Does Diego look perplexed? Like he's had a rough week? It's probably because I caught him sharing cheerios with his cousin yesterday ("And one for YOU..." clued me in on what was happening). Problem was, it was the 4 1/2 week old cousin he was sharing with. (We are so lucky that cousin is a third child, or we'd be disowned). "Mama", he protested as I frantically swept my nephew's mouth, "the baby needs to EAT. Not just milk!"
Fast forward to this morning. Somehow, he managed to wedge his spoon inside his lower teeth. Yes, wedge it. Much screaming and tugging ensued, my mind flashing to how well this one was going to go over in the emergency room. The spoon finally came loose, and I extracted a promise that he would simply eat his food without any further experimentation in utensil management.
Now running late, we went to get dressed. It's costume day at school. I endured arguments that Diego does NOT wear a long sleeved shirt (it obviously isn't 45 degrees in the South American Jungle, or wherever he hangs out), he does NOT wear jeans (I decided that this one wasn't worth fighting), and that he DOES wear BROWN PANTS (!) (That one I won by pulling out a picture of Diego).
We got to preschool and I, camera in tow, began to walk into his class. "You CAN'T come in, Mama...you don't have a costume!".
I gave up, dropped him off and treated myself to a coffee and a productive morning of work for the elementary school's fall festival.
I figured the ban on costume-less mamas didn't extend to the parade, so I grabbed my camera, and got there to find (of course) that my child was the reluctant, overwhelmed parade marcher (feet-dragger? teacher-clinger? costume slogger?).
Here he is deciding if he's going to join the sweet, cooperative children in lining up for a group photo...
Oh, and I also got to have lunch with Rebekah and the Sweet Tea gang today...it was wonderful to see her again.
But, if you're curious, I'm hanging out here this week.
- It's official. The TQ can no longer be called the "Tween Queen". Henceforth (well, starting at 3:40pm yesterday), she's the "Teen Queen". She turned thirteen yesterday--much to her delight. At least now she doesn't appear to be the youngest person in her high school program--until they all turn fourteen or fifteen this year.
In light of the recent chaos in our household (we're still in temporary housing and there was an out of town tournament for EJ this weekend), we skipped the party in favor of a yummy dinner at Maggiano's with the family (plus Aunt Sarah, Mr. Dave, and Amanda!). She also managed to clean up on presents--who knew lacrosse sticks came in screaming teal ?? In her own words, her birthday was "awesome"--and she's not done celebrating. She and her friend are off to the Reliant K concert in a few weeks.
- I had a wonderful time sharing with the ladies of Family Life Church. I'll come to breakfast with them any day. What an encouraging way to spend a Saturday morning.
- Go Florida Strikers! The boys played in their first "A" level tournament, and competed against teams who usually play a division up from them. They came in a very respectable second place. EJ's game is really developing (and was kindly noticed by the father of a guest player who hadn't seen him play in a couple of months). As much as EJ enjoyed the tournament, I think he enjoyed the night away with his dad even more.
- I'm missing all of my Autumn decorating madness. I'll be happy to get back into our lovely, freshly painted (inside and out), re-floored and impeccably restored home sometime next week (the kitchen will be done in a few weeks when the cupboards arrive)! The remodeling team has been wonderful, leaving NO mess behind for me to clean up, so after I finish putting things to rights, I'll be able festoon the place with leaves and pumpkins.
- Our church family continues to amaze me. We received a lovely (and generous) gift card yesterday that will help defray the cost of a new washer. As silly and paranoid as it sounds, I'm just not up to the emotional challenge of "fixing" ours and continuing to live with it. As things stand, I may never leave the house again while the wash is running... I'm so grateful for the love of the Body.
Donating a book to the Women's ministry at Family Life: $17.50
Profit on the half-dozen books sold at the function--probably a wash
Being able to encourage(and be encouraged by) a group of godly women: Absolutely Priceless
Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. --Matthew 6:19-20
It's been a LONG time since I've done one of these, but it seems like a good focusing tool today.1. I have a roof over my head. As I watch/read/listen to the news, I realize that we're fortunate to have a place to call home, even we've been temporarily displaced. Let's face it. Four bedrooms, a HUGE kitchen, and a isn't exactly roughing it (especially after a week of living in our home with all of the dryers/dehumidifiers blowing circuits and roaring around the clock).
2. Nothing of true importance was damaged. My daughter took the hardest hit, as her mattress is toast, most of her shoes were ruined, and her backpack full of homework and notes was soaked--but we've been able to replace or dry out most of her stuff. My irreplacables--my photo albums and files--were either high and dry, or we were able to backup.
3.I'm getting new kitchen cabinets. I've always felt my kitchen was cramped and dark...the new cupboards are much more "me".
4. We're getting new flooring. The carpet was toast before we moved in, so this can only be a good thing...and it will eventually only be good for resale (I hope).
5.Our restoration company has thrown in some little fixes here and there that we simply haven't gotten around to in the past year and a half.
6.People have been kind and compassionate. We've had friends from church do our laundry (and we generate a LOT of laundry), lend a hand with the kids, and bring us yummy dinners.
7.My children are resilient and have their priorities straight. Both older children have made the statement that this is pretty much nothing compared to sarcoma!
8.God is using my little book. Just today two people told me that He used it to speak to them, and it really met them right where they were at (oh, and that it sounds just like me talking! Good job, Keith and Libby, looks like you met your goal on that one!).
9. Opportunities to share about the book are slowly starting to come in. Tonight, I was invited to share at the preschool parent association meeting and set up a book table there. Next week, I get to share at my home church service and at our women's meeting.
10. While a bit battered in spirit, there's nothing wrong with my body right now. I'm happy to be able to stress manage at the gym, over the sewing machine, and volunteering at the kids' schools.
11.I'm being given the chance (again!) to practice patience as I wait for the insurance company to respond, wait for our finances to straighten out, wait for the restoration to progress...
12. My husband has cheerfully served his family throughout our ordeal and is wading through forests of red tape for us while still shouldering his full commute/work load.
13. "My circumstances are not my truth". I wrote this in my Bible study notebook just a few days before "Hurricane Kenmore". It remains a valid statement.
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