You Don't See That Every Day

I had hoped today would be the day I could write about an exciting change in our lives. We had hoped for something new to be coming. Well, the word came to our house yesterday that there would be no change in our schedules. No change in the day to day grind. My husband will be continuing his work just like he has for the past 14 years. He'll travel when he has too, which seems like a lot, but overall it's less than a soldier does. He'll deal with frustrating administration. He'll enjoy talking with his customers. About 2 months ago, in the middle of travel season, he had had enough; not just with the traveling, but also with other aspects of his job. He asked some specific people to pray for him, and a new job. Less than a week later a friend came to him with a job opportunity and encouraged G to apply for it. So we went through the roller coaster of resumes, application, and interviews. 3 interviews! with this company. We were optimistic. We were hopeful. We prayed, t...

The husband and I went out on a date last Sunday. G wasn't home on our anniversary so we took some time later in the weekend to celebrate. It was pretty nice to go out to a sit-down restaurant, without children and without interruptions. And as frequently happens, my food couldn't compete with G.'s order. It never fails - I order something that sounds good, and then I look over at what he's having and I want it instead. So my chicken burrito did not taste as good as those bites of carne asada that he had. And what was funny - G knew it even before I had taken a bite. The night got even better as we had time to sit and talk about everything, again with out children or interruption. When we came home our son was in the shower, and was unaware we were back. So one of us thought it would be funny to scare him. We hid in his newly-finished closet (G's project for the weekend) and when he came upstairs - the girls convinced him it was necessary - we jumped out. The look...

16 Things I have learned in my years of marriage 1. Laugh at yourself. 2. Laugh with each other. 3. Tell him what I am thinking. 4. Don't belittle him in public. Or at home. Or ever . 5. Let him know I need him. 6. Respect him. 7. Like his family (which is easy to do!) 8. Don't be mad when he doesn't want to be with my relatives every weekend. 9. Share the load. 10. Go say I'm sorry even if I think he should say it first. 11. Trust. Trust him to do right. Trust God to take care of him. 12. Pray for him every day. 13. When my eye or mind starts to wander, I think of him. 14. Sing him silly love songs. 15. Find out his love language(s), and do it. ( Love Languages, by Gary Chapman) 16. Let him lead the family, even if it is hard to watch. There are probably more, but I'll save those for the next 60 years of lists. Happy Anniversary sweetie!

It's a little known fact ...  that 16 years ago May 23rd fell on a Friday. And the day after, I married my best friend. Hard to believe it has been 16 years since then. Hard to believe I've known G for 21 years. That's longer than I didn't know him. So ... In my corner of the world - -Today my son cleaned up at his school's awards ceremony. I guess smart genes run in the family. -My girls cracked a ton of walnuts for me; so now I can make all those terrific brownies and granola bars and cakes with walnuts in them, and be happy, happy, ... and motivate myself to run - I caught the cold my girl has earlier in the week. My throat is scratchy. All I want to do is sit, close my eyes, and not have to do anything. Unfortunately, moms don't get a sick day; so I took it easy and just did laundry and went to an awards ceremony instead of the 10,000 things I usually do.

It was difficult motivating myself to get out and run yesterday. I was making up all kinds of excuses in my head. The day before had been sunny and beautiful; but there was so much to do, including work at the farm, that I put off the run until the next day. Silly. The next day - which was yesterday - was rainy and cold. So cold! A number of fellow Oregonians commented on how it felt like winter again. So how did I get myself out in the wet, cold to run 3+ miles? It was a few things. Let me list them for you. 1. A donut. Yes, there was a small bundle of deliciousness waiting to meet my mouth, sitting on the counter (in a box). And I wanted to enjoy the moment, and not feel any sense of guilt eating it. 2. This video. And this one. I came across these videos on facebook, and watched them before I even got my running clothes on. Yes, I cried. And then I went out and ran and enjoyed the feeling, because I could! Zach Sobiech was an inspiration. I prayed for his family, knowing they...

This girl of mine, she's only 12 ("and a half"). But sometimes I feel like she is light years ahead. a little 'broom' guitar And some days not so much. Every time we go to the farm no, she asks to drive Grandpa's tractor. One of these days, he's going to let her. This week while we were there, she asked to drive ... the pickup. I just shook my head. But then, I surprised her. On the way out the long (straight) driveway, I stopped the pickup, climbed out and shooshed her over into the driver's seat. Yeah, she was beaming by then. We went over the foot pedals and what they did. And she drove. About 500 feet or so. There was minor whiplash when she stopped. But not enough to send me to a doctor. Today she took another big step. I was probably more nervous and worried than she was - or appeared to be. She went off on her very first weekend-long church retreat. She was excited to go. And here's the thing - she didn't think any of her buddi...

Here's one my girl got out of her schoolbook. It made me laugh! What do you call a scared deep sea diver ? Um, what? Tuna . Tuna!?!? Yep - Chicken of the sea! hahahahahahahaha