After finishing math today, we immediately went to our history lesson. The timeline included the country of "Mesopotamia." At the beginning of the lesson, I told the kids I was going to teach them the biggest word they've ever known. But first I asked, "What is the biggest word you know right now?"
To which Janae replied, "Thousand."
Friday, September 16, 2011
Monday, September 12, 2011
On Husbands, Trash Cans And How To Handle Both
I used to read all the time. But I don't anymore. Something about getting married and having kids just kind of effected the book reading area of my life.
Unless it's a stop-you-dead-in-your-tracks kind of book. Those kinds of books are scary though. They cause my children to go hungry, my husband to be lonely and my house to fall apart. As if I don't have enough reasons not to do laundry, reading a stop-you-dead-in-your-tracks kind of book makes my wash machine go completely dry. And my dryer to not produce lint. I end up having to run to Walmart to buy another hamper just so my dirty laundry is at least contained.
Yeah. It's pathetic.
But now you see why I never read anymore.
Except for stop-you-dead-in-your-tracks kind of books. Did I mention the staying-up-till-3-in-the-morning-because-I-can't-put-the-book-down weakness I have? So not only does my husband feel lonely and my children starve and my laundry starts growing mold, but I also end up losing precious hours of sleep over the kinds of books I read.
Which is exactly what happened several weeks ago.
You see, I'm the kind of person who is human. I make mistakes. I have regrets. And I get irritated by things. The worst part about that is I get irritated the most by those closest to me.
Bottom line: I get irritated by my husband.
(gasp!)
For instance, if the trash can is full in the kitchen, and there's a pile of trash bags by the front door waiting to go out. And the garage is full of trash. And all our trash cans are overflowing with trash, and The Qualified Person intended for the trash job is not doing his job, I get really irritated.
I get so irritated that I threaten to sign up for normal garbage service. (Having our own business gives us the luxury of "free" garbage pick up but unfortunately, the garbage "pick up" doesn't happen according to my schedule. I guess you pay for what you get.)
I will admit, I did slightly exaggerate the above trash topic but only because I'm ashamed to say that I get irritated over garbage. GARBAGE!
Okay. I'll say it like it really is: I get irritated at my husband because he doesn't take out the trash.
I know. Silly, right?
And then I read the book, Why I Stayed
and it stopped me right in my tracks.
I'm a wife so obviously, I know how irritating men can be. And I know how irritated wives can get at their irritating husbands. And then I think of all the irritating things husbands do (or don't do) that really irritate their irritated wives.
What about an insensitive husband who doesn't pick up on his wife's latest mood. Or the husband who plays computer games in all his spare time. Or the husband who spends too much money. Or spends time with his buddies. Or has time consuming hobbies. Or is a workaholic. Or the husband who doesn't meet his wife's "needs"... whatever those might be.
The list goes on and on. We all have our "My Husband Is A Jerk Because..." blank to fill.
Or do we really?
After reading this book, I began asking myself if I would stand behind my husband if he was caught in a horrible act of adultery with another man. Having an affair with a woman would be bad enough, but a man?
Would I respect and honor him despite the shame and reproach he brought on not only himself but myself and our children as well?
Would I hold it against him that he put my health at risk by involving himself sexually with another person which posed a huge threat to not only himself but to me as well?
Would I love my husband if what he did forced me out of my home, our entire circle of friends and everything I had known for 22 years?
Would I trust my husband if what he did violated God's law?
Would I be angry if everything I had helped my husband work for was washed down the drain in a split second because of a stupid, stupid choice he made?
Would I look up to a man who blatantly lied to cover his sin?
Would I share a bed with a man like this?
Would I stay with a man like this?
And would I be the only anchor, the only ally and the only friend to a man who's actions made me the greatest victim?
Back in 2006 when Ted Haggard's actions were revealed and the atrocious acts of scandalous homosexual adultery was broad casted to the whole world, I wondered how his wife, Gayle, was handling it. You know, really handling it. This was news to her as much as it was to everyone else. We were shocked. But as shocked as we were, she had to be even more shocked.
I kept up to date as their story unfolded. The immediate Sunday following the disclosure of her husband's actions with a male prostitute, she wrote a sweet, perfect, well written letter to their church of 14,000 people. It spelled out the most concise, heartfelt support of a very idealistic wife. I knew either someone else wrote the letter and she signed her name to it or she wrote it because it was how she wanted to feel but wasn't actually what she really felt at the time. I knew she'd come to her senses and leave the man who hurt her so bad. Seriously: he had sex with a male prostitute. What wife stays with a man who does that?!
The next few years, I tried to follow their story. But there was nothing; the Haggards were completely gone. Nothing on the internet indicated how they were doing, if Gayle stayed and if Ted repented. For all the publicity at the beginning of all this, it seemed strange they were gone.
Eventually, I quit looking them up. Until this last June when I found Gayle's book. And I knew it was my kind of book. I had to read it.
Why I Stayedis summed up in a quote from the book:
"So how did I get through those darkest hours in my marriage and family? I made a simple choice--to love. To cling rather than separate. To bring everything out into the open, as opposed to remaining sheltered. And I remembered something I'd learned long before: Love isn't a feeling, it's a choice--a choice we make every day, sometimes every hour." Excerpt from the book ~Why I Stayed~ by Gayle Haggard
If I get irritated at my husband over the fact he doesn't take the garbage out and feel I'm justified by belittling his actions in not handling the trash the way I'd like him to, how could I ever handle anything worse than that in my marriage?
Two days and 368 pages later, this book changed the way I view my marriage.
And my kitchen trash can.
Unless it's a stop-you-dead-in-your-tracks kind of book. Those kinds of books are scary though. They cause my children to go hungry, my husband to be lonely and my house to fall apart. As if I don't have enough reasons not to do laundry, reading a stop-you-dead-in-your-tracks kind of book makes my wash machine go completely dry. And my dryer to not produce lint. I end up having to run to Walmart to buy another hamper just so my dirty laundry is at least contained.
Yeah. It's pathetic.
But now you see why I never read anymore.
Except for stop-you-dead-in-your-tracks kind of books. Did I mention the staying-up-till-3-in-the-morning-because-I-can't-put-the-book-down weakness I have? So not only does my husband feel lonely and my children starve and my laundry starts growing mold, but I also end up losing precious hours of sleep over the kinds of books I read.
Which is exactly what happened several weeks ago.
You see, I'm the kind of person who is human. I make mistakes. I have regrets. And I get irritated by things. The worst part about that is I get irritated the most by those closest to me.
Bottom line: I get irritated by my husband.
(gasp!)
For instance, if the trash can is full in the kitchen, and there's a pile of trash bags by the front door waiting to go out. And the garage is full of trash. And all our trash cans are overflowing with trash, and The Qualified Person intended for the trash job is not doing his job, I get really irritated.
I get so irritated that I threaten to sign up for normal garbage service. (Having our own business gives us the luxury of "free" garbage pick up but unfortunately, the garbage "pick up" doesn't happen according to my schedule. I guess you pay for what you get.)
I will admit, I did slightly exaggerate the above trash topic but only because I'm ashamed to say that I get irritated over garbage. GARBAGE!
Okay. I'll say it like it really is: I get irritated at my husband because he doesn't take out the trash.
I know. Silly, right?
And then I read the book, Why I Stayed
and it stopped me right in my tracks.I'm a wife so obviously, I know how irritating men can be. And I know how irritated wives can get at their irritating husbands. And then I think of all the irritating things husbands do (or don't do) that really irritate their irritated wives.
What about an insensitive husband who doesn't pick up on his wife's latest mood. Or the husband who plays computer games in all his spare time. Or the husband who spends too much money. Or spends time with his buddies. Or has time consuming hobbies. Or is a workaholic. Or the husband who doesn't meet his wife's "needs"... whatever those might be.
The list goes on and on. We all have our "My Husband Is A Jerk Because..." blank to fill.
Or do we really?
After reading this book, I began asking myself if I would stand behind my husband if he was caught in a horrible act of adultery with another man. Having an affair with a woman would be bad enough, but a man?
Would I respect and honor him despite the shame and reproach he brought on not only himself but myself and our children as well?
Would I hold it against him that he put my health at risk by involving himself sexually with another person which posed a huge threat to not only himself but to me as well?
Would I love my husband if what he did forced me out of my home, our entire circle of friends and everything I had known for 22 years?
Would I trust my husband if what he did violated God's law?
Would I be angry if everything I had helped my husband work for was washed down the drain in a split second because of a stupid, stupid choice he made?
Would I look up to a man who blatantly lied to cover his sin?
Would I share a bed with a man like this?
Would I stay with a man like this?
And would I be the only anchor, the only ally and the only friend to a man who's actions made me the greatest victim?
Back in 2006 when Ted Haggard's actions were revealed and the atrocious acts of scandalous homosexual adultery was broad casted to the whole world, I wondered how his wife, Gayle, was handling it. You know, really handling it. This was news to her as much as it was to everyone else. We were shocked. But as shocked as we were, she had to be even more shocked.
I kept up to date as their story unfolded. The immediate Sunday following the disclosure of her husband's actions with a male prostitute, she wrote a sweet, perfect, well written letter to their church of 14,000 people. It spelled out the most concise, heartfelt support of a very idealistic wife. I knew either someone else wrote the letter and she signed her name to it or she wrote it because it was how she wanted to feel but wasn't actually what she really felt at the time. I knew she'd come to her senses and leave the man who hurt her so bad. Seriously: he had sex with a male prostitute. What wife stays with a man who does that?!
The next few years, I tried to follow their story. But there was nothing; the Haggards were completely gone. Nothing on the internet indicated how they were doing, if Gayle stayed and if Ted repented. For all the publicity at the beginning of all this, it seemed strange they were gone.
Eventually, I quit looking them up. Until this last June when I found Gayle's book. And I knew it was my kind of book. I had to read it.
Why I Stayed
is summed up in a quote from the book: "So how did I get through those darkest hours in my marriage and family? I made a simple choice--to love. To cling rather than separate. To bring everything out into the open, as opposed to remaining sheltered. And I remembered something I'd learned long before: Love isn't a feeling, it's a choice--a choice we make every day, sometimes every hour." Excerpt from the book ~Why I Stayed
~ by Gayle HaggardIf I get irritated at my husband over the fact he doesn't take the garbage out and feel I'm justified by belittling his actions in not handling the trash the way I'd like him to, how could I ever handle anything worse than that in my marriage?
Two days and 368 pages later, this book changed the way I view my marriage.
And my kitchen trash can.
Thursday, September 8, 2011
It Starts With a Kiss
A conversation heard at our house this morning...
Mom to Landon: "Hey Landon, did you know that you are the first person to make me turn into a mom?"
Landon: "Yeah, I know. But Daddy actually had a little bit to do with that too."
Mom: "Oh really? What did he have to do with it?"
Landon: "Well, because he kissed you."
Mom to Landon: "Hey Landon, did you know that you are the first person to make me turn into a mom?"
Landon: "Yeah, I know. But Daddy actually had a little bit to do with that too."
Mom: "Oh really? What did he have to do with it?"
Landon: "Well, because he kissed you."
Wednesday, September 7, 2011
A Few Of My Favorite Things
I'm gonna start this blog out just like a good day starts out: with coffee. So with that, the
Keurig Coffee Maker
is the most awesome coffee maker ever BUT you will have to spend your life savings, non-existent retirement fund and your children's savings accounts on the K-cups that go with these spiffy coffee machines. Don't despair. Some smart soul came up with a solution that puts all that money right back into your pocket: The
Solofill coffee filter
And because of
This Awesome Place
that lets you use outdated and expired coupons (one coupon per item, no matter how many items you purchase in one transaction), I was able to save lots of money to invest (yes, INVEST. If it involves a good cup of coffee, it IS an investment) in this important addition to our home of both the Keurig AND the reusable filter.
But without
Starbucks Coffee
the amazing coffee maker and money saving reusable filter weren't really doing me any good just sitting in my house all new and shiny. You can't go wrong with Starbucks coffee, except in the price. BUT, of course this vital ingredient to a good day was made much cheaper because of my all time favorite store:
TJ Maxx
which is never the same store twice so don't go running to your nearest TJ Maxx in hopes of finding Starbucks coffee today. They might be plum out because the truck that came in had
This Special Item
instead which is also pretty sweet, no pun intended.
Now I'm totally going to change gears here and run down another rabbit trail. Bear in mind, this is The Most Random Blog Post you will ever read in your life so don't hurt yourself trying to connect how each item I talk about is remotely connected. Because they're not connected. These are just my favorite things. And since I'm a random person, my favorite things are random too.
I love gardening and canning. (Did I just say that? Yes I did. I say it because every single jar of food I've canned this year, has sealed. And stayed sealed. Unlike the first year of marriage when most of my efforts were dumped out due to not sealing. Just so you know, I blame that failure on the elevation difference between here and where I used to successfully can food. I didn't process the jars long enough.)
(I've been sitting here debating over whether or not the above paragraph should have that much of its contents in parenthesis. And then here I go putting another paragraph into parenthesis. Grammar is not my strong point. But now that I'm a home school mom, maybe I can learn grammar all over again.)
I love
Math-U-See
because it's made teaching (for me) and learning (for my kids) so fun.
(Now to find a good grammar curriculum so I can learn when and how to use parenthesis...)
Oh my word, I just love
Swagbucks.
One reason I love Swagbucks is because of $175 of Amazon gift cards. Free. I kid you not. That Husband complains when a random pop-up will announce I just won ONE SWAGBUCK and it'll delay his arrival to a web page he's trying to get to or interrupt a movie online. But $175 that did NOT come from our checking, savings, retirement or children's fund? I'd say that's pretty good.
You can get everything on
Amazon,
by the way. I love Amazon. And
Amazon Mom. Free, 2-day shipping because of free Amazon prime? Bring it on.
I love, love, love
My New Stroller.
I can push it with one hand while an over 20# baby reclines in it's multi-positional seat and a load of shopping merchandise and heavy diaper bag hang on the back of the stroller and sits in the basket underneath. It's everything you love about a heavy-duty jogging stroller packed into an easy-to-store-in-your-crowded-van umbrella stroller. You can even change your baby's diaper in it because it lays back so well. Think of it as buying a stroller AND a travel changing table. It also functions as a convenient toy for a 2-year-old since it pushes so easy. Let me explain... if you have a kind, sweet and gentle 2-year-old nephew who's height is above average, he can easily and safely push your baby in the stroller which makes the baby content and keeps the 2-year-old busy.
On a side note, because of signing up for Amazonmom AND using Swagbucks, I got that stroller for a steal of a deal.
I couldn't say enough of how I love
Our Church.
Being inspired, challenged, fed and impacted by Jesus-loving people on a consistent basis, has been an uplifting and ongoing part of my life for almost 2 years. It makes me wonder how I went so long without having a continual feeding of God's Word from a pastor who preaches from a Bible and not tradition. My least favorite part of the service is when the pastor says it's time to wrap up his message. Sometimes I hate that part so much, I'll go home and listen to the sermon again online. The closing song is my second least favorite part. Basically, I hate it when Church ends but console myself with the fact that we get to do it all over again next week.
Because of a dear lady in our Church, I was blessed with
This Devotional.
Short clips of inspiring encouragement that are easy to read no matter how busy you are or how little time you have to sit down and read a book. Or where you're at in life. Or what's on your agenda for the day. Simple yet deep, each page hits home.
Back to the first topic on my list, I need to wrap this up and brew myself a fresh cup. One Of My Other Favorite Things which is recognized as a little bundle of twenty-pounds of sublime fatness and sweetness, still hasn't figured out that most Americans sleep solidly between 12am and 6am. Instead, she sleeps solidly from 8pm to 2am and then is up every few hours. And since I don't go to bed until after 12am because I lack discipline and routine and love the heightened insanity that takes over the creative part of my brain between 10pm and 2am, allowing me to produce tons of evidence that I can be productive with my projects, I basically spend my nights napping when I do finally go to bed.
Napping and nursing, that is.
Oh, nursing is another of my favorite things. That sweet little muffinhead refuses to consume anything from a bottle or a spoon. Basically that leaves one food option: me. But she's happy, content, fat and healthy so I'm okay with this arrangement. Actually, I'm not just okay with it: I think it's great... even if we have to do it all night.
Yawn.
But my coffee shall redeem me.
Keurig Coffee Maker
is the most awesome coffee maker ever BUT you will have to spend your life savings, non-existent retirement fund and your children's savings accounts on the K-cups that go with these spiffy coffee machines. Don't despair. Some smart soul came up with a solution that puts all that money right back into your pocket: The
Solofill coffee filter
And because of
This Awesome Place
that lets you use outdated and expired coupons (one coupon per item, no matter how many items you purchase in one transaction), I was able to save lots of money to invest (yes, INVEST. If it involves a good cup of coffee, it IS an investment) in this important addition to our home of both the Keurig AND the reusable filter.
But without
Starbucks Coffee
the amazing coffee maker and money saving reusable filter weren't really doing me any good just sitting in my house all new and shiny. You can't go wrong with Starbucks coffee, except in the price. BUT, of course this vital ingredient to a good day was made much cheaper because of my all time favorite store:
TJ Maxx
which is never the same store twice so don't go running to your nearest TJ Maxx in hopes of finding Starbucks coffee today. They might be plum out because the truck that came in had
This Special Item
instead which is also pretty sweet, no pun intended.
Now I'm totally going to change gears here and run down another rabbit trail. Bear in mind, this is The Most Random Blog Post you will ever read in your life so don't hurt yourself trying to connect how each item I talk about is remotely connected. Because they're not connected. These are just my favorite things. And since I'm a random person, my favorite things are random too.
I love gardening and canning. (Did I just say that? Yes I did. I say it because every single jar of food I've canned this year, has sealed. And stayed sealed. Unlike the first year of marriage when most of my efforts were dumped out due to not sealing. Just so you know, I blame that failure on the elevation difference between here and where I used to successfully can food. I didn't process the jars long enough.)
(I've been sitting here debating over whether or not the above paragraph should have that much of its contents in parenthesis. And then here I go putting another paragraph into parenthesis. Grammar is not my strong point. But now that I'm a home school mom, maybe I can learn grammar all over again.)
I love
Math-U-See
because it's made teaching (for me) and learning (for my kids) so fun.
(Now to find a good grammar curriculum so I can learn when and how to use parenthesis...)
Oh my word, I just love
Swagbucks.
One reason I love Swagbucks is because of $175 of Amazon gift cards. Free. I kid you not. That Husband complains when a random pop-up will announce I just won ONE SWAGBUCK and it'll delay his arrival to a web page he's trying to get to or interrupt a movie online. But $175 that did NOT come from our checking, savings, retirement or children's fund? I'd say that's pretty good.
You can get everything on
Amazon,
by the way. I love Amazon. And
Amazon Mom. Free, 2-day shipping because of free Amazon prime? Bring it on.
I love, love, love
My New Stroller.
I can push it with one hand while an over 20# baby reclines in it's multi-positional seat and a load of shopping merchandise and heavy diaper bag hang on the back of the stroller and sits in the basket underneath. It's everything you love about a heavy-duty jogging stroller packed into an easy-to-store-in-your-crowded-van umbrella stroller. You can even change your baby's diaper in it because it lays back so well. Think of it as buying a stroller AND a travel changing table. It also functions as a convenient toy for a 2-year-old since it pushes so easy. Let me explain... if you have a kind, sweet and gentle 2-year-old nephew who's height is above average, he can easily and safely push your baby in the stroller which makes the baby content and keeps the 2-year-old busy.
On a side note, because of signing up for Amazonmom AND using Swagbucks, I got that stroller for a steal of a deal.
I couldn't say enough of how I love
Our Church.
Being inspired, challenged, fed and impacted by Jesus-loving people on a consistent basis, has been an uplifting and ongoing part of my life for almost 2 years. It makes me wonder how I went so long without having a continual feeding of God's Word from a pastor who preaches from a Bible and not tradition. My least favorite part of the service is when the pastor says it's time to wrap up his message. Sometimes I hate that part so much, I'll go home and listen to the sermon again online. The closing song is my second least favorite part. Basically, I hate it when Church ends but console myself with the fact that we get to do it all over again next week.
Because of a dear lady in our Church, I was blessed with
This Devotional.
Short clips of inspiring encouragement that are easy to read no matter how busy you are or how little time you have to sit down and read a book. Or where you're at in life. Or what's on your agenda for the day. Simple yet deep, each page hits home.
Back to the first topic on my list, I need to wrap this up and brew myself a fresh cup. One Of My Other Favorite Things which is recognized as a little bundle of twenty-pounds of sublime fatness and sweetness, still hasn't figured out that most Americans sleep solidly between 12am and 6am. Instead, she sleeps solidly from 8pm to 2am and then is up every few hours. And since I don't go to bed until after 12am because I lack discipline and routine and love the heightened insanity that takes over the creative part of my brain between 10pm and 2am, allowing me to produce tons of evidence that I can be productive with my projects, I basically spend my nights napping when I do finally go to bed.
Napping and nursing, that is.
Oh, nursing is another of my favorite things. That sweet little muffinhead refuses to consume anything from a bottle or a spoon. Basically that leaves one food option: me. But she's happy, content, fat and healthy so I'm okay with this arrangement. Actually, I'm not just okay with it: I think it's great... even if we have to do it all night.
Yawn.
But my coffee shall redeem me.
Friday, September 2, 2011
You Sacrifice It All For Them: Even Your Toothbrush
I should've known that toothpaste streaked all over the clean mirror, smeared on the clean sink and trailing stickily down the glass shower doors wasn't the only evilness being committed to my bathroom during bedtime.
Come to find out, that's probably the least of my issues with bedtime and teeth brushing routines now that I know the real story.
Let me just say that if you ever notice that your tooth brush is wet and it's been hours since you brushed your teeth last and if you notice that there's a taste of juvenile toothpaste on your toothbrush and you normally use a moremature minty toothpaste, consider yourself fairly warned.
Because then if you randomly notice one of the children that live in your house, actually using your toothbrush like it's the normal thing to do, don't be shocked or surprised or devastated when you ask the said child who has violated your toothbrush WHY on God's green earth they would be compelled to use YOUR toothbrush when this is America and there's enough toothbrushes for everyone to have their very own toothbrush, you hear this sensible reasoning:
"I couldn't find my toothbrush so I decided to use yours."
I gave my body (including the precious enamel on my teeth) to nourish and carry and birth her and now she takes my toothbrush.
What next?
Come to find out, that's probably the least of my issues with bedtime and teeth brushing routines now that I know the real story.
Let me just say that if you ever notice that your tooth brush is wet and it's been hours since you brushed your teeth last and if you notice that there's a taste of juvenile toothpaste on your toothbrush and you normally use a more
Because then if you randomly notice one of the children that live in your house, actually using your toothbrush like it's the normal thing to do, don't be shocked or surprised or devastated when you ask the said child who has violated your toothbrush WHY on God's green earth they would be compelled to use YOUR toothbrush when this is America and there's enough toothbrushes for everyone to have their very own toothbrush, you hear this sensible reasoning:
"I couldn't find my toothbrush so I decided to use yours."
I gave my body (including the precious enamel on my teeth) to nourish and carry and birth her and now she takes my toothbrush.
What next?
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