Thanksgiving Blessings

Happy Thanksgiving!

From our turkey table to yours! May you take the time today to reflect on everything each of us has to be thankful for. I know if we were to list them all here, it would take quite a bit of time! For the short (and most important) list though, we are thankful for our faith, our family, the love that we share for each other, our spiritual gifts, our hopes, values and dreams. May we always feel this way in our lives, not just on Thanksgiving.

Many Blessings!

The Last Day

So, although I haven't posted it here yet, many of you are already aware of our most recent blessing; I found a job! Or, more accurately, a job found me!

There are so many things I(we) am(are) grateful for in our lives, and employment is definitely one of them. Other items on the list include spending the entire summer (5+ months!) with E and really forming what I pray will be a lifelong bond with our daughter. I have memories beyond memories of this summer and plan to dedicate a future post here to all the things her and I took on as part of our normal daily and/or weekly routines.

Today is our last weekday together. With Monday as my first day (yes, I would LOVE to start on the short Thanksgiving week, sure no problem!), I will miss being with her terribly during the days. On the flip side though, there is a large part of me that knows heading back into the mix is, without a doubt, the right thing to do.

A big thank you to all of our friends who helped us out during this scaling back time. It is definitely times like this when you know who is really on your side. I received many messages this summer ranging from general encouragement to specific potential job leads. It is one of these private leads - a sort of a friend of a friend told me this once kind of deal - that ultimately led to the opportunity that played out to be my next gig. Thank you. You know who you are.

We are really looking forward to finding a new schedule and settling into our new groove. All this patient waiting has led to this moment, the start of a new chapter. We are truly blessed and could not be more thankful. As a friend of mine always says, "Praises Up, Blessings Down". Amen to that.

What Are You Staring At? Do I have Food On My Face?

So what if my favorite movie is "There's Something About Mary"?

If We Entertain You, Remind Us Not To Serve You The Rotini

American Soldiers; The Often Overlooked National Treasure

Happy Veteran's Day!

And a big thank you to anyone who has served, is currently serving, or plans to serve this great country of ours! We could not be who we are or where we are without your brave efforts!

I chose to use pictures of the Korean Memorial in Washington D.C., not to single out a specific American conflict, but rather to commemorate a family vacation once observed by us in which we had the pleasure to witness this memorial firsthand. If you have not seen it, I would highly suggest placing it on your "bucket list". It is awesome!

Another Superwoman Joins The Ranks

So the first two disguises didn’t quite work out.

The witch costume (although appropriate for our toddler at times in terms of her demeanor) with black feathers at the sleeve ends and bottom, was thinner than it looked in the package and certainly SHORTER than it looked in the package. If she were older and tried to wear something like that out of the house, she would’ve been sent “to her room” for a changin’. So it was axed. I consoled S, who had her heart set on the “littlest witch”, that there were a number of years left for E to don a pointed black hat. If you ask me this disguise just becomes more fun with age anyhow as an older child will certainly put up with green face paint and fake nose warts longer than a toddler would anyway.

The bumblebee costume, with glittery wings and antenna headband, was adorable, but only if Halloween occurred in June instead of October. The temperature was in the low 40’s, so the bee was ditched for a more practical, more outrageous, more velvety, full armed and full legged, Superwoman (or Supergirl).

Besides, I am a HUGE fan of taking the total character a bit further than just wearing the costume. I mean, a true job well done is playing the part too, right? That being said, have you ever, EVER, seen a witch run like that?

Doctor Emily came over to play on Halloween and the two girls had a blast. They also stayed up WAY past their bedtimes, but I guess that's to be expected on a year when Halloween lands on a Saturday! S made that headband to complement the outfit, which prompted one parent on "the candy circuit" to pose the question "Did Superwoman wear a headband?". Who knows. All I know is I have Superwoman for a wife and Supergirl on Halloween.

After only a few houses, she already had the routine down; get in wagon, ride to next driveway, hop out and run up to steps, climb steps, mumble something (sometimes "Trick or Treat!") and reach into candy bowl with gloves (retrieving nothing and requiring assistance), go back to wagon, hold on tight to pumpkin handle, repeat. As a parent, it was adorable. We can't wait for next year!

Spook E For Halloween

Yes that's right, it's still clearly the end of October around here. As I download pictures and video of the big night, I remembered how much fun we had decorating the place with items we were too fearful to bring out last year. This translates into our Rocketship seeing many things for the first time - parenting gold. Check out the video.

Admittedly, I knew this would give her a start, and yes, I did stage this sequence allowing her to set of the motion-activated pumpkin. It was worth every effort just to catch her reaction. Note: similar to most kids, waving her hands in the air (usually wildly) is her way of communicating "all done", or in some cases such as this, "take it away" and/or "get me out of here".

At Least TRY To Keep It On The Paper Child!

How great is this internet fad? We (okay, I) LOVE it! I mean, seriously, something that once piqued the interest of us all has morphed into the medium in which we communicate, entertain, inquire, and more! Some of us are even paying our bills online too! Yea, I think this thing may stick around!

Well, singlehandedly I am trying to make the 'net even better. I woke and realized that E's artwork could be captured online (Aha!) for the purposes of sharing AND archiving.

Two minutes on the scanning bed and voila...her first finger painting project ever, made earlier this year:

Her second. Clearly she was feeling a bit more confident with the paints on this go:

And lastly, her third. Hmm, I really see a transition here. She must be in her "blue period".

Ha ha....LOVE this 'net!

The New Deal

Even though we haven’t been on here a ton lately, there have been a lot of things going on in the background. A quick summary of the mess:

HAVE happened since last post (list condensed):

· Our Rocketship is at a full-on run almost all the time – usually with a scream as she trots down the hall. Have you ever been behind an annoying driver that was either on the gas or on the brake? Yea, she’s pretty much like that – standing or running.

· We went to the Cider Mill last weekend. E met her girlfriend Emily and the two were quite the pair running around sitting on pumpkins, going down slides, riding ponies and eating sugary donuts (mmmmm!). This is such a tradition here isn’t it? You could tell a LOT of people had the same idea because it was PACKED!

· I have pretty much been sucked in to Facebook. Yes, I know, I know, I put up the largest wall of resistance for the longest time, but remember even the toughest of stone will yield to the constant drip of water – or in this case Facebook. It is EVERYWHERE, is it not? About a year ago a friend commented that she couldn’t live just one day without hearing someone mention the site. This statement is completely true! I have to admit though, and I do it here quietly, FB is pretty interesting. If you can get by the whole “everybody knows everything-ness” of it, it can be very informative.

· E can get into ALL the doors in the house! We have those handles that are like little levers and she is in and out of everything. Funny actually because I can remember exactly we were when we decided to have those handles installed instead of traditional “knobs”. I kick myself now, but it probably would have only bought us a few more months at best.

· Our (read: My) Craigslist addiction is in full swing. Yes, partly responsible for the scarcity of content on this blog lately is the big CL. We have made many purchases this summer. I have also been working to clean out the garage and basement of unwanted items through both CL and eBay (yes, eBay, we are back together…at least until my monthly statement comes due!). We have also been selling quite a bit lately. It must be my personality type, but I just love meeting strangers through this “virtual garage sale”.

HAVE NOT happened since last post:

· Wipeout has NOT called me. Grrr…waiting patiently here!

· I have not had any job offers, yet. I am still at home, for now. There have been some great opportunities though recently and I personally feel as though I am very, very close.

· Christmas shopping (ugh!) has not begun yet even though I have seen decorations out in some stores already (including full Christmas card displays!). As usual, we will wait until there is more panic in the air. Soon the local radio station will begin broadcasting “Wall-to-Wall” Christmas music until December 26th. Last year they started BEFORE Halloween if you can believe it!

Rock That Horse, Girl!

All she needs now are plastic cowgirl boots and a plastic 10-gallon hat!

What's that? Plastic chaps?

Now, let's not get carried away...

Thai Meet Ellena, Ellena Meet Thai

So it's true, all those stories you may have heard about engineers and their love of Thai food. Wherever I have worked at, this has been the case. In some places there were certain days of the workweek devoted to Thai, as in "Oh, it's Thai-Thursday again Jim and I didn't even notice. Your turn to drive this week!"

I am also a culprit. Love it. The hotter, the better. One of the things I sacrificed when I boarded the ship to the land of unemployment was sweet, deliciously-wonderful Thai goodness.

This all changed recently. The family packed up last weekend for an "outing" to a local restaurant we had never been to. When we got there, we naturally asked if there were any child boosters on hand. Alas, there were not! But I am proud to say that our little Rocketship stood on her chair for the entire meal! She loved the appetizers, the soup and especially her noodles! Man, does she love noodles! She will definitely want to be coming back and we will be happy to take her!

Yep, 'nother one hooked Thailand. Happy?

Hope For Today, And Always

Today's hope is for our great country and anyone affected, directly or indirectly, by the attacks that occurred eight years ago today. Naturally, everyone remembers where they were "when", but how many of us also remember that many lives are still disrupted to this day? Please take a moment and lift these people up in prayer today.

We will never forget you...ever.

Explained: Cat Probability

This is, of course, according to Cheeseburger, one of our favorite internet hot spots. We (read: I) can't get enough actually now that I think about it!

Dog lovers: revert to Hot Dog for all your canine wittiness needs.

You Are A Fruitcake...Welcome To The Family!

Dear Ellena,

Today I think you should know that your mother and I have always had a pact together - yes, even before you were born - to embrace our child/children for who they really are and also for who they become. We intend to continue doing so. Always. And in these current days it seems even so much more important for us to remember this agreement. This is because as you grow and develop, we can really start to see the inner you breaking out from within.

You see, on some days you are a complete goof (most of the time actually - friends will blame one of your parents for carrying the elusive dominant goof gene!). On others, you are so into dressing up. Sometimes you are a bit needy (acceptable - and expected actually). Some days you are content to play by yourself for hours (this really helps me on my job search, btw) and others you desire to have us by your side all day. We love this about you. You are a different little person every day.

For whatever reason (not questioned), you really like to wear pajamas, a ballet princess skirt, moo shoes (a size too big still!), an outside long-sleeved hoodie (even though it is 80 degrees out) and the brown hat that was accidentally shrunk in the laundry...for hours! And then dance around and make silly faces. No problems here. We embrace your quirkiness.

Here you are on a shy day (yes, actually caught on camera! This is so very rare actually. You just backed up and leaned against the wall. Cute skirt!

And Yes, I guess in hindsight it was a mistake to let you feed yourself the spaghettio's. Oh well...no regrets here, it was still fun! And you were having fun too, just check out that smile!

We love you. And yes, you fit right in.

Recipe: Chunky Tomato Salad

Here’s a salad-alternative recipe you will find helpful if you have a garden that produces more medium-to-large tomatoes than you know what to do with! It is easy, light, different, and perfect for this time of year! It has become a favorite around here. Check it out!

Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 0 minutes
Serves: 4

Ingredients:
2 large tomatoes, preferably heirloom, seeded and coarsely chopped
¼ cup chopped fresh basil
2 shallots, finely chopped
2 teaspoons lemon juice
2 teaspoons olive oil
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon black pepper

Directions:
Are you ready for this? Simply toss together the tomatoes, basil, shallots, lemon juice, olive oil, salt, and pepper directly into the serving bowl you plan to use. This salad is especially tasty if chilled in the fridge before eaten. Enjoy!

The Triple-Orange Daylily Bulbs: Revisted

Back in May, we posted about Grandma Gigi's Texas Garden. Remember, she had the orangest daylilies ever? When she visited us last year, just after E was born, she brought some of these lilies up with her. I believe she may have even snuck them on the plane (sorry TSA!).

During her stay, she "nursed" these bulbs & stems in a pan of water of our deck where they could receive the best sunlight. Then they were planted. After she left I watched and waited for something I could report out on, but nothing came. I was concerned the neighborhood deer might have found them irresistible because I never saw a thing, but I was told it would take just over a year for the blooms (I guess good things DO come to those who are patient...).

Well, the good news did come! One has popped up to say hi! Perhaps I am just getting older, but I was prompted to ask her about the exact history of this flower, especially since I knew it had some family meaning. Here, in Grandma Gigi's own words is the account of the Triple-Orange:

~~~~~

My mother loved flowers. It didn't matter what kind they were, as long as they bloomed, they grew in her yard. I think I was about 8 years old that spring when she found the triple-orange daylily bulbs in a seed catalog. They were expensive, & we were on a limited income, so she told me we'd have to save our money. One day she said we had enough, so we ordered them. I remember "helping" her fill out the order form, then I got to carry the envelope out to the mail box. I think I was as excited as she was about them. She would look every day for the bulbs to arrive in the mail, & one day, there they were. I remember the package being kind of bulky - the mail box wouldn't even shut all the way! I carried the package very carefully. I was kind of disappointed when she removed those ugly brown bulbs from the package; was this what all the fuss was about? Mother told me that we'd have to wait for a little while, but the wait would be worth it. We planted them the same day we received them. Mother had so many other daylilies - all colors & shapes, but she said THESE were special; the blooms were to have a triple layer of petals on each blossom & be a beautiful bright orange! They came up right on schedule, but I had to wait the rest of that year, plus part of the next spring, before they finally sent up tall, green bloom shoots. I watched the buds grow fat. One morning there were three opened, & they were everything the seed catalog (& mother) said they'd be! Yes, they were worth the wait! Mother called all her friends & told them to come see them. Such are memories made of. I found that those triple-orange daylilies proved to be very user-friendly. They are healthy & hardy, & I found that they would grow in all types of soil. Through the years I've made it a point of carrying a bulb or two of those lilies to just about every place I've ever lived, & left them for the future owner to enjoy. I have also made it a tradition to bring them to family, no matter WHERE they live! Every time I see a bloom, I'm taken back to that summer when I was a child & "me & mommy" planted daylilies together.

~~~~~
Here are pictures of the actual flower, which has bloomed here in our backyard.

In a digital age of .jpg's and txt msgs, we are elated to know there are still physical objects that can be "passed down", or better yet "planted". What does your family pass down from one generation to the next?

To Another Six...

Dear S,

I certainly can't properly express my feelings for you here, but I can say that the last six years have been the best part of the ride so far. If I think back to our wedding day, I remember trying to predict the future with you. I never, ever could have seen something so bright as what we have - a wonderfully happy marriage, a beautiful & energetic little girl, a strong & growing faith and commitment towards our Lord and each other - it seems so unreal. But I know that it is. I look forward to another six (and more!) with you. I know the best is yet to come. I love you.

Yours,

L

The Sack Lunches

Naturally, email forwards clog our inbox as we are sure do yours. Few are deemed worth sharing, but this one though, true or not, definitely is. It is also very timely considering a neighbor of our street just had their son return from a tour in Iraq. Perhaps today will be the day we stroll down there to thank him...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The Sack Lunches

I put my carry-on in the luggage compartment and sat down in my
assigned seat. It was going to be a long flight. I'm glad I have a
good book to read. Perhaps I will get a short nap, I thought.
Just before take-off, a line of soldiers came down the aisle and
filled all the vacant seats, totally surrounding me. I decided to
start a conversation.

"Where are you headed?" I asked the soldier seated nearest to me.

"Petawawa. We'll be there for two weeks for special training, and then
we're being deployed to Afghanistan."

After flying for about an hour, an announcement was made that sack
lunches were available for five dollars. It would be several hours
before we reached the east, and I quickly decided a lunch would help
pass the time. As I reached for my wallet, I overheard a soldier ask his buddy if he planned to buy lunch.

"No, that seems like a lot of money for just a sack lunch. Probably wouldn't be worth five bucks. I'll wait till we get to base."

His friend agreed. I looked around at the other soldiers. None were buying lunch. I walked to the back of the plane and handed the flight attendant a fifty dollar bill.

"Take a lunch to all those soldiers." She grabbed my arms and squeezed tightly. Her eyes wet with tears, she thanked me.

"My son was a soldier in Iraq; it's almost like you are doing it for
him." Picking up ten sacks, she headed up the aisle to where the soldiers
were seated.

Then she stopped at my seat and asked, "Which do you like better - beef or chicken?"

"Chicken," I replied, wondering why she asked. She turned and went to the front of plane, returning a minute later with a dinner plate from first class. "This is your thanks."

After we finished eating, I went again to the back of the plane,
heading for the rest room. A man stopped me. "I saw what you did.
I want to be part of it. Here, take this." He handed me twenty-five dollars.

Soon after I returned to my seat, I saw the Flight Captain coming down
the aisle, looking at the aisle numbers as he walked. I hoped he was
not looking for me, but noticed he was looking at the numbers only on
my side of the plane. When he got to my row he stopped, smiled, held out his hand, and said, "I want to shake your hand."

Quickly unfastening my seat belt I stood and took the Captain's hand.
With a booming voice he said, "I was a soldier and I was a military pilot.
Once, someone bought me a lunch. It was an act of kindness I never forgot." I was embarrassed when applause was heard from all of the passengers.

Later I walked to the front of the plane so I could stretch my legs.
A man who was seated about six rows in front of me reached out his
hand, wanting to shake mine. He left another twenty-five dollars in my palm.

When we landed I gathered my belongings and started to deplane. Waiting just inside the airplane door was a man who stopped me, put something in my shirt pocket, turned, and walked away without saying a word. Another twenty-five dollars!

Upon entering the terminal, I saw the soldiers gathering for their trip
to the base. I walked over to them and handed them seventy-five dollars. "It will take you some time to reach the base. You will be wanting another sandwich. God Bless You."

Ten young men left that flight feeling the love and respect of their
fellow travelers. As I walked briskly to my car, I whispered a
prayer for their safe return. These soldiers were giving their all
for our country. I could only give them a couple of meals .... it seemed so little.

********

A veteran is someone who, at one point in his life, wrote a blank check
made payable to, "The United States of America", for an amount, "up to and
including my life."

That is the meaning of Honor .....

Look Out, Rachel Ray!

Oh boy, do you have competition coming, girl! E spends time in her kitchen every day! Chopping. Mixing. Baking. Souffle-er-ing. (also chucking, jumping and emptying, but we won't talk about those here!) She's getting good, too. So, for the record, you've just been put on notice!

Superman To The Rescue!

We went to visit Rocketship's cousin's - Mickenzie & Cole - who were in town for a few days; spontaneously stopping on the way over for ice cream (caution: summer will do that to you!)

It was E's first time having ice cream and it just seemed appropriate to select the flavor Superman to mark the event! Any correlation between the Superman colors and E's outfit were merely coincidental!

Surprisingly, she only had about a dozen extremely-excited bites, then like a switch flipped downward she was done! Hmm, okay, more Superman for the 'rents!

Then it was off to perform one of her most talented maneuvers; gathering rocks by the handful and transporting them to new locations!

Here are E and her cousins (Cole upper, Mick lower), together and astonishingly still enough for a group picture:

Look Who's Mallin'

Here is another "dead" post from the "drafts" folder. I vividly remember taking this picture for the blog, probably about 6 months ago. We were at the mall and this was the first time Rocketship (little e) wanted to sit up in her stroller versus the usual reclined position.

She sat up and observed the surroundings the entire time we were there. She even wanted to lean forward, so I eventually found myself unbuckling the seat belt, until she almost fell out of the front! Oops, I guess those belts really were there for a reason!

I just remember thinking this was such a big change for her. And it was - she hasn't been the same at the mall since. She really, REALLY enjoys it! I believe I overheard someone once describing that as normal behavior for a little girl!

"Starlight", as made famous by the band Muse

"Starlight"

Far away
This ship is taking me far away
Far away from the memories
Of the people who care if I live or die

Starlight
I will be chasing the starlight
Until the end of my life
I don't know if it's worth it anymore

Hold you in my arms
I just wanted to hold
You in my arms

My life
You electrify my life
Let's conspire to re-ignite
All the souls that would die just to feel alive

But I'll never let you go
If you promised not to fade away
Never fade away

Our hopes and expectations
Black holes and revelations
Our hopes and expectations
Black holes and revelations

Hold you in my arms
I just wanted to hold
You in my arms

Far away
This ship is taking me far away
Far away from the memories
Of the people who care if I live or die

And I'll never let you go
If you promise not to fade away
Never fade away

Our hopes and expectations
Black holes and revelations
Our hopes and expectations
Black holes and revelations

Hold you in my arms
I just wanted to hold
You in my arms
I just wanted to hold

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I love music. I mean, I REALLY love music. Those of you that know me (really know me) already know that. I have always been attracted to that little piece of our brain that tells us if we like a certain song or melody. Isn't that crazy? I mean we usually know this after hearing only a snippet of the work!

I believe most people like a song if they find the tune catchy or if they've heard it enough it becomes familiar to them. Personally, I feel as though there are two reasons to find a song desirable, either I like the tune or I like the lyrics. A "flawless" song for me captures my attention on both accounts.

I chose to post these Muse lyrics for that last reason. No matter how many times I enjoy this song, I have no reason to discount it from the status of "flawless".

What's in YOUR catalogue under the "flawless" heading? Share it here.

Heart-melter Rating: 10

"Please" is the newest word/phrase most commonly heard at our household. I do believe we enjoy it more than anything else E has spoken to date, yes even including "mama" or "dada".

Here is a sampling:

Long Walks on the Deck

From the "Office of Future Thinking"

Ah...okay, so we are really reconsidering our decision to locate both the pool AND the sandbox within eye shot of each other. Tennis match anyone? Um, yea, more to come on that later.

Don't Mess With Texas - Part III

Alert: post-lost-in-the-Draft-folder! Repeat; post-lost-in-the-Draft-folder!

It just occurred to me to scrounge around in all the blog drafts I (we) have begun, but have never seen the light of day. Imagine my surprise when I uncovered this one; the third and final installment from our San Antonio / Houston getaway from earlier in the year!

Hmm...let me see if I can remember what we did. Just kidding, we had such a good time, I will never forget!

After arriving at "Auntie" Megan and "Uncle" Drew's home in Houston, Grandma Gigi babysat little E (much littler at the time!) while this fearless foursome navigated the Houston traffic and experienced the World Renowned Houston Rodeo.

For years we had heard about the sheer size of this event, but it seriously needs to be witnessed firsthand to be believed! There were people everywhere (repeating this; EVERYWHERE!), but oddly enough it wasn't the kind of crowd that annoys easily. It was more of a large group just eating & drinking, enjoying the sun and hanging out. There was a lot of denim jeans on hand; many with chewing tobacco rings in the rear pockets.

The livestock building was stuffed with prize-winning animals of all breeds (BTW, I had two preemptive zanax to keep my esophagus open!), an exhibit where live animal births could be witnessed (from chicken eggs to cows!), and historic tractors galore (both restored and un-restored!)

The roof of this massive structure contains a split in it and it opens in both the North & South directions, like the sunroof on a car!

Inside the large building we found our seats and enjoyed the bulls & blood, dust & mud, the roar of the Sunday crowd....oops oh wait, that's a Garth Brooks song! But that's what they call it...they call the thing rodeo!

Among other things, the events menu included chuck wagon races, bull riding, and lassoing. But the highlight of the evening, yes maybe even more entertaining than the highly-talented, easy-on-the-eyes Taylor Swift concert, was the mutton bustin'! If you've never seen this event before, let me tell you, it is highly entertaining. Picture little kids in protective helmets, elbow and chest pads riding sitting on the backs of sheep and hanging on to their necks tight as the sheep race across an open area. It was nuts! I am almost tempted to create a future post on mutton busting alone!

Auntie Megan with little E! I remember hearing (perhaps in my head) "Quick, take a picture, Megan is holding Ellena!"

Uncle Drew and E watching the tube, probably ESPN's Sportscenter!

Playing in the yard. Hey this grass is different from our grass at home - it's green! Yeah, thanks for noticing honey.

And I'm down. Little help here!

In the shuttle on the way back to the valu-parking lot. Take a look at those little red eyes! Yes pun'kin, we pretty much always feel this way after a vacation. It was a fun experience, but it's nice to be back home! If I remember correctly, she was asleep before we paid to have the car released from the lot!

Summer is Here: Pontoon Boat Experience

Have I mentioned yet how much I love having an open schedule?

E and I were able to visit a whole gaggle of good friends this week. We met some at the park earlier in the week (J and K shout out!). Then we went to see a new 8-day old little baby (Charlie) that was the 3rd (LwH opinion: YiKeS!) for another set of friends. And finally, the "work" week was capped off for us as we visited one of E's little girlfriends, Emily.

Emily's dad Brian - a friend of mine since high school - had knee surgery earlier in the week, so we stopped by as an excuse to let the girls play together. Emily and Ellena, about 6 months apart, with Emily being older) get along great together.


Emily invited Ellena out of "her" pontoon boat for a few laps on the lake. Now for us, Summer officially begins when we get to go on a boat!

E had only been on a boat one other time (last summer with the Walley's) and she really loved being on the water. She seemed to take to all the running around and looking over the railing that can be had by a child on a pontoon boat.

Hey! What are you doing? You're all OVER the place! And no, you can't drive! Not yet anyways...

Watching Pooh together on television. When the mecca of accurate future prediction, the 8-ball, was cornered and asked "will E&E be BFFs?", the response was "Yes, Definitely".

E is for Everyday!

That's how often we take time to go outside and play; everyday. Sometimes we play in the yard (as you can see, she loves the fountain!), sometimes we play at local parks or school structures (now that they are vacant during the day), and sometimes we just stop at places that look fun or interesting.

Where I once thought staying at home would muffle me a bit, I am still amazed at how it has instead increased my "bubble" of knowledge. I am now capable of reciting the opening time of Costco, a list of "good" parks in the general immediate area (including hours and whether the restroom contains that plastic baby changing shelf...very helpful), sunscreen expiration times, and expected afternoon weather conditions.

No matter where we end up however, or how often we play and walk around, the results are similar (See below). She gets a-tuckered.

My Summer Obsession: Wipeout!

I wholeheartedly believe that everyone deserves to have a Summer Obsession, you know, something they can completely submerse themselves in, head over heels, for a short-lived sun-fueled love affair. For 2009, mine is the television show Wipeout.

If you haven't seen this show, I highly recommend checking it out. It has everything you could ever want in a show! Giant obstacle course? Check. Water? Check. Mud? Check? Fire? Check. Foam-covered, colorfully padded surfaces? Check. Enormous red balls? Check. Sometimes out-of-shape contestants that have no business near a giant obstacle course? Check. Humor? Check. Oh and let's not forget the actual wipeouts! Face plants. Check. Gravity-defying feats? Of course! Back-bending spills? You betcha!

Every Wednesday, I find myself counting down the hours until Wipeout is on the air! I can't quite explain it, but I have such a deep pull to this show. An attraction SO great in fact, that after it aired last night I consciously awoke to find myself submitting my online application!

I would love to challenge the water luge, the wall of fists and, or course the sweeper arm in the final Wipeout Zone!

Cross your fingers!

Q: What is YOUR Summer Obsession? It can be anything that has crept into your veins this Summer! Share it with us!

The Good Kind of Waiting

E and I have really been enjoying our time together lately and I truly feel blessed to be doing the Lord's work. A friend and mother of one (soon two!) stretched our thinking last year at a small group encounter by describing that when the housework and baby work became a bit overwhelming, she would try to remember that everything she was doing was both for her and the baby (and her husband) but it was also for the Lord. Clearly this made an impact on me because not only do I remember the conversation, but I feel this way today, not to mention I am sharing and passing it on here with you. I mean, when you stop and think about it, it makes real sense, doesn't it?

We are in a period of "waiting" right now. Anyone who has been "waiting" before knows what I mean and can relate to the process. The most peculiar part of waiting this time is the sense of peace. Although this is not solely about me, I happen to find myself very restful with where I am today. This just goes to backup the ideology that we are all exactly where we are supposed to be. At times like these, there is something very comforting about a growing faith. We really do live with hope, and it has opened our perspectives.