I was married at age 20 there were many people who thought I was still a teen. }
I had never taken a pregnancy test before, so I didn't even really know exactly where I should start looking. I wandered around a Fry's grocery store for half an hour with no luck, and was absolutely too embarrassed to ask. I was on my way home when I decided to stop at a drug store for one last try. I did indeed find the pregnancy tests - under lock and key. A male teen worker had to bring the key to come and open everything up so he could stand there while I chose one. I'm sure I looked awkward, seeing as how I had no idea which one to pick. I grabbed one and quickly headed to the counter. It was there, as that clerk gave me the "once over"....I could see in her eyes that she thought that I was a teen sneaking in for a pregnancy test.For whatever reason, I felt something rise up in me, and in a flash of boldness, I said, "JUST SO YOU KNOW, I'M TWENTY YEARS OLD, I'M MARRIED AND I WAS A VIRGIN ON MY WEDDING NIGHT!" (still don't why I told her that part....talk about a Lot-O-Personal Info.)"Oh, well.." she stalled "You know, you just look so young..I just thought...."
I went home that night surprised at my sudden boldness - maybe I was tired, maybe a sudden rush of hormones overtook my brain (Hah! That still happens!) Whatever the case, I still remember that night as being one of the only times that I spoke to a stranger with such ZING...
Lord, fill me with kindness, even when librarians and store clerks don't believe me (and I have such an honest face!! :)

Just One Word...

My friend Tracy tagged me for this one...so here are my answers. And as the rules state, answers can only be one word....being a prolificly wordy person myself, this taxed my chatterbox considerably....:)

Yourself: Fun-loving
Your Spouse: Funny
Your Hair: Short
Your Favorite Item: Pillow
Your Dream Last Night: Weird
Your Favorite Drink: Iced Tea (ok, so that's two words. sue me..)
Your Dream Car: Convertible
Dream Home: Beachouse
The Room You Are In: Bedroom
Your Fear: Aloneness
Where You Want to be in Ten Years: Speaker
Who You Hung Out With Last Night: Grandma
You're Not: Organized
One of Your Wish List Items: Open Spaces
The Last Thing You Did: Read
You Are Wearing: Sundress
Your Favorite Weather: Chilly
Your Favorite Book: Undecided (can't pick one...just love em all!)
Last Thing You Ate: Popsicle
Your Life: BUSY
Your Mood: Cheerful
Your Best Friend: Trustworthy
What Are You Thinking About Right Now: Sleep
Your Car: Van
What Are You Doing At The Moment: this
Relationship Status: married
What Is On Your TV: nothing
What Is The Weather Like: HOT
When Is The Last Time You Laughed: today

Whew! Now I can talk again! We highly extroverted people need to just get it out...AND IT TAKES MORE THAN ONE WORD PEOPLE!! We highly extroverted people also sometimes expend more energy then we realize...hence the reason my body feels as though someone encased it in concrete..my bed is calling me....Good-night all!

A Wet N' Wild Weekend

It was wet n' wild weekend for the Smiths - so busy! My Meemaw and Uncle were down from Texas to visit for five days...but more about that later. We celebrated Miss Lorelin's second birthday with a beach-ball breakfast at the local "Splash Park" near our house. For those that don't know, a splash park is a small water-play area located in public parks throughout Phoenix. This particular splash-park is brand-new, and has only been open a few weeks.



Here's a picture of what it looks like with no water and no kiddos playing on it...

We had the party at 9:00 a.m. in the morning (come on people, this is Phoenix, and it gets HOT early!!!) and we made it a breakfast party. We served watermelon, donuts, and cold cereal (which I put in sand pails for that cute, crafty touch.....God must have given me the idea, because I am not normally one to just think this kind-of stuff up....)

All of the guests seemed to enjoy the breakfast (especially the birthday girl!). Being the consumate picky eater, Miss Lorelin likes cereal and watermelon just about best of all!

Here's a picture of Miss Lorelin and K-Bug playing in the Splash Park after it got going, and they got wet!

Now, to be honest, Miss Lorelin's actual b-day is still a little ways away, but I wanted to have her birthday party early while I was still in the " party mode" , having just had K-Bugs party at the end of April. Also, we have some good friends whose daughter was born just a few days after Lorelin, so her party is usually around the same time. Thank you, thank you, thank you, to ALL of our friends and family who came and helped to make the day so SUPER special for Miss Lorelin and for us, her family!

She keeps talking about her "birf-day potty" - Happy Birthday our sweet little one!

Sweet Potatoes Ain't Always Sweet...

For the last few days, I have been smelling an odd odor coming from the pantry in my kitchen. I had looked through all of the contents I thought might smell strange...but no luck. Today, however, the smell was stronger than ever, and I was determined to find it and be rid of it once and for all. Digging in the lowest shelf in the back of the pantry, I found a sack of VERY ROTTEN, VERY MOLDY, VERY LIQUIDY, VERY STINKY sweet potatoes. Making what I thought was a quick move to transfer the sack into the kitchen trash to be immediately taken out, the sweet potatoes (and all of their yucky brown juices) spilled out onto the floor with a mucky wet splat. Rotten chunks of sweet potato flew onto the walls, my feet (and my flip-flops) and the sides of the trashcan. Immediately the kitchen smelled like a dirty diaper on steroids (the smell was really that bad!). As you take into account that we were literally about to walk out the door to drive to K-Bug's swim lesson, the moments immediately following the "potato incident" went a little something like this:
Me: HELLLP!
K-Bug: Oh, no! Are you OK?
Hubby: EWWW? What smells?
Lorelin: oh-no-smelly!
Hubby: Girls - get back - NO, DON'T TOUCH! Get back!
Me: Get me a paper towel, a dish-rag, anything!
K-Bug: It's a big mess alright...
Lorelin: oh-no-smelly
Hubby: Girls - get back - STEP AWAY FROM THE PUDDLE!

We did somehow manage to get the mess cleaned up (without any help from the girls) and still make it on time to the swim lesson. Still, our kitchen carried the smell for hours, wearing it like a badge for it's part in drama. Who knew vegetables could be so ruthless (or so stinky?)

My Birthday...

Well folks, last Friday was my birthday - my twenty-eighth birthday - to be exact. Now, I wish I could tell you that I am aging ever so gracefully, but in truth, it freaks me out a little to be so close to the age of "30". I distinctly remember being in my teens, and thinking that "30" sounded very....old. My own dear hubby turned 30 last year with all the grace in the world - didn't bat an eyelash (which is too bad, as he has very cute eyelashes...:) However, all of my freaked-out feelings aside, I wanted to give you a list of of why this birthday was one of my best and most blessed to date...
(1). My mother-in-law sent me some amazing flowers that were very unexpected. They were Irises - and for the past few days - they have bloomed into colors of deep purple, bright yellow, and pure white right before my very eyes. Thanks Susan!
(2). My parents knocked on the door the morning (quite early in the morning) of my birthday with cookies and balloons in hand. My family enjoyed the cookies and my girls are still enjoying "Mommy's birthday balloon"
(3). My dearest friends and Sisterchicks gave me expressions of their love all over the place - phone calls, cards, and sweet and unexpected gifts.... I felt so incredibly loved... Andrea gave me a candle that she knew I loved, Brandie gave me the means to go and treat myself to a Jamba Juice (which I did last night!), Jess gave me a mug and a gift certificate to go out and get a new book, Jules gave me a yummy caramel drink from Starbucks, Nickle-Pickle gave me a gift certificate to Old Navy (where I bought the CUTEST sundress)the list goes on...:) I actually shed a happy tear or two in my gratefulness to God for giving me these friends!!
(4). My parents graciously baby-sat for Bri and I as we went out to dinner and then over to the Robinson's house to watch some UFC. My dear Nickle-Pickle had gotten me some cheesecake, and insisted that we put candles in it and have everyone sing Happy Birthday. I was also gifted with an...ahem...rather interesting pair of panties...you wacky ladies know who you are!
(5). I spent three hours on my actual birthday in the Urgent Care for an bladder infection. You might wonder why this made the list of things that mad eme birthday so awesome - honestly, because it was just a time of thankfulness for me - thankful that I live in a country where I can go and get the medical treatment I need. Also, all the doctors and nurses wished me a Happy Birthday after seeing my date of birth on the chart - nothing like getting birthday wishes from happy, smiling strangers!!
(6). My dear hubby bought me a giant scrapbooking kit from Costco, which was just the most perfect gift for me - I love it and have already used it! Thanks again, honey!!
(7). My best friend Christy, in the middle of what has been one of the most stressful times of her life, still surprised me with an awesome birthday present that meant worlds to me.
(8). My Mom put together a scrap-book night at her house, where my friends came together and we did a lot of chatting and little-bit of scrapping for a few hours in a totally relaxed environment. It was AWESOME!! Most notably, my Mom prayed a prayer for all of us in which she told the Lord (out-loud) how much she loved me - thanks Mom, I love you TOO!

Lord, thank you for granting me another year here. Please work through me to bring more glory to you.

Keep Smiling !!

I just wanted to relay a quick experience I had about a week ago that left a deep impression on me. I was out on a Thursday morning shopping at Wally World for a new toilet bowl brush (WE REALLY NEEDED ONE, OK?) after having a leisurely breakfast with friends. My precious Mother was watching the kiddos for the morning and I was practically celebrating the short break. As I walked through Wal-Mart, I found myself smiling, and as I went through the check-out line (with only a toilet bowl brush..the fact that I went into Wal-Mart and came out with one item is just strange...) I cheerfully asked the clerk "Are you having fun today?" "Oh yes," she said with a smile, "I have fun everyday. Life is too short not to have fun!" We exchanged some more lighthearted chit-chat and as I started toward the exit, I called out a chipper "Have a great day!" to a very bored-looking Wal-Mart greeter. Suddenly I heard a voice. Turning to look, I saw a Wal-Mart worker - a middle-aged man in a wheelchair. Pointing his finger at me he said, "Hey, you keep smiling. It's really working for ya!" I don't exactly remember how I responded (I believe I said a quick "Thanks!'). What I do remember is smiling clear all the way out to my car in the parking lot. The truth is, he just about made my day. I've thought a lot about his statement these past few weeks. That man had given me a great gift - his cheerful disposition, his encouraging words, and his gentle reminder that a smile can be a gateway to joy for everyone we meet. Now, I'm not saying that we can always be in a state of constant peppiness and perkiness....there are times and situations that call for gravity and decorum. And there are days when the stress of life seems to squeeze us from all sides. However, as a child of God, I believe that I am called to live this life here on earth in a joy-filled manner. God is the author of laughter, joy, and FUN!! So, keep smiling - it's really working for ya!

P.S. K-Bug took this picture of me with her Fisher-Price digital camera..hence the reason it's a little blurry. Nothing makes me smile like my own sweet girl telling me "Smile Mommy! I'm going to take your picture!"

Lens Of Truth ( & His Love)

Before my dear hubby and I had two adorable children filling up all of our spare minutes with their endless energy, we were a couple of cute, clueless DINKS living in our little apartment, dwelling in an endless cycle of newlywed love. Part of that cycle included my dear hubby's gaming systems from years past (NOTE: my hubby drools over the new Nintendo Wii every time we go to Costco..could "Wii" get one soon?? Given the fact that he has two daughters who would rather host tea parties and play dress-up does not give him many votes in his favor...maybe his sweet wife will surprise him for his birthday??)
Anyway, one of his favorite games used to be The Legend of Zelda - Majora's Mask. There are a lot of illustrations that I could talk endlessly about, based on the fact that the lead character (Link) morphs into whatever mask he is wearing BUT...(resist the urge, Stacy, resist the urge) I won't go there.
Instead, what is coming to mind tonight is a particular item that Link uses throughout his travels in the game. It is called "The Lens Of Truth" What looks like a pair of pink goggles allows Link to see things that he couldn't see before, fuzzy things become clear, etc. One memorable part of the game has Link using the goggles to "see" an otherwise invisible suspension bridge - the only way out of an otherwise snow-filled moutain.
Of course, the obvious thing to point out is that my Lens of Truth is the one and only Book. God's Word. Many of you know that my dear hubby and I are wrestling with several large life-change decisions right now - should we stay, should we go, should we start this, should we stop that....etc...etc...etc... and with every fiber of my being I am asking God to show us a a way where there appears not be one, and to make what seems fuzzy very clear. And, I know He will. He (God) takes it one step further though - He is so MUCH MORE CONCERNED about our realtionship with Him then He is about us running around in endless little circles trying to "figure out" what His will for our life is.
My dear hubby and I have been doing Experiencing God together- and I just have to say it TOTALLY ROCKS OUT LOUD!! The author of Experiencing God had this to say about our lvoe relationship with Christ, and taking a time-out for God each day - "Early each day, I have an appointment with God. I often wonder what happens when the God who loves me comes to meet me there. How does He feel when He asks "Henry, where are you?" and I am just not there. I have found this to be true in my own walk with the Lord: I keep that time alone with God, not in order to have a relationship, BUT [emaphsis mine] because I have a relationship." (Experiencing God, pg. 49)
If you are a child of God, then you have the relationship with Him already. Meet with Him because He loves you, desires to know you, and yes, even tell you about all of the good things He's got going on all around you.
And, you know, that little Zelda guy DOES run around collecting little hearts to increase his life points, SO, you know if he, like, uses the Lens of Truth, like, all the time then he can do better and get more hearts which is really, you know, like increasing his love realtionship, and if we use our Lens of Truth all the time then we can like, you know, get all of our little hearts and.....Ok, ok the game illustration is dead now.... GAME OVER.... [*groan*]
Oh boy, folks, it IS late....
Goodnight and Blessings to everyone...

Ten Random Things...

So, my friend Tracy challenged me to come up with ten random things about myself. So, here is a list of things you may or may-not know about me..
1. My last name was the same before and after I got married.
This obviously made dealing with Social Security a breeze (seeing as how I never had to). To make things even stranger, my dear hubby and my brother also share the same first name, so they are twinkies in every way.
2. I am a college football junkie
Yup..it's true. I keep up with the whole college season, and could spend my entire Saturday just blissfully watching college ball on TV. My favorite teams are OU (Sooners), Ohio State (Buckeyes), Texas (Longhorns), and Notre Dame (Fighting Irish). My good friend Jess (also a college football junkie) and I even went to a ASU vs Oregon Ducks game this past season!! (ASU IS SO GOING TO WIN THIS NEXT SEASON. GO DEVILS!!)
3. Twila Paris is my cousin
Not making this one up...cross my heart! She is albeit a somewhat distant cousin, but a cousin nonetheless on my Mom's side of the family. I have met her and have a signed CD that says From Your Cousin Twila. Now everyone knows where I get my good looks and on-pitch singing voice. :) I had been a big fan of Twila's music before I ever knew we were related - go Twila!
4. I sleep with four pillows at night
I should also mention that one of the four is a double-sized body pillow, bought for me by my dear hubby when I was preggie with my last daughter. My dear hubby sleeps with THREE body pillows and one regular, making for a combo of eight pillows in our queen sized bed. We are all very um...cozy.. I absolutely CAN'T SLEEP WITHOUT MY PILLOWS!! Seriously, the last trip my hubby and I took together we packed an extra suitcase full of nothing but our pillows (thus also confirming our status as King & Queen of Strangeness)
5. I am a total night owl
My friend Tracy wrote this one about herself, but it is totally true of me as well. MORNINGS HATE ME, and I'm not really a big fan of them either. I have had to change my habits a bit, as my girls are up and ready to go early in the morning, but my average bed-time is still around 11:30 p.m .each night...sometimes later. I love these late-night hours of reading, doing my quiet time, and tonight - blogging! :)
6. I spent a semester at ASU playing in the steel drum band
Some of you already know this random fact about me, but for those of you who don't, you may not picture me as the steel drum, reggae playing kind of girl. I had to have a music combo credit in college, and this was one of the only things open for me to take. However, I abosolutely fell in love with playing, and would have continued indefinitely if I'd been able to. I was part of the large group combo called The Steel Pan Devils. Besides playing concerts at school, we also did "extra" gigs for banquets, etc. It was in a word - SO MUCH FUN!!
7. Rock-climbing is my favorite "sport"
When I was sixteen, I spent a week back-packing in the White Mountains in Wyoming. Part of that adventure included rock-climbing and rappelling. I am NOT what you would consider athletic (although I did come in second place at the hula hoop contest at my women's retreat last fall...) I fell in love with rockclimbing from the start. I have done some real rock climbing in Tuscon and various locations throughout Arizona, but hardly any since I've had my children. Somehow the idea of hauling all of my pasty white flab up the side of a cliff isn't as appealing (or as easy) as it used to be. However, my friend Teri (who just so happens to be a super in-shape physical therapist) has it in her mind that we should get back into the sport, as there is a brand new rock gym that just opened up near us. So, come June, we are set to climb.... pasty white flab and all.
8. Pedicures are my favorite form of pampering
I had my first pedicure a few days before my wedding, and I've been hooked ever since. I am just so blessed to have an amazing Mom who treats me every few months. Thanks to her, my tootsies are in an almost constant state of cuteness!!
9. I love, love, LOVE the Cosby Show!!
This is on my Blogger list of things that make me happy, but it is my goal to own ALL of the seaons of the Cosby Show on DVD someday (no other show makes me LOL like it does) That way, I can take Mr. Cosby with me wherever I go!!
10. My first (and last) experience with TPing someone's house ended up with a call to the police
This will be a story coming soon to a post near you...stay tuned for details..

WHEW!! This list was harder to put together than I thought.....maybe I need to diversify....
Now it's YOUR turn. I am tagging Scott over at Scott's Thoughts and my friend Theresa over at Bullfrogs & Butteflies. Go to it guys!!

Quick PMS Post

I have not been blogging lately...I always get the craving late at night (I'm a confessed night owl - Hoot,hoot) and the computer is right next to my dear hubby's side of the bed and he has this weird urge at night to do things like sleep.. which leaves my girl's naptime, when I should be doing other things like cleaning my house or rearranging my sock drawer, or making home-made double-fudge brownies ( to mail to BooMama of course www.boomama.net ). In any case, I am going to make this a short post and do my epic posting later. I got this on my e-mail and while I never foward things on, this one made me laugh out loud (or LOL for all you computer geeks) Being a PMS sufferer myself, I can relate.
12 Things PMS Stands For:
1. Pass My Shotgun
2. Psychotic Mood Shift
3. Perpetual Munching Spree
4. Puffy Mid-Section
5. People Make me Sick
6. Provide Me with Sweets
7. Pardon My Sobbing
8. Pimples May Surface
9. Pass My Sweatpants
10.Plainly; Men Suck
11. Pack My Stuff
12. Potential Murder Suspect

I truly did suffer from some awful PMS until I started taking a natural supplement for PMS sufferers called Premcal (www.premcal.com) I seriously went from Green Monster to totally tolerable within one month - my dear hubby was the first to make WILD, JOYOUS comment on this very fact (sheesh, was I that bad? I asked him...he wisely didn't say anything, but his look said it all... guess I was....although I've always thought I looked good in green. ;)

Stalling..

I started this post a few nights ago...I just now finished it.
Tonight the kiddos are in bed on time...snoring away. However, at ages two and three, both of our girls (but especially K-bug) have perfected the fine art of "stalling" when it comes to bedtime. Some nights, even after the lights go out we will find the girls "reading" books in the light of the night-light, singing songs, or just giggling at each other. Most recently, K-bug will tell us she has to get up and "go potty". Although she still wears a Pull-Up to bed, she knows that we, her well- meaning parents will give-in to most requests to use the bathroom pretty much anytime she asks (which always seems to be when we are driving down the the freeway with no bathroom anywhere close...hmmm...maybe it's a conspiracy) Soo, this is where I found myself the other night - K-bug on her little throne (a half-hour after her bedtime) and me, sitting beside her on the bathroom floor. I kept urging her to hurry and "go pee-pee" so that she could get back into bed. A few minutes into our little pow-wow on the potty, I figured out the game...just keep talking. Although I was SOO on to my little preschooler, the random subjects she was bringing up started to crack me up. I found myself keeping the dialogue going, just to see what she would say next. I can't remember verbatim, but here is brief synopsis of the conversation:
Me: I don't see any pee-pee. It's time for you to go back to bed
K-bug: No...hafta go potty still. Mommy, I go to Chuck E Cheese!
Me: Yes, we did go to Chuck-E-Cheese ( a few weeks ago for a birthday party)
K-bug: I rode the truck...up,up, up...I play the fish game and bumblebees
Me: We did have fun
K-bug: Daddy made the fans...they go round and round and round. Good job Daddy! (my dear hubby put up ceiling fans in the master bedroom and family room this past week)
Me: Daddy do do a good job
K-bug: Daddy's so silly...he's funny [insert lots of giggles here]
Me: Daddy is silly (Can't disagree with her there)
K-Bug: I got an owie on my knee...it's a big owie..."Ouch!" I need a band-aid
Me: Honey, your owie is fine. You don't need a band-aid right now. Honey, there's no pee-pee, let's go back to bed.
K-Bug: No, I hafta pee-pee. Mommy hafta go potty?
Me: No, I'm fine right now.
K-Bug: Mommy has holes right there... (she's pointing out some holes in the inner leg of my worn-out pajama pants) Is that for Mommy's pee-pee? (she want's to know if the holes are there so I can just go potty anytime I please...)
Pretty much at this point, I am holding my sides with laugther, but decide the game has gone on long enough. We finish up at the potty (with no pee-pee) and K-bug scoots back to bed. I had back to the bedroom with a smile on my face.

Plan "B"

Wow, it seems the week has flown by with all of the preparations that I did for K-bug's birthday party, as well as having two baby showers on the same weekend (I love baby showers...but that's another blog). K-bug's Curious George party was quite fun...even though things didn't quite go as planned:
It was Saturday-4:30 p.m. All of the preparations had been made for K-bug's party. The taco meat had been browned (K-bug chose the tacos, her favorite food, to serve to party guests), the presents wrapped, and the balloons blown up. Everything had been put into boxes, ready to take to the near-by park where the party was to be held. Just then the phone rang - it was my mother-in-law, telling us to go outside and look at the sky. Stepping out onto the front porch, we saw it; a huge brown cloud rapidly heading our direction. Arizona dust storms are common in the late spring/early summer and can come one quite suddenly, as this one did (the weather had been sunny and clear most of the day). Taking one look at the cloud of dust, I did what every calm, clear-thinking twenty-seven year old Mommy of two would - I went next door and cried to my Mother :) Really, the only option was to move the party inside...inside our house, our messy house that I had been cooking and doing party preparations in all day long, with nary a thought of cleaning. With less than an hour before the party was due to start, guests were called, and the house was marathon cleaned. We live in a rather smallish house, so guests were treated to a um...cozy environment. The nice part is that everyone still had a great time...most importantly, the guest of honor had a fabulous time. My dear hubby did some kids songs with the little ones on his guitar, and we had "just enough" food and chairs for everyone. The cakes were the cutest things I've EVER seen (my friend Jenny made them for K-bug) - one was a yellow hat cake, another was a George/monkey face. Jenny had even made K-bug her very own mini-cake, decorated like a monkey holding a banana. All of our freinds and family made the evening so special for Miss K-bug. Outdoors or in, small or big, it is always a blessing to be able to celebrate another year in the life of your child. I consider myself very blessed.