(Aidan's) Monday 10

So today my devotions were Psalm 19:14 "Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart Be acceptable in Your sight, O LORD, my rock and my Redeemer."

And today I am choosing to think about positive things with Aidan because he has had a few bad episodes today, I know his heart is good. I know I can easily go down a path of finding all the bad but I'm not. I'm stopping to reflect on the good.

So here are Aidan's top Monday 10 just for him...

1. Laying in bed with him and listening to him explain his lego boxes. "The street sweeper guy has the same shirt as the garbage truck guy but they have different faces and different hats."
2. Watching him do a "y-turn" with his jeep in the driveway and him totally getting it.
3. Aidan seeing Strawberry Shortcake fruit snacks in the grocery store and wanting to get them for his (girl) friends.
4. Bringing me a leaf in from the backyard and telling me it's for when I pray.
5. Looking out the back door and seeing him sitting on top of his cozy coupe just chilling.
6. Calling Micah "bub-buh"
7. Telling me "that's great mom".
8. His questions of life..."how does the lawn mower cut the lawn?"
9. Telling me all about how he wants to be a daddy when he grows up.
10. Cinnamon Toast.

A Bicycle Made For 3?

In an effort to be more green around here we have started biking more. Jeremy has been commuting to work on his bike, and we have integrated family bike rides into our everyday life...grocery shopping was even attempted and successful! One night last week I was out for the night so Jeremy took matters into his own hands and hooked the boys up one after another. Aidan on his new tag along bike (total hit) and Mikey in the Burley. They had a grand time going to the parks (yes multiple) and getting donuts from the gas station. It just goes to show that we don't need a mini van after all :)

Nature Walk right here in Littleton

Ok...we have been back a week now and still haven't posted our trip. We have been too busy looking for new ultralight gear (especially packs), checking out books from the library on the Colorado Trail, and playing in the sprinklers in the backyard.

I (Rach) am still processing how to merge the desire of selling it all and move to the mountains with the reality of jobs, kids, house, and life. But if nothing else our trip helped us get back to the heart of us and why we ventured out West in the first place. That being said I took the boys out for a nature walk this week in an effort to get outside right where we are.

Here are some pictures of our adventure.

Countdown...

It's now 2 days till vacation and there is something magical about the anticipation of getting ready for a trip. Something about making the lists and checking things off. Getting stuff in place to go.
It's even great to say..."I'll call you when I get back."

Just Jeremy and I are heading off into the wilderness for a week. No wonder I am giddy. Boys get a week with Grandma Faye and we get a week to be together. Good stuff.

I'll post when we get back :)

AIDANNNN !!

Here I am eating lucky charms and listening to Def Leppard thinking I should post this before I forget...

Anyway last Thursday Aidan had his "pre-school" graduation and we went to watch him sing songs with his class...not knowing I was about to witness one of the most precious moments yet between my boys.

So I am sitting in the pews with Micah standing on my lap (Jeremy is playing guitar) and Aidan walks up with his class. And I hear Micah calling out AIDANNNN! AIDANNN!! He keeps calling it over and over and when Aidan sees his brother cheering for him he BEAMS...I mean not just happy but he was so excited that his brother was there for him. And they make eye contact and you can tell they are there for each other. It was priceless. Totally cool. Good stuff to remember especially on those days when you need reminders (we all do right moms?).

Aidan's class. He is on the far left 2nd row striped shirt (no hat...not a conformist in any way).

Aidan and his teacher Miss Chris. She's been perfect...I couldn't have asked for a better fit for him this year.

Monday 10

After an insanely busy weekend I'm dragging this morning...so I thought remembering the good stuff would help get me going. Happy Monday to all.

1. A fridge full of food.
2. Saving 45% on groceries.
3. Micah staying in his "new bed".
4. Coffee.
5. The library.
6. Hamburgers on the grill.
7. Jeremy.
8. Psalm 13 and the "big but".
9. A way cool park that we found to play at.
10. Water.

Ok I'm off...

Darn Good Quote

Sometimes God calms the storm ... Sometimes He lets the storm rage and calms the child. Author Unknown

(I thought of you on this one my quote friend :))

Savoring...

Jeremy and my word for the year is disciple and my personal word for the year is savor. Lately I have been realizing how when Aidan was Micah's age (now) I expected so much more from him. So I went back and looked at old pictures of Buddy to make me savor...so I don't make the same mistake again.

Here they are (with a recent picture of his first sleepover, yes...it's a girl :))

Aidan 9 months old and flying...

McDonalds with Daddy. Saturday morning tradition.

A rare moment of sleeping in my arms.

His first sleepover(at his house) with his friend Jamie. And yes they actually slept!

What Defines You?

Define: " To determine the precise signification of; to fix the meaning of; to describe accurately; to explain; to expound or interpret; as, to define a word, a phrase, or a scientific term. "

So you knew it was coming...my deep thoughts. I've been doing some soul searching, discussion and Bible reading and find myself asking others (and myself) this question a lot. What defines you? Is it your job? Your relationships? The church you go to? Where you live? The size jeans you wear? Who your parents were?...
The list could go on and on and if I allow myself to be defined by these things I will constantly be like the waves.... because man in the last 4 years a lot of those (all) have changed. So I need to be grounded in truth. All of those things shape me, but define me? Nah... I want my heart to be what describes me. A heart for God, my husband, my children. So much of the scripture focused on our heart. A change of heart, loving with all our heart (Matthew 22:37), a contrite heart (David in Psalm 51:17), Onesimus to Paul (Philemon 12) or those that have a hardening of the heart (Pharaoh in Exodus 4:21).

On that note the following is a commencement address given by the Author Anna Quindlen at Villanova University. It's a good reminder of what our "resumes" are made up of and addresses the heart. A little optimistic or dreamy but makes some good points all the same. I highlighted a couple of the best parts. So read on my friends...

It's a great honor for me to be the third member of my family to receive an honorary doctorate from this great university. It's an honor to follow my great-uncle Jim, who was a gifted physician, and my Uncle Jack, who is a remarkable businessman. Both of them could have told you something important about their professions, about medicine or commerce.

I have no specialized field of interest or expertise, which puts me at a disadvantage, talking to you today. I'm a novelist. My work is human nature. Real life is all I know. Don't ever confuse the two, your life and your work. The second is only part of the first.

Don't ever forget what a friend once wrote Senator Paul Tsongas when the senator decided not to run for reelection because he'd been diagnosed with cancer: "No man ever said on his deathbed I wish I had spent more time in the office." Don't ever forget the words my father sent me on a postcard last year: "If you win the rat race, you're still a rat." Or what John Lennon wrote before he was gunned down in the driveway of the Dakota: "Life is what happens while you are busy making other plans."

You walk out of here this afternoon with only one thing that no one else has. There will be hundreds of people out there with your same degree; there will be thousands of people doing what you want to do for a living. But you will be the only person alive who has sole custody of your life. Your particular life. Your entire life. Not just your life at a desk, or your life on a bus, or in a car, or at the computer. Not just the life of your minds, but the life of your heart. Not just your bank account, but your soul.

People don't talk about the soul very much anymore. It's so much easier to write a resume than to craft a spirit. But a resume is a cold comfort on a winter night, or when you're sad, or broke, or lonely, or when you've gotten back the test results and they're not so good.

Here is my resume: I am a good mother to three children. I have tried never to let my profession stand in the way of being a good parent. I no longer consider myself the center of the universe. I show up. I listen, I try to laugh. I am a good friend to my husband. I have tried to make marriage vows mean what they say. I show up. I listen. I try to laugh. I am a good friend to my friends, and they to me. Without them, there would be nothing to say to you today, because I would be a cardboard cutout. But call them on the phone, and I meet them for lunch. I show up. I listen. I try to laugh.

I would be rotten, or at best mediocre at my job, if those other things were not true. You cannot be really first rate at your work if your work is all you are.

So here is what I wanted to tell you today:

Get a life. A real life, not a manic pursuit of the next promotion, the bigger paycheck, the larger house. Do you think you'd care so very much about those things if you blew an aneurysm one afternoon, or found a lump in your breast? Get a life in which you notice the smell of salt water pushing itself on a breeze over Seaside Heights, a life in which you stop and watch how a red-tailed hawk circles over the water gap or the way a baby scowls with concentration when she tries to pick up a cheerio with her thumb and first finger.

Get a life in which you are not alone. Find people you love, and who love you. And remember that love is not leisure, it is work. Each time you look at your diploma, remember that you are still a student, still learning how to best treasure your connection to others. Pick up the phone. Send an e-mail. Write a letter. Kiss your Mom. Hug your Dad. Get a life in which you are generous.

Look around at the azaleas in the suburban neighborhood where you grew up; look at a full moon hanging silver in a black, black sky on a cold night.

And realize that life is the best thing ever, and that you have no business taking it for granted. Care so deeply about its goodness that you want to spread it around. Once in a while take money you would have spent on beers and give it to charity. Work in a soup kitchen. Be a big brother or sister.

All of you want to do well. But if you do not do good, too, then doing well will never be enough. It is so easy to waste our lives: our days, our hours, our minutes. It is so easy to take for granted the color of the azaleas, the sheen of the limestone on Fifth Avenue, the color of our kid's eyes, the way the melody in a symphony rises and falls and disappears and rises again. It is so easy to exist instead of live. I learned to live many years ago.

Something really, really bad happened to me, something that changed my life in ways that, if I had my druthers, it would never have been changed at all. And what I learned from it is what, today, seems to be the hardest lesson of all. I learned to love the journey, not the destination. I learned that it is not a dress rehearsal, and that today is the only guarantee you get. I learned to look at all the good in the world and to try to give some of it back because I believed in it completely and utterly. And I tried to do that, in part, by telling others what I had learned. By telling them this:

Consider the lilies of the field. Look at the fuzz on a baby's ear. Read in the backyard with the sun on your face. Learn to be happy. And think of life as a terminal illness because if you do you will live it with joy and passion, as it ought to be lived.

Well, you can learn all those things, out there, if you get a life, a full life, a professional life, yes, but another life, too, a life of love and laughs and a connection to other human beings. Just keep your eyes and ears open. Here you could learn in the classroom. There the classroom is everywhere. The exam comes at the very end. No man ever said on his deathbed I wish I had spent more time at the office. I found one of my best teachers on the boardwalk at Coney Island maybe 15 years ago. It was December, and I was doing a story about how the homeless survive in the winter months.

He and I sat on the edge of the wooden supports, dangling our feet over the side, and he told me about his schedule; panhandling the boulevard when the summer crowds were gone, sleeping in a church when the temperature went below freezing, hiding from the police amidst the Tilt a Whirl and the Cyclone and some of the other seasonal rides. But he told me that most of the time he stayed on the boardwalk, facing the water, just the way we were sitting now even when it got cold and he had to wear his newspapers after he read them.

And I asked him why. Why didn't he go to one of the shelters? Why didn't he check himself into the hospital for detox? And he just stared out at the ocean and said, "Look at the view, young lady. Look at the view."

And every day, in some little way, I try to do what he said. I try to look at the view. And that's the last thing I have to tell you today, words of wisdom from a man with not a dime in his pocket, no place to go, nowhere to be. Look at the view. You'll never be disappointed.

---

Allergies and Attitutdes

Man is anybody else out there dying these days? We are all puffy eyed and sniffling around here. Aidan seems to handling spring time allergies especially tough which means he isn't so easy to live with. Well I hope that's what is contributing to the attitude because I am out of energy as a mom, however I did get a special moment with him tonight just laying in bed and cuddling. Good reminder.

So that's my whining for now. All the other deep thoughts I have would wear us all out so I'll come back later...
Crysti, your shed sounds appealing can I move in for a couple days? :)

10 Cents

I've been meaning to post this blog for a while but life has been full. Micah ended up in urgent care on Friday night, Jeremy's dad came into town for the weekend, we cut down trees...

I'm writing this more for a scrapbook journal for someday but those of you that humor me can read on.

Anyway, as you know we have started chores around the house for Aidan and he makes money so he can buy legos. He had $19 saved in his piggy bank (still some left from birthday money). And so we went to the store on Friday to pick out his newest purchase. He chose a Mars Mission space thing for $9.99 and then he decided that Micah also needed something so he preceded to help us look for a Woody (from Toy Story) for Micah. All him. No prompting. Just a little boy taking care of his brother. And then to top it off when Micah wanted some Goldfish he offered to pay for that too. When we went to check out he had .10 cents remaining. Man I wish I had a heart like that. To give willingly. And give all I had. I love that my little boy can teach me lessons, I still have a lot to learn.

Good Stuff Snow and all.

Despite the snow here are my top 10 things to be thankful for today.

1. Coffee. Always coffee.
2. A new girly fun summer purse.
3. Flowers budding randomly all over the nasty front yard.
4. Homemade salsa by Jeremy.
5. New music from my cousin.
6. New green socks from my cousin.
7. Truly trusting in God's provision.
8. Watching the final Biggest Loser winner. Yeah Ali!
9. Jeremy getting to enjoy his new mountain bike (finally!)
10. Running to randomly selected songs on my shuffle and hearing some music I had completely forgotten about (and Christmas music in April).

Good stuff. Here's to life.

Spontaneous Blessings....again and again

Wow what a weekend.

Friday morning I was just done...you know those days when you are yelling before breakfast is done (assuming any of you actually yell :)) So when Jeremy came home early on Friday afternoon from work I was delighted (and also knew he had hit the wall too). He had been going nonstop for the last 2 weeks between church and work and we were both in some need of rest. But with 2 boys where does rest come from? Especially rest and time together?

Well, Friday night we were leaving the Barnes (our Pastor's) house after a meeting we said "ok we are outta here "...and they said yeah leave the boys here. Aidan and Jaime (their 4 year old) will have fun and Micah is already sleeping so just come back in the morning. And you know what we did? We took them up on it and ran to the hills!! We went out that night and then we went out for breakfast in the morning. When we picked up our kids they were completely worn out so they rested most of Saturday afternoon while Jeremy and I picked rocks in our backyard. And even though it's rocks... it's time together again. (A much longer story than that but I'll spare all the details.)

Then...
Saturday night Jeremy's sister came and watched our boys and we got out again. Pappadeax need a say more...

Then...
Sunday after church we had a staff meeting and I had nobody to watch the boys and so I thought no big deal I'll just not go. And somebody volunteered to watch our boys for us...again. Then we got the afternoon to pick rocks together again.

And today we got more time together again to pick rocks as Jeremy was able to take vacation time so we can get some landscape work done while the sun shines.

Lesson? I have wonderful people in my life. Thank you. Thank you. And a wonderful God who takes care of us.

On another note please continue to pray for my friend Kim's little 2 year old, Lu-Lu. As some of you may (or may not) know she had heart surgery at the end of last summer. Without giving you the full blown story I will say she is in need of prayer to stay strong thorough some rough weeks lately. She has had coupe and because of so much flem she was throwing up...some with blood. Kim updates at... luludavis.blogspot.com when she isn't completely exhausted. Pray for some encouraging days in the midst of this journey for them.

Bored.

Yep you read that right I'm bored. Not at home but in the gym. It's been 8 months since Jeremy's heart scare and so we both started running with the intent to work toward running something BIG and long (and painful). Well the painful came through for Jeremy with a hip injury that he has been battling since early on. And let's just say the elliptical isn't the same as a long night run outside and the weather hasn't exactly been cooperating with mountain biking. So Jeremy is struggling finding ways to workout. And I want to run something with him so I too am looking for ways to stay in shape other than the treadmill. (And strength training is SO boring I could just scream.)

So Saturday morning I was watching the boys play at Chick-fil-a and thought...they are getting a workout and don't even know it. What ever happened to playing for exercise? So we did...Jeremy and I played some old fashioned basketball and it was fun to be a kid again. And I woke up Sunday morning super sore.

And then yesterday I went to one of those dorky classes at the gym. Again just to mix it up. (I thought I was doing a core class turned out to be a kickboxing/bootcamp/core mix something). Anyway I ran suicides just like old track days and did some roundabout moves. And yep...calves are killing me. I guess it goes to show that logging the miles on the treadmill doesn't make you invincible.

So here's to being a kid again...let the games begin :)

Puppy, Lego Chores, and top 5

Our internet is wacko...so now that it is working for 5 minutes I'll post for you all. (Especially you that are so interested in my life. You know I can't back down a challenge.)

We lost Micah's stuffed puppy for a day this week. It was truly traumatic...I didn't know I was as attached to puppy (or more) than he was. Thankfully he was at the check in counter at the Dr. office. Counted my blessings on that one.

Aidan had a rite of passage of cashing in his money at the bank and going to the Lego store (Colorado Mills mall for you Lori) and selecting his very first EARNED lego. We have started the chore chart and he is loving it. Good stuff. I only hope his enthusiasm continues. If this continues I will have more accomplished than I can imagine around here...He loves to "have a job".

And yes here is my top 5...or 6 or 3

5 things you can’t live without under 5 dollars:

1. Two Decaf coffees brewed at Starbucks with cream and sugar (under 5) and the DVD player (ok more than 5 bucks I know) in the car for the boys so Jeremy and I can talk.

2. Magazines and Catalogs.

3. Fruit.

4. Water bottles (that I keep losing and usually cost more than 5 bucks to begin with)

5. Lego guys for Aidan. He can take just one guy out of the house and be entertained for hours…now if we could only find Micah entertainment like that.

5 Favorite Movies:(in no particular order and change all the time)

Ok…favorite is too hard so these are movies that either make me think or are just good for the soul.

1. Dead Poets Society

2. A Beautiful Mind

3. Stand By Me

4. Footloose

5. Forget Paris

5 Songs (or albums) you could listen to over and over again: (again, no order)
1. Rich Mullins any song any time…except for that goofy battleship song.

2. Mixes that my sis in law Jenn gives me

3. Old Monster Ballads

4. Sarah McLachlan Christmas Album…especially “River”

5. Jennifer Knapp “Faithful”

5 people who have had a positive influence in your life:
1. My husband…who has challenged me to grow since “Country Kitchen days” and loves me more than anybody.

2. Freda…who I call my “adopted grandma”. She took in our family from the day my parents moved into the neighborhood. She lived with joy until the Lord took her home. I hope I can be an old woman like that (well and a young woman like that too!)

3. Denise…my cousin who has been a sister to me since day one.

4. Aidan and Micah…if your kids don’t have a positive influence on you I don’t know who will! Nothing like little eyes watching your actions and life.

5. My dad…who lived his vows faithfully “till death do us part”.

6. And yep my whole band of sisters.

5 things in your purse you cannot live without:
1. Cell phone/Bluetooth

2. Keys

3. Wallet

How does all that take up all that space? J

5 moments that changed your life forever:
1. Waking up at a track meet to have a phone call from my dad to hear the news that my mom had died.

2. Going to CCU in the fall of 1995.

3. Sitting on a park bench with Jeremy in the fall of 1995 and having “the talk”…my wedding day wouldn’t have happened if it wasn’t for that day.

4. Sitting at Macaroni Grill and realizing I don’t want to grow old and have no grandkids…and thus Aidan is in the making.

5. Getting a job as a Math Teacher with an English and PE degree.

5 current obsessions:
1. Celebrating the everyday.

2. Challenging others to grow and live with passion.

3. Finding ways to put flaxseed in everything.

4. Making sure that things are special…as soon as it becomes entitlement then it’s time to reevaluate.

5. Finding what truly fills me up in life.

5 places I would love to travel:
1. Backpacking anywhere with just Jeremy and I.

2. Touring by bike…again pretty much anywhere.

3. The beach. Just give me water and sunshine!

4. Alaska (but when it’s warm there)

5. Holy Lands

5 people who’s top 5 you would like to see:

…Ha, I’m not one to name names…Ok Crysti you are up

Spring Break Thoughts & Rearranging

I've been working on an "everyday" scrapbook which has been good to reflect on...the everyday. (However I have decided digital scrap booking is not for me...not therapeutic oh well.) Like everyday lessons in life, and everyday routines, and everyday stuff we do. And it's been good to look for that because it can so easily be missed...like the joy of sharing an oreo with Micah that he already licked most of the mint frosting off of. And then at that moment realizing I just ate an oreo that was half eaten and not even caring (official mom badge earned for that one.)

But being out of routine this week was interesting. We get a lot of security from routines (especially me) and it is always good to get shaken up a little. On that note...if you like to rearrange stuff (your decorations, your furniture, etc) what does that say about you? Are you a person that likes to have control? Does it mean your life is out of control? Does it mean you just like to decorate? I have had some interesting discussion on this and will defend my point after I hear others...

Good Stuff of Today.

Love to make lists of stuff to celebrate. Here's this week's...

1. Longer days. (Well the days are the same but the daylight is longer, you know what I mean.)
2. Good conversations between Jeremy and I.
3. Playing board games with Aidan.
4. Eating Little Ceasers Pizza on the sidewalk with the boys.
5. NOT freaking out about van repairs...ok only a little bit.
6. Understanding volume displacement problems...geeky I know.
7. Cheesecake.
8. Micah's deep head back laugh...ah haaaaaaa!
9. Friends that you just click with.
10. Watching Christmas Movies at Easter time.

Everyday Life.

Waiting for daddy to come home.

Micah has turned into my helper these days...mopping has turned into soaking.

Aidan's job...cleaning up the shoes. (Not really, he took that on himself...)

Daddy and Aidan making ALL of his legos. He literally thinks, sleeps, and eats legos these days. He has quite the little mind :)

Superwoman, Growing Young , Shamrock Shakes, and Life.

So I took a little break for a bit. Had a couple Shamrock Shakes. Needed some time to realize that being superwoman doesn't prove much just causes stress for superwoman's family. So yeah...learning. Love the lyrics to an old Rich Mullins song called Growing Young...

"'Cause I've been broken now I've been saved
I've learned to cry and I've learned how to pray
And I'm learning I'm learning even I can be changed
And everybody used to tell me big boys don't cry
Well I've been around enough to know that that was the lie
That held back the tears in the eyes of a thousand prodigal sons
Well we are children no more we have sinned and grown old
And our Father still waits and He watches down the road
To see the crying boys come running back to His arms
And be growing young
Growing young
Growing young"

So friends grow young with me.
I'm thinking I"ll post some pics soon. Taking pictures of "everyday life again".Boys helping me mop, waiting in the window for daddy to get home...stuff like that. Superwoman...I mean Rach will be back soon.

Priceless...

i-pod shuffle $70, Running Shoes $90, Running shorts $5. A Colorado sunny Saturday morning run that refreshes your soul...priceless.

Or...

new Lincoln Brewster Music $10, Huge Diet Coke $2, Time alone to listen to it...priceless.