Sleep

We put our kids in their beds every night. But sometimes they don't stay there...



Ok so by "they" I mean one small boy. If we're in our rooms he'll fall asleep by our door and if we're downstairs he'll pitch his bed at the top of the stairs.



Ah, little buddy. Why in the world do you have such trouble sleeping?!


Wait what's this over here next to you...



nevermind.

A Humbling Experience

For Christmas Chris and I enrolled ourselves in our gym's boot camp. They had a specific one for mom's and another general one for guys & girls. The mom's time worked great for my day schedule and gets the kid out of the house a couple times a week. We thought that it was something we could do together. Focus on getting healthy in 2010. We are going to need all the stamina we got for this next year's adventure. Well mine started three weeks ago and Chris' got canceled. Nice. But don't worry he found another "bootcamp" sort of thing to do with a friend.

I did my assessment the first day of class and the instructor being oh so sweet, after taking my measurements and weight, was like, "tara! You're so skinny girl. Probably the skinniest I've got so far." So I'll tell her I'm nothing but a skinny wimp and find myself dragging pretty much every day. I'm desperate for some more energy. All true, but I left feeling pretty good about myself. Day 1 begins and HOLY COW I'm so out of shape. Not only am I out of shape but I seriously cannot keep up with these girls! It's so humbling always being the one lagging behind.

Today began week three. For our "warm up" we go run a little less then a mile outside. I did ok. Came in dead last and like most runs felt like I was going to die. But hey at least I ran the whole time. That was progress. We go inside, do some cycling and weights and time for another run. She says, for my benefit I'm sure, "if you can't keep up, cut through this sidewalk area and we'll all get back around the same time". So I started off well, then about halfway through I fell behind. There was the sidewalk. Pride says "Don't do it LOSER!" Asthma, out of shape body, says "don't be proud, take it." So I cut through. I'm spotted by some little girls having recess outside. One sees me and yells, " CHEATER! THAT GIRL IS CHEATING!! CHEATER, CHEATER, PUMPKIN, EATER!!"

I can't believe I pay money for this.

Trevor Walking/Falling Down the Aisle

Yesterday we had the privilege of watching our friend and wonderful babysitter of our children get married. Chris officiated the wedding and Trevor was the ring bearer. Anna thank you for the giving us the opportunity to take part in your special day and well hopefully after watching this video you won't regret it.

I learned yesterday that Trevor doesn't like the spotlight. I'm not sure who's child he is but after practicing numerous times with success there was one factor we forgot to add. Lots of people. Trevor turned the corner and well... you can watch for yourself. (Video compliments of Jeff McFadden)



Some thought he tripped, poor thing they said, but make no mistake this was on purpose. He told me later he was trying to hide.

At least he looked adorable!


Trevor and the groom


Like father like son... sort of, Chris didn't try to hide


Anna looking stunning!


Anna and the kids the night before... Trevor was oh so happy that I stopped his game to get a picture


Anna is moving to Texas with her husband after their honeymoon. Anna we are so excited for you new life but know you will be missed greatly!

I'm Melting!!

Recently Girl Talk posted a list of summer activities for kids. It was filled of wonderful creative ideas and I'm excited to file them away for the fall. That's right, fall, winter or spring- In AZ it's kind of one in the same. Most of the ideas were just not "AZ friendly". Take for example one suggestion that I thought was super cute, creating a popsicle tree for the kids. But what those who don't live in AZ might not know is that by the time you braved the 117 degree heat and hung your second popsicle, the first popsicle would be melted along with the box on the ground. I can just see my kids excitement when they saw a popsicle tree outside only to try to get one down and find one big melted, gooey, mess! Another idea on the list was cloud watching,

"Lay on your backs and look up at the clouds on a
day when they are making interesting formation. Give everyone 30
seconds to decide what the cloud looks like !"

It's a little well known fact that you just don't "lay" on the AZ ground in the summer unless of course you enjoy second degree burns and 30 seconds is about all one could stand in 117 degrees. All this to say I'm trying hard to keep my three activive children from going crazy indoors but I confess it's been a challenging few weeks. We are doing weekly library trips at 9 am where they are earning prizes for reading books and that has already been a highlight of the summer. But most errands, particularly when I have to take them with me, should be done after the sun goes down or before it comes up. Now the way to survive in AZ is to have a pool. We don't have one. My parents do but it still involves hot cars, seat belts and I'm finding that from 11:00-4:30pm it's best for everyone's sanity and skin to stay indoors. Those in the east coast will say, It's a dry heat. And it's true, I personally would prefer a dry heat over humidity but as the saying goes... It may be a dry heat, but so is an oven!

So what does one do indoors all morning & afternoon with little kids? That has been my dilemma. Today at the library I picked out a "What to do on rainy days with kids" book- minus all the ideas about running around outdoors catching rain and counting seconds in between lightning & thunder, I think I might've found a few but I'd love some more! Anyone have any AZ summer activities for kids you'd like to suggest? Maybe my East Coast friends can give me their rainy day suggestions. In the meantime I await cooler days where we can again be outdoors playing, having picnics & watching clouds. Thankful that God has brought another hot summer to AZ where it can again reveal all the sin that is in my heart and my need for a Savior :-)

Here are a few AZ hot jokes that I found on a website for your entertainment. They made me laugh!

It's so hot in Arizona that...
*the cows are giving evaporated milk.
*you no longer associate bridges (or rivers) with water.
*you learn that a seat belt makes a pretty good branding iron.
*the temperature drops below 95, you feel a bit chilly.
*you can attend any function wearing shorts and a tank top.
*you discover that in July, it takes only 2 fingers to drive your car.
*you discover that you can get a sunburn through your car window.
*you notice the best parking place is determined by shade instead of distance.
*the birds have to use potholders to pull worms out of the ground.
*the potatoes cook underground, and all you have to do to have lunch is to pull one out and add butter, salt and pepper.

And yet another reason why I'm not fit to be a parent

Ever have those moments, the ones where you realize you are not fit to be a parent and wonder who the heck thought you were and gave you children? Yeah I've had a few of those recently. I'd like to blame them on the madness of the past few months. You know car fires, lingering illness, 45+ realtor's showing your home during lunch time, nap time, dinner time and every-time in-between. Yes I did say 45 realtors in five weeks, madness. What moment to start with first is the question. Not long ago I woke up to find my son on top of the kitchen counter eating a jar full of gummy vitamins. So let's just get out your obvious questions. No I did not sleep in, trevor is just a very early riser and quiet when he's getting into medicine, yes I did have child locks on the cabinet but apparently failed and no the cap wasn't tight all the way like it should be. This is how I started my conversation with the man at poison control. After I gave him my fake name and address...

Two weeks ago I have the house all cleaned for realtor's & care group, I get the two confused these days, in efforts to preserve the prettiness I send the kids out front to ride their bikes. It was a nice night so I brought out my camera and got a few shots. Well apparently I missed the shot of Rylee sticking her hand in cactus. A jumping cholla to be exact. She came over to me with a hundred little cacti hairs in her hand. Really I never knew my neighbor two doors down had cactus! Information that would've been useful "YESTERDAY!" It was a long (care group) night of pulling little bitty hairs out of her hands. I did learn that baking soda & warm water go a long way, as well as duct tape.

The kicker "you have no business being a parent moment" came two days ago. It was monday morning, 7:30 am to be exact, I was up three times with trev that night, broken up two many fights between him & taylor and disciplined enough tantrums to last the entire day. Oh and I hadn't had my coffee yet. Excuses I know. Chris is sick in bed with a fever and it's time to take Tay to school. I begin to leave and trev throws another tantrum because he wants a popsicle. Taking the easy route I say here's you're popsicle, sit at the table and I turned on a show. Assuming he understood what was happening I put Taylor in the car and left. You know what they say happens when you assume? Well the door closes, Trev freaks out, opens the door and runs after the car. Thankfully my neighbor was out jogging and sees trev running in the middle of the street screaming. She picks him up and he screams and hits her saying, " my mommy left me!!" She asks him where his daddy is and he says "gone at work". She goes over to our other neighbors house who knows us well (hopefully well enough to know I wouldn't leave my child all alone) and she calls my cell & Chris' cell... at this point I'm pulling back into the driveway. I return to one neighbor in her jogging suit and the other in her robe, holding my crying son. Trevor looks at me with his alligator tears and says "why did you leave me mommy?" I'm trying to talk to him while at the same time explain myself to my neighbor's, you know that kid voice but you're really talking to be heard by adults, "Mommy didn't leave you alone Trevor, mommy would NEVER leave you all alone! Daddy is home in bed... what happened to the clear direction of eat your popsicle, watch this show I gave you?" "Silly boy" as I grab him and run inside. I go wake Chris up with "It's time to start packing our bags honey before someone turns me in!"

Top 5 Ways To Not Welcome Your Husband Home

I remember a time when I would use Chris’ out of town trips to do a special project. Life would often slow down while he was gone. There would be no night ministry meetings and once the baby was in bed I would have a whole chunk of time to myself. I would brainstorm things that I could do to bless Chris and it always seemed to make the time that he was gone go by faster. One trip I decided to give our master bedroom closet a makeover. It was in need of some serious help and was one of those tasks that would just get pushed to a “one day” status. I went through our clothes, gave things away, built shelves for shoes etc. I was so proud of myself and he was totally surprised when he got back! As our number of children has increased, as well as the demands on my time while he’s gone, those big projects have faded into the distance. I think the last time he was gone I cleaned out his car and got it washed for him and I was struggling to find time and energy for that small task. Well this trip has been a little different to say the least. No special projects, painting or car washing this week. Actually I feel sorry for what he has to return to. I’ve seen some great posts from ladies who’s husbands are at the same conference this week. I’ve been spurred on by their Godly attitudes and sacrifice while their husbands are gone and I don’t have a thing to add. No instead I thought I’d post a few ways to NOT welcome your hubby home from a trip:

1. “Chair, what chair? Oh that chair… the one you sit on while working tirelessly for your family…yeah your son kind of got loose without a pull up and pooped on your new computer chair. And well after many cleanings I just couldn't get the smell out of the porous fabric and we had a realtor coming... so it’s in the trash.”

2. Look really fat and bloated because the prednisone you took all week for your illness made you gain 6-8 pds of fluid

3. Do I even mention the car…and how I actually did us a disservice for putting the fire out. I learned yesterday insurance only covers fire damage and apparently there’s only a couple hundred dollars worth of actual fire damage and that doesn’t even meet our deductible. I asked the guy, “So let me get this straight, if I would’ve let my car burn longer or say burn up, the insurance would by me a new car?!”… good to know for next time! Verdict is still out on what caused the electrical malfunction or what we are going to do. Just in time for his return!

4. I lost our i-pod. Yeah seriously, can’t find it anywhere. Maybe I can say it was in the car and is now apart of “actual” fire damage.

And the final way to not greet your husband when he returns home from a trip….

5. Wake him up early in the morning with… I know your tired after a along trip and got home a midnight last night but GET UP a realtor is coming!! (this is a future event that will happen tomorrow morning as I just got a call for a second showing)


Thankfully there will be many more trips in our future where I can work on my welcome home efforts :-) As this week comes to an end I really do want to say how thankful I am for the church and friends. I have received so much grace and help from my parents who probably would've thought I'd have leaved and cleaved a long time ago and the days of calling tow trucks and mechanics were over. They also sacrificed their clean house to my children so we'd have a place to stay with another rush of realtors in tow this week. Ruth for staying with me and just being my friend! Thanks to Lory for giving up her new van for me to use for the week so I wouldn't be without a car, Janelle for the popsicles and encouraging card and many others who called and encouraged me this week. I am truly blessed by wonderful friends & family!

Goodbye Laura- Turtle Sage Pt 2

Well I got in touch with my neighbor. She was out of town and with the help of one of my other neighbor's I got her cell phone. Turns out the kid next to us has a turtle too so Tracy (turtle owner) had our neighbor friend look in the shoebox to confirm it was indeed Laura I killed. Sure enough it was, the kid's next doors turtle is much bigger. Maybe I would've seen him. Tracy was really nice her first response was "Hey at least it wasn't a kid." Uh, wow, yes I guess that is a good thing... I hadn't really thought like that until you brought it up... She also said "We have another one in the backyard." That's good to know. Note to self there are two more turtles on our block.

Yesterday when they arrived home she came over with her four year old in her arms. She looks at her daughter and says what do you have to say to Tara. I'm thinking great... what's she going to say to me... She starts off with "Tara did you...?" I waiting for, "Tara, did you smash my most favorite Turtle with you car (tears streaming down face)?" But Her mom interrupts and says no remember what we talked about. "Tara it's ok you ran over my turtle I know it was an accident. He's with Jesus now!" It was so sweet... I figured now was probably not the time to tell her that I began a study on Heaven yesterday (after running over her turtle) and that the bible doesn't really speak to the subject of turtles being in Heaven. Her dad came over with a pair of gloves and took the shoe box from our backyard over to theirs. Her mom says aloud "Ok, well we are going to have a little service for Laura now." I gave my condolences as they walked away. At least they didn't invite me to the service... that would be a little awkward, "And now a few words from the driver..."

I killed a turtle today...

Something tragic happened this morning. Janis, friend and fellow pastor's wife, came over to give me a few hours out to myself. (not the tragic part) I had some errands to run and then I packed up some books to begin a study on Heaven. So as I back out of my driveway, keep in mind to study heaven, I run over my neighbor's turtle and crush it to death. Apparently their gate was left open and the turtle got out. I could make excuses like, "It was moving to slow!" or "Who watches out for turtles as they back up, really?" but truthfuly I feel bad and it'll take awhile to get the sound of me running it over out of my head. It was an honest mistake... never-mind the fact that my neighbor was at my house a few nights ago warning me about their scorpion problem and how her husband wants to get rid of the turtle so the bug man can spray stronger stuff and now I just made that possible.

So, I don't know what one does when they kill a turtle or any animal. This was a first for me. My neighbor wasn't home, actually none of the neighbors were home. I called Chris and he tried calling their cell phone but no one answered. Thankfully an intern from the church came over and removed the evidence for me. I didn't want them to come home with there five year old daughter in the car and her see their beloved turtle laying flat in the street! So, now it's in my backyard, in a shoebox, just in case they want to do a service.

Oh and no it's not in the interns job description to come and clean up Pastor's wives messes... Ryan did it out of the kindness of his heart. Thx Ryan!

Not So Funny, Funny Moment

Sunday mornings are always adventurous. Chris, being a pastor, is usually up and out early. So I have learned how to get myself and three kids out and ready by 9:30. Usually it means I'm up and ready before the kids awake at 6:30. I've even learned that packing the diaper bags and having their clothes laid out the night before helps the process a lot. However, even when I do all of this some challenges can still present themselves. Take yesterday for example. Taylor and Trevor were having a few too many squabbles and it was preventing me from getting Rylee dressed. So I put Taylor in her room and Trevor in his for a few moments of peace. Ten minutes later I hear Trevor banging on the door. I open the door to find poop all over his hands, body and yes the door and surrounding wall! It was a very not so funny, funny moment.

Perhaps even funnier was Chris' response.... I walk into the service and up to the front to sit next to Chris. Worship had already begun. He leans over and whispers hello in my ear and asks how the morning went. I say pretty good but Trevor got into his poop and smeared it on his door and wall. Chris whipsers back "oh man, I'm sorry" and asks "You did clean it up before you came right?"

In telling this story to a few of my friends I am aware of God's grace in how much worse it could've been!