You deserve a break today

The thrill is gone. When I started this blog, I didn't really have any idea what I was getting into. And I didn't start it for anyone to read, necessarily, but now that I've been doing this almost NINE months and still have very few daily readers, it begs a question.

WHY IS THAT?

Is it because I don't have writing ability? Maybe

Is it because my life isn't exciting enough to blog about? That's true some of the time.

Is it because blogging really is a popularity contest and I am the girl with the limp who gets picked second to last EVERY time? (FTR, I really was that girl in elementary school.) Could be.

Is it because I have blogged EVERY SINGLE WEEKDAY for WEEKS and I am just burnt out? That's probably most of it.

If you follow me (and you KNOW who you are), I'd really like to know *why* it is that you follow me....what keeps you coming back??

**** FTR, I REALLY APPRECIATE MY FOLLOWERS! You have great blogs, ladies; keep up the good work(so that I have something to read when I should be scrubbing toilets!).****

If you read but DON'T follow me, tell me why. (Contrary to what you may believe, I can take it.....)

In the meantime, Flashback Friday will continue at its regularly scheduled time and then I'll be back when I get back.

That's all I can promise for now.

Wordless Wednesday- Plant a tree (or two)

Thankful Tuesday!

"Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus." 1 Thessalonians 5:18



I have to tell you that I am *so* thankful to have received the news that Stellan gets to go home today! Now, I don't *know* Mckmama, as a matter of fact, I just started following her blog right before Stellan was admitted to the hospital; but I stalked her blog regularly for updates on the little guy. I prayed fervently that God would use Stellan's situation to reach people and that Mckmama would have peace. And God did one better than that (isn't that just like Him??), He allowed Stellan to be well enough to go home to his brothers and sister! Pray for Mckmama and Stellan that they make it home safely today.......



It seems silly to be thankful for the weather, but after three days of either rain or gloom here in Wisconsin, I was beyond thrilled to have the sun shining when I woke up! Now if I just had energy to transplant all those lilies in my backyard.....



Another thing that tops the list today is our kitchen plumbing situation. We had inherited (apparently) a pretty backed up pipe from the sink drain. It had always run slowly from day one, but last week just stopped. Gah! After several days of frustration on the part of my husband, we had a plumber scheduled to come out yesterday. We couldn't afford the bill, but it was seeming that it was our only option. Or maybe not. Thanks to a miracle product (2 bottles, actually) we were able to cancel the plumber and avoid the bill. That is a pretty big "thanks!"



I am thankful for my church family. We left our church last summer, due to some leadership issues, and spent the next 8 months at a church with 1500 members. Now, I'm not knocking big churches; they have many pluses over small ones, but one aspect that I just couldn't get past was not being missed. No one knew whether we were at the mega church from week to week or not; even though we did know a small handful of people there, it was so big that you may not run into those people from week to week.



So, this last week, with our hat in our hand, so to speak, we went back to our 50 member church. And we were greeted like the prodigal son. Now, don't get me wrong; some of the issues that contributed to our leave still exist, but we've just committed to serving our Lord and ignoring the junk. But it was so nice to be greeted with "welcome home" rather than "why are you here?"



I'm thankful for my blogging friends. Most of them I have yet to meet IRL, but in this day and age, I guess that doesn't matter so much. They have each touched my life in a way that makes a difference for me and I am so thankful!



And lastly, I am thankful for the dandelion. While it is an incredible nuisance, it is also a definite fixture of SPRING and that is wonderful!


Oh, and a special thanks to my friend Esther, over at The Mommy Diaries. Because of her posts for Menu Plan Monday, my family and I are going to get to try the yummy burritos from this weeks post tonight! Thanks, friend! I can't wait! (I haven't had breakfast yet and am STARVING, can you tell?? LOL)

Not Me! Monday!

Welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. You can head over to her blog to read what she and everyone else have not been doing this week.

***Due to Stellan's medical issues, you won't find a recent Not Me! Monday! post by Mckmama...continue to pray for Stellan!***

As for me, there are several things that I have have not done this week, so let me tell you!

First of all, I did not stay home from church last week and spend the entire day watching the USA marathon of Law and Order CI. And while we are on the subject, I didn't suggest to the boys that they take in a day of cartoons either. Nope, not me.

I absolutely did not get a bee in my bonnet this last week about "what must be under that dining room carpet" and then spend the next SIX hours ripping up said carpet, removing staples and tack strip and scrubbing on my hands and knees by myself. And I didn't get knocked on my butt trying to get the roll of carpet through a doorway either. I am pretty sure that I was not at all pleased with Jon's reaction to what I had done when he arrived home also. That's just how I am. I don't do things to get attention. Nope, not me.

I did not sit in the middle school parking lot for over TWENTY minutes one day this week waiting for Matthew to get out of track practice. While waiting, I did not suggest to Caleb that he climb in the front seat to see what is in the glove box and then get irritated when he proceded to empty the glove box and ask me TWENTY MILLION questions about its contents. Nope, not me. And while we are on the subject, I did not get slightly snippy with Matthew for being late either. ("Coach was on the phone, Mom.") Nope, not me. I have the patience of a saint.

After the garbage disposal backed up on Tuesday afternoon, I did not suggest to Jon that we needed a plumber. He of course, took my suggestion and called right away. And when the fourth day of not being able to use my kitchen sinks at ALL came and went, I did not ever so gently remind him that I HAD SUGGESTED that he call a plumber. Nope, not me.

Yesterday, while we were at Wal-Mart after church, we did not end up down the wrong aisle of a store undergoing major changes while looking for craft sticks for a project for Matthew. And that aisle did not contain a product called Liquid Lightning, which, after two bottles, did not clear the plumbing problem that we had since Tuesday. Jon did not immediately cancel the plumber's visit for today, and I did not eat half of a twelve inch pepperoni pizza in celebration. Nope, not me.

Whew.

Picture of the week!

And yes, it really does belong as part of Flashback Friday, but it's so cute I couldn't help myself.....he's just about 2 and a half here....

Flashback Friday!

It's my right as a woman to change my mind, you know.....so in order to share with you some old pics of the boys that I found....let Flashback Friday begin!



2004 (aren't they cute!?!)

Opposite

Caleb has always been a delight. Conception took almost 2 years (vs 2 MINUTES for Matthew, sorry if TMI!), I spent 10 weeks total on bed rest with my pregnancy. He was forced out 5 weeks early and all he wanted to do was sleep....this poses a problem when he needed to be awake to eat, so he could grow, ya know?

Now that he is seven, seems that the minute you get him pegged to something, he goes the other way. He and Matthew go to separate schools now, so they don't see each other between the hours of 8-4. That's been harder for Caleb to adjust to, as you can imagine.....

He begs Matthew to play with him. Sometimes Matthew is more than accommodating, sometimes less so. My last WW post was because Caleb wants to spend every minute he has after school with Matthew.

So, you should have seen the look on Matthew's face when about 30 minutes before Caleb's bedtime, he says "Hey, you wanna go upstairs and play until you have to go to bed?" "Nah, I don't feel like it..."

Priceless. You think you know a guy.....

Join me, won't you??

If you are a regular reader, you know that I got fed up with the scale a couple of weeks ago. Okay, to be fair, it wasn't the scale itself, but the NUMBER there.

I felt that the posts were just getting lost here, so I started a new blog just for that purpose.

Follow me on my journey, won't you?!?! Please!?!?!

www.journeytoonethirty.blogspot.com

That's a great idea!

The following post is all contributed to the Ivy league brained previous owners of our home....

If you have hardwood flooring in the dining room, it's a great idea to put carpet over it....especially since the next owners of the house will give birth to a child who can't maintain a steady spaghetti plate.

(This next one was my own doing...not the previous dufuses....)

It's also a great idea to remove an entire room of carpet by oneself; taking nearly SIX hours. It causes the project do-er to regret starting the project alone about half way through, and causes much aching to a 34 year old body. GREAT idea!




Another great idea is to use the 1980's electrical to hook up the washing machine. With extension cords, of course, because the outlet is in the ceiling. And then there was great amazement when the cords melted like Frosty in the greenhouse....duh.


And my most favorite idea of all. Ready?!? The best idea IN THE WORLD is to use the kitchen sink drain as a garbage disposal when there isn't one. You know, for things like nails, screws and popsicle sticks. Which, of course causes the new owners many hours of frustration.....


GREAT IDEA!

PRAY for Kayleigh!

Click the button to read sweet Kayleigh's story!

Wordless Wednesday...Handy Manny Daddy!

Check out the orange for Stellan! Totally cool!

Giveaway!

Just in time for Mother's Day, check out the giveaway at ScaryMommy!



To enter to win, leave a comment here. Winner to be announced one week from today, April 28th.

Good Luck!

Thankful Tuesday! Blessings.....

I have so much to be thankful for.....at this moment, it's really difficult to find the words.

I am thankful for my Heavenly Father. I am grateful that He sent His son, Jesus to die for me. And I am thankful that Jesus' love for me is what kept him on the cross that day.

And for the knowledge that He didn't stay dead, but rose again. All this...even if I was the only one....wow!

I am thankful for my children. That they are healthy and can be obnoxious with one another and with me...I'd rather have that than any other.....

My husband is amazing. He's a wonderful father and a great provider and I couldn't imagine this journey without him at my side.

I'm thankful that my parents were able to come for a visit last week. We have a lot of fun...and Dad is so handy that it was he who put in my disposal and he and Jon who did the work on the bathroom ceiling. Those things are minor in the grand scheme of life, but without Dad, they would have been longer in coming.



I am thankful that my little brother (age 25) has someone to spend his life with. And that my new sister-in-law came with a new niece for me and will give birth to my nephew this summer! I can't wait!



I am thankful for the rain....since it makes the flowers grow! I'm excited to see what varities of flowers and such are going to grow in my yard in the next few weeks! That's one of the perks to buying the house in December.......



What are your blessings today?!? Big or small, I want to hear about them!

*************


Pray for Stellan today....and for Mckmama. Stellan is due to have the ablation surgery this morning in Boston. (to read Mckmama's latest post, go here.)

Ch..ch..ch..changes

In the last few days, several changes have been made at this house.

I now have a garbage disposal in my kitchen. *crowd roars*



I have several pics of that project in progress, but Dad was reluctant for me to post them, so I won't.

The living room cold air return register is now about 98% in its proper place. No more tripping on that if I get up from that same side of the couch. *yay!*

It was a family project minus C but including Grandma and Grandpa, but we FINALLY got all the leaves raked and bagged and gone from the backyard! AND discovered that I may have a rasberry cane back there and at least 50 lillies. (To go, of course with the 50 or so on the side of the house.)

The bathroom ceiling pics are self- explanatory.
Before:


After: (yay!) It's only "plain white" but SO prefered to "waterstain brown"!
(now to do something about the brown 1970's flower pattern!)

And then yesterday, Jon and I went to my Alltel provider and got a cell to use as the home phone. We are also planning to use the internet through them and can then say GOODBYE to our current ISP, and we will save between $25-$30 a month.

Oh, and this morning, I awoke to THIS!

Great time!

We're having a great time with Grandma Jill and Grandpa here. The boys are sightly hesitant to go to school, but Caleb feels much better when told that Grandma will still be here when he gets home.

Have I ever told you how much I love my dad? And more so now, as he spent yesterday installing electrical so that my kitchen can have a garbage disposal. I got some pics that I'll post later.....today the disposal will be put in. I can't wait!

Mom has been really helpful with identifying a few unknown plants in my yard. (EVERY day something else is popping up!) Turns out I have a few Hen and chicks....that's kinda cool!

Jon is off today, so he'll help Dad with the disposal and then hopefully they can take a look at the non-functioning bathroom vent.

Oh, and M had his first track meet yesterday. All I can say is that he did really well, but if I were sitting there without my parents, I'd have needed a book.....

And Mom loaned me a new Mary Higgins Clark to read. Not MHC's newest book, but the one before that since it is in paperback. I'll of course wait till she leaves to get started on it.

That's about all from here..... Keep praying for Mckmama and Stellan..they made it to Boston, so things are looking up!

Wordless Wednesday- Making the band

Give Thanks!

First of all, hop on over to The Mommy Diaries and wish Esther a Happy Birthday! She's posted some birthday pics of herself that were fun to look at! :)

Second, pray for Stellan and for MamaSpohr's family and for April's mom. Each situation is vastly different, but all are needing covered in prayer.

It seems very wrong to give thanks this morning; it's feeling almost like bragging that I have and others have not. But somehow, I can't help but be thankful for my blessings.

I won't create a list, as I usually do, but will spend that time in prayer and thanksgiving to my Father for all that He has seen fit for me. The highs and the lows and everything in between have made me just who He wants me to be. Not that I've arrived, goodness no, but you understand.....I hope.

Give thanks for YOUR blessings today.

No Substitutes

We got some pictures of Jon and I and of the boys together, before the madness of arriving at church TEN MINUTES before the start of service! *faint* I'll post them later this week.

Frozen grapes don't cut it when all you can think of is Easter candy. They just don't.


Frozen grapes don't substitute for donuts either. Although Easter candy could.


Thank God that school is back in session today. It makes the late afternoon and evening so crazy, but it's worth it to me to have a quiet morning. :)


My parents are arriving on Wednesday afternoon and I can't wait. I haven't seen them since Thanksgiving.

Carry on.

He has risen! He has risen indeed!

Happy Easter everybody!

In Christ Alone!