Catching Up (pt.1)

There have been much happening yet little time to post. This will be the first of two posts dedicated to catching up!

My hair was cut a few weeks ago and I l.o.v.e it. I love the way it goes curly and I love the way it goes straight. Here are photos of the way it looks as I walk out the door at day's start, and when I walk back through the door at day's end. Oh, and it's EASY to fix. That's one of the best things, right? Cute and easy....the best!

Going out.




Coming home.




I was given a week-end reprieve, not last week-end but the one before.

My dear friend, Ginger, organized some of her friends and the place we were going and the meals and shopped..... THANKS GINGER!!!I knew two of the other four ladies going but the common thread: we all needed a break, we are all wives, we mother 4 kids. So between the 5 ladies......you got it, 20 kids (there were only two nursing babies there though). She explained the local as a cabin and the picture that came to mind was the little beach cabin my family used to use when I was young. Small, nice but not glam. No biggie!!! We can have a awesome time hangin' in a small, nice cabin. But as Anna and I pulled into the drive.....whamo! we were shocked to find a mansion. It wasn't a super big deal but it was a nice perk!

We had a great time of encouragement, problem solving and prayer. Ahhhhh. We also hiked to a water fall. Beautiful fall scenery.

I will also tell, in a later post, how Ginger saved my life the last day. Really, truly.

I was super tired when I got home (I stayed up past midnight both nights.....I usually get to bed by 9) but this was greeting me as I stepped through the door.




inside

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It's nice to get away, but it's also nice to come back home.
Thanks, Babe, for this get-a-way treat!

May God Have Mercy On Us

I've been convicted. May God have mercy on a nation that will allow harm to innocent lives. May God help us.
Lord I'm sorry for not being more involved, but being a pew warmer. Forgive me and this nation I pray.

Need to know what I'm referring to? Visit Randy Alcorn's blog.

Choose life, not death.

To me, $20 a day seems like alot.

So, I went grocery shopping today. When I get to the check out I always hope and cross my fingers that I stayed under budget. Sometimes I do.....some times I don't. Today was a, Katy-didn't-quite-make-it, kind of trip. I went over budget by $11 and change. UGGGG! I HATE going over budget. Even if it's by a tiny bit.
While we were consuming our gourmet dinner (pot pies...can't beat $.58!) Ben averaged our daily food cost.
Now, to be well understood, I'm going to attempt to explain.

I go to Winco and Spicer Brothers Produce twice a month and I go to Costco once a month (I hardly ever use coupons.....like.....once a year hardly). We averaged out our dates and impromptu dinners to Wendy's and our total grocery bill for the month is.......$600($20 per day....for all three meals). (That includes all our house hold stuff....soaps, sponges.....etc.) Most times I do keep it to about $550, but there are those times when we are out of EVERYTHING!
To encourage myself (I think that $600 is alot to spend) I went to the USDA site and gathered some info. (You can too....here.) For the size and ages of our family we could be spending more.

We could be spending: $810.70 (what they considered thrifty) or $1,058 (low-budget) or $1,314.40 (moderate) and lastly $1,582.70 (liberal). That made me feel better. I didn't feel better that others spent more, just that we were doing well. And all without coupons =D (That's me smiling.)

I'll leave you with a little humor. Es was finishing up a job and chatting with both Ben and I when she jokingly exclaimed "You should know that! You've lived longer than I have!" Mmmmm. If only it were true!

Take a Step Back....

and sigh.

Watch those you love. Laugh. Listen. Drive without the radio/c-d/satellite/t.v. on. Dance in the rain. Kiss your Honey. Read that story. Play that game. Stay in instead of run around like a chicken with your head cut off. (They really do run around without their heads!)Eat chocolate (which, by the way, I've not eaten for *ahem* 13 days....boo-hoo!) . Cry. Be there for someone. Wear that swim suite even if you think you look horrible. (More than likely your the only one who thinks that.) Sing. Swear (when appropriate and while holding the kids' ears! =). Make someones day. Smile. Hug. LIVE.

These past few days have been a blur. So busy. I LOVE down time. But even when busy......think positive. Think honor and grace.

I've changed my morning routine. I've been trying to listen for God when I'm having devotions in the a.m. How often do we ask of Him or even thank him. Still, at best, even thanking and asking is a one sided conversation. LISTEN. It will change you. It did me in just two days.

Take time out and really live. How often are we running and not really thinking or loving those around us? Too much, at least as far as I can see in my own life.

Stop. Think. LIVE.

That's my Girl!

She was the last one to present. And she did AWESOME!

She held the mic and everything (some kids were too shy to).

We are so proud of you Sis. You worked hard on this project.

No matter what grade your teacher gives you......you got

100% and an A+ from us! We love you.

_

Her poster on Sacagaweah.

Honest

We have had a busy week.....er.....month......um.......past five years!!! But this past week was a whirlwind.

1) Es has a HUGE project and presentation due THIS Thursday she's been busy with (correction.....we've been busy with). 2) All the boys had homework (that I forgot about *grrrrrr*) that they finished either at school or quickly at home this a.m. 3) We had a get together with Mom Lewis, Jenesa, Hannah and H.'s friend Joe (FUN!) 4) All the regular stuff that goes with 4 kids and our life!

One great memory of mine this week (I did have another to share but I've since forgotten):
I was eating lunch with the kids on Friday (I think) and Joey (6) choked on his juice. I said "Hold you hands up Buddy." (For those who don't know, patting the choking persons back is no longer thought to help. Instead the very intelligent people suggest lifting the hands up....why? I'm not really sure why). He does and while hacking and wheezing he says "I know *cough-cough* why I should *wheeze-sputter* hold up my hands. So God can reach them."

There won't be moment's like this forever.......savor each one.

Small

As you may have read in previous posts, we've made some hard financial decisions this past year. (If you haven't read, yet are curious, click.)

Our rent is due the first of the month. We pay earlier due to Ben's pay schedule and instead of mailing it, our landlords p/u the check (they're mail had been getting lost). I called the beginning of the week to let them know the check was ready. No call back, no picky-upy-the-checky. "Odd" thinks I. I called them again tonight and the wife came by to pick it up. As we were talking about her family and baby (9 mo.....do I even remember those days???) we started rabbit trailing in our conversation and I learned something that made me feel small.

She started talking about how they were Christians and how they'd prayed about us before they agreed to rent to us (Our credit was REALLY screwed up and if I were a landlord I wouldn't have rented to anyone who had a credit history as we did!). She said that God had directed them to rent to us (obvious I know). I almost started to cry. I was amazed. That God would take time out of his busy schedule and place us here, safe and cared for and for a great price. That he had orchestrated all the events to fall into place at just the right time. Maybe it should have made me feel proud. But it humbled me. BIG time. But for God. Where would we be without Him?
With my heart, thank you Papa.

Is it bad when

I realize I've thought about getting another tattoo for the 5th time in half a day? And this is the 10th day I've thought about it? Where could I, would I.....should I??? put another tattoo? Ashley was right when she said they were addicting. There are worse things....right? Let's see, pay the rent or lay some more change down for another AWESOME skin accessory? I'll take the accessory! Kidding!.....maybe. =D

Ben just received his Christmas gift from me (o.k.....part of it) tonight. He too paid a visit to Risa at Angel Ink. He's getting an old tat fixed. Maybe I'll get a Christmas gift early too......but where-oh-where will I put it? I think I'd rather purchase a house first. Really. House first, corrective surgery 2nd......3rd, 4th and 5th.....more tattoo's. Pain have never looked so creative!

ANNOYED

I'm tired of politics. I would LOVE to see government without politics.
Ben's watching the debates right now. I say Ben because I'm so disappointed and get so easily frustrated with politics I can't stand to watch, super annoying to me. SUPER. The debates do no good. They prove three inquisitional facts: 1) The speaker is good at twisting things back to a spotlight on oneself. 2) The speaker can debate well, which by no account means that they are telling the truth or even a 'good' person. 3) That it's terribly annoying to hear, repeatedly, the speakers speech impediments. Such as stuttering or over-use of words.
Both candidates are guilty of these things, regardless of how often the candidates are guilty of these things (I cannot accuse speech impediments), both are guilty.
Ben and I have done hours and hours of our own research and it's all so superficial (I mean the debates are superficial, not the facts =). There is so much that doesn't get said. And frankly the debates are rude!
Let's just all hold hands and sing Kum By Ya. Pleeeez?
I can hope, right?
I'll leave you with a quote "The real test of a man is not when he plays the role that he wants for himself, but when he plays the role that destiny has for him." Vaclav Havel

So, maybe I don't know EVERYTHING

I've had some time on my hands today. Serious. When I look down at them, you can make out the letters t-i-m-e. And with that time came thoughts. Watch out, this is a designated hard hat area.

*Why is it so hard for men to throw away holey undies? Does it make them feel more like a man to wear them like that? Gross for whatever reason.

*How is it that I LOVE the summer and when it is summer I HATE rain, but when fall begins, I love that too, even when it rains? Then when it does rain and I don't really mind I feel like I'm betraying my true love, summer.

*How can something that is so slow coming, creep up on me? Like the growth of a kid or anticipation of a birthday or holiday.

*Could I really save a bunch of money by switching to Geico?

*When does an age become old? Will I know when it happens?

*What if Santa really is really real and since I've been stuffing the stockings he's been getting REALLY annoyed with me?

*What if money does grow on trees and I just haven't found the right tree?

Things I do know....

*That sometimes I start things I think I'll like and once I get into them I find out I really don't like them, at all. Like scrap booking. I started years ago and always pushed myself to do more even when I didn't LOVE it. Then I finally just stopped and felt guilty that I didn't love it. And just this year accepted that it's okay that I don't love it or even want to do it. Ahhhh. Relief.

*That getting a note "Sam's quite chatty." on Tuesday can change the course of Wednesday. And that sitting next to my third grader for nearly an entire school day feeling like I was wasting my time really wasn't a waste. I learned alot. Alot about Sam. Alot about his teacher and the school. I learned that I love their school even more than I did before and that this was exactly the place they needed to be. That I am proud of myself for doing something hard and getting awesome results. (I asked Mr. Currey how Sam did yesterday. "He wasn't chatty at all" was his reply. Maybe that's because I told Sam that if I had to come and sit with him again that I'd keep the previous day's make up on and not brush my teeth. Oh, and I'd conveniently forget to change from my jammies =D Maybe that's why his day was so darn good! Nothing like a little bit of scary to straighten a kid up.)

*That feelings and reality sometimes don't match.

*That I miss Esther. She's on an camping trip with her class. Untill......tomorrow......*sniff-sniff*

*That I love life and I'm thankful for every.singe.day. Thanks Papa. This is a great day you gave me.

*That I have to go now! But I'll leave you with this photo. We went to the Historical Society Museum last Saturday. This is the only one I took. Not so good, but still a memory marker.