Crystalized Reflections

Lock-Ins Where We Weren't Locked In

2010-12-02T10:00:00.001+10:00

Some of my favorite memories are from my time at church, in our youth group. In particular I loved being apart of the lock-ins. Staying up all night long, hanging out, playing games and munching on snacks, what teenager could ask for more?!

(This was much of our youth group, I was one of the youngest- in yellow, in front of the building we used most often for our youth group meetings. It actually burned down, though I can't remember which year- I think it was when I was 17 or 18. The roof had caught fire and it was bad enough the building became unusable- at the time I was in charge of our AWANA store also housed in that building. I remember going through everything and it reeked of smoke, we couldn't use any of it.)

One of my favorite games was a form of hide and seek. Though the concept of a lock-in is being locked inside the church, our church was actually four buildings spread out over the church grounds, so we usually just took it as being 'locked' into the church grounds. So in the dark night, we would have 1 person go out and hide somewhere- inside or out. Then we all go out in search of them. The first person to find them is officially the winner, but once they are found instead of announcing it, you would join them in hiding until pretty much everyone was hiding there. One time when we were playing, it was my friend, Coley's, turn to hide. He found a great spot because we were completely at a loss and eventually had to start searching for him for real- game officially over. As it turned out, he had fallen asleep where he was hidden!! From then on we only played in partners.
At another lock-in, when we were playing that same game but in partners, it was Steve and Joe's turn to hide (at least I think it was those- but really any of the guys in youth group would've had this exact idea!). On our church property there was a huge back lot where a new building was always planned to be built (as of now I still don't think it has happened yet!). The ground was very uneven. Mounds of earth here and there, between ditches. During our normal youth group time each Sunday evening, we would often play capture the flag up there. It was perfect for it. Well the lot is surrounded by woods. Well Steve and Joe went out to hide, and pretty soon we all went out, in pairs, to search for them. After not too long, we started hearing this loud crack, I mean really loud hard to ignore, and if I remember right, there was also a bright flash of some sort. It seemed to be coming from the back lot, so my friend Shannah who was my partner, and another pair of girls, Deanna and Emily, all went up to the back lot. Of course it was dark and the ground was uneven, so it was creepy back there, but we walked along the edges, though not getting too terribly close to the woods. We were talking about how they better not be back in the woods, because that would be out of bounds. And then all the sudden they jumped out from the trees (well, not so much jumped as, set off whatever toy they were using to make the loud noise and bright flash of light, and they yelled something from up in a tree right at the edge- in daylight they would've been completely visible), catching me and the other girls off guard as we screamed and jumped back- me unfortunately into a huge puddle! I wasn't very happy at the time, but I smile when I look back and think of it now.
Why can't adults have lock-ins and play games like that?!! I totally miss it!

Top Ten Tuesday: My Plans While We Are HOME!

2010-11-23T10:00:00.001+10:00

I am home for my sister's wedding and some much needed time with family and friends, most of whom I have not seen in 2+ years!! So while I plan to be checking in occasionally and maybe blogging a little, Jon and I have a lot of things we want to cram into a 3 week window while we are home. We aren't planning another visit to the states until our return home in mid 2012! Here are some of the many things we hope to do during the 3 weeks:

1. Obviously, I will be doing all the wonderful duties of not only sister to the bride, but a bridesmaid. Including throwing a bridal shower myself, attending another pajama party and a ladies luncheon in my sister's honor- complete with getting my nails done at the salon with the ladies before the luncheon, the rehearsal and dinner, then the actual wedding itself!

2. At my sister's request, we will be having either a double date with our men, or just some sister bonding time. I believe we will be going to Seattle!

3. At my insistence, Jon and I will be getting a date night of our own. If finances and timing permit, it will be a dinner cruise that we have both longed to go on. In fact, it the same one he had hoped to propose on if I hadn't been so impatient!

4. This is not only a trip to go for the wedding, but also our own family vacation. We haven't been on one of those in a long time!! So we are hoping to take the kids up to the Woodland Park Zoo in the Seattle area, which I have never been too. As well as the Aquarium which is in downtown Seattle- though they will probably need to be separate trips, because we will take the ferry on foot for the Aquarium. Though Jon was disappointed I had taken Natalie on her first ferry ride the last time just us girl visited, this time it will be Zachary's 1st time and we will all go!

5. Family pictures!! I already found and bought coordinating outfits for all of us, to do some in studio pictures at JCPenny. This is were we used to do all our pictures of the kids and family, but there isn't one in Guam! I have this framed print from them in our hall from right before we left, but it is missing our newest member- so we really hope to get something similar to add beside the earlier one when we get home! (Though I am still hoping to also do family pictures on the beach in Guam before Jon leaves for 3 months next year, I don't think you can ever have too many pictures!!)

6. A girls night, or day, with my best friend, Shannah!! We have been best friends for over 10 years, and I miss her a whole lot!! I plan on spending as much time with her as I can between all the wedding stuff and other plans, as well as have Natalie spend some time with Shannah's 3 girls!

7. We will be celebrating Christmas on Thanksgiving with my family! I am looking forward to it, even if there won't be a tree or many decorations up yet, we will still have the big meal surrounded by our family, and exchange gifts all together instead of through the mail!

8. A tradition my mom started when I was young, was that every year we would go see Zoolights at the Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium. In general I spent a lot of time there growing up with my mom and sisters, so it will be a great blessing to now share that with my kids. Zoolights is a lot of fun, it opens the weekend after Thanksgiving and the whole zoo is decked out with Christmas lights! We bundle up, go buy hot chocolate and walk through the maze of displays lighting up the night! I have missed that, I haven't been to it in about 6 years!

9. I will be getting my craft on! I am looking forward to not only trying to creatively and inexpensively decorating for my sister's bridal shower, but also picking up the stuff I want/need in order to decorate Zachary's toddler bedroom- monkey themed! I almost all of the decor in my daughter's ladybug themed bedroom when we switched her to her toddler bed and took out the old nursery decor, and I can't wait to do the same for my son as he approaches 2 years old! And also I will be finishing up last minute touches on the homemade Christmas gifts for my family. We don't have a very great craft store here on Guam- there is one, but the selection isn't great and it is seriously expensive, so this is a big priority for me, I miss running to Michael's (or even Walmart sometimes) for all my crafting needs!!

10. I will also be trying to visit with many other friends I haven't seen in a while, including my friends Chris, Victoria, and Bethany. As well as family, my brother Daniel and my niece Miranda, and all the family attending my sister's wedding.

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Another New School and Meeting New Family

2010-11-18T10:00:00.000+10:00

A new year and another new school. Shortly after my mom had us move from the nice big blue house to a small 2 bedroom apartment, I started at a new school, and not just any new school, a brand new, just built, middle school! It was only a year or 2 old and the first school I would be attending without my younger sister Carolyn. There was 5th through 7th grade here before moving up to the high school which started at 8th grade. To prepare us for high school, we actually had our classes set up a little differently then I was used to here. Our teachers were in pairs, and as my home room was Mrs. P, she would have us most of the day for math, geography, and history, we would go over to Mrs. S room next door for her to teach us reading and writing, while her class was in our room learning the math and history from our teacher. Our classes did a lot of the other 'extra' stuff together as well, like art, typing, library time, etc. I had great friends in both rooms, though my closest circle of friends was in Mrs. S's homeroom. Actually overall, I liked Mrs. S better then my normal teacher. Not that Mrs. P wasn't nice enough, but I found her boring- though it may relate to the material she was teaching as well. I adored Mrs. S, she was more personable, kind, uplifting, encouraging, and she taught my favorite subjects! She was probably the earliest teacher I remember having that really helped me develop my love for the written word- both the read and write.
Though I had many more friends in this new school, I was still not very good in the social area. I often was teased as I would wear the same over sized white Halloween sweatshirt, over one of 2 turtle necks with one of 2 pairs of stretch pants I owned, EVERY. SINGLE. DAY. Don't get me wrong they were clean. Every 2 days I did a very small load of clothes. But this was a time when jeans were the 'in' thing to be wearing, and fashion was becoming quite the social status as we entered the preteen years. To me, jeans were the most uncomfortable piece of clothing ever. I couldn't stand them, and being comfortable was more important to me then being socially accepted- though I longed for that too. Luckily I did have some very good friends who didn't care what I wore!
There was Lydia, she was in Mrs. P's class with me. She was a wonderful artist, she could draw a perfect picture of Bambi completely freehand! I thought she was amazing, but she wasn't a fan of my ever changing mood swings, and we often weren't talking for one reason or another.
There was Shardae, she actually lived in the same apartment complex as me. She was also in Mrs. P's class but she was a social butterfly, and between her and another friend of hers named Jenna, we too were on and off a whole lot. It didn't help that her brother who was 2 years older didn't like me and often threatened me. Funny because honestly if anyone was the bad influence it was her, not me! But she did teach me how to roller blade which we would do a lot in the parking lots of our huge apartment complex.
Then there were my friend's in the other class, the ones that were truly my closest friends that year, Rachel, Katie and Katie. I remember once going to Rachel's house for her birthday. 2 of us (me included) decided we would head bang for as long as we could- don't ask me why. We head banged to some music I wasn't familiar with for an hour straight. That was when I had my first migraine I believe and I ended up going home SO sick. I threw up more then I ever did with the flu in that one time!!
Katie M. was the one I would end up missing the most when we moved yet again at the end of this year. I always thought she was so pretty with her dark short hair, and she was the sweetest girl I had ever met. Before I moved away she even made me something she said she was going to put on a pillow but ran out of time, one of those yarn things (you knot it onto a piece of plastic?? Not sure what it is called but I still see the kits for it at craft stores now) with Winnie the Pooh's face on it. She also gave me a large Mickey Mouse she had gotten at Disneyland the year before, so I could have something to remember her by (I collected stuffed animals). I was so sad we never ended up keeping in touch, but I think we both knew it wasn't likely.
Half way through the year, we actually moved again. This time to a bigger 3 bedroom unit and either my grandma moved in with us or just visited A LOT!
Over spring break this year, for the first time, I went on a trip to see my dad's parents. I had not spent much time with them up to this point, so this was a new experience. They owned an RV, so they came all the way up from California to pick up my sister Carolyn and I and drove back down. I enjoyed the road trip most. I had never been in an RV before and I thought it was the coolest thing. We had to stop for something to be fixed on the RV in Oregon and my Granny taught us how to play Rummicub. We also stopped in southern Oregon again were my Papa went fishing and we picked blackberries. It was beautiful were we stopped in Brookings. I think it was by a river in this RV site, and I only wish I had had a camera back then!
When we finally made it too their house in California, we met our Aunts and Uncles for the first time. There was Aunt Jane & Uncle Leon who lived on the same property (there were 3 houses on the property). Then Aunt Leila who lived out in town and we didn't see much of. Our cousins, Mary, Leon, and Elizabeth came over to play often though. We even went to one of Mary's swim meets.
This is also where I learned almonds grow on trees! In fact my grandparents had at one time had acres of almond trees. Unfortunately most had died and the land was sold, but there were still a few trees behind my Papa's shed. They also had citrus plants in their front yard with oranges, lemons and limes. And my granddad (Granny's father) who lived in another of the houses on the property, had his own garden which grew pretty much everything I could imagine! There were even little fig trees (though they looked more like bushes to me). I tried one, but I thought they were disgusting. The thing I enjoyed most were the grape vines though, those I definitely ate and loved!
Another new thing I learned about on our trip was black widows. Now I had grown up with a healthy fear of spiders (still very active today in fact!), and in the RV on the way to California, we had seen a show about some of the world's smallest but deadliest predators, one of them was the black widow. I was terrified! I imagined seeing them all over the place when we got there and wondered how anyone survived living in such a place! My grandparents warned us about not putting our hands places we couldn't already see first, particularly when we were outdoors. But I had so many nightmares of them the whole trip.
Another part of our trip was going to visit my Aunt Terri and Uncle Nelson. I loved Aunt Terri from that very first time I met her. She is my dad's older sister, and she lived hours away from my grandparents. At her house was a pool, and we went swimming and had virgin strawberry daiquiris. During the day at one point I made a comment that I really liked her little green flower earrings, so she took them off and gave them to me! I felt very special and instantly her kindness comforted me and I felt closer to her then any of the other relatives I had met.
When it was time to go back home, my Granny talked to my mom, then to us girls. She wanted to fly us back, but we had never been on a plane before and I was scared of heights and flying in general! Eventually she convinced us, how could I pass up being home in a few hours verses a few days? We left from the Oakland airport. This was of course when others could walk you all the way to the gate, and wait with you. We waited and I watched the airplane get hooked up to the tunnel with much anxiousness but also excitement. I was scared of it, but it was a new experience and seemed so grown up, especially since we would be going alone, just me and my sister. All I remember about the flight is that we didn't sit together. We both wanted a window seat, so she sat behind me. I remember the rows were like 4 or 5 people in on each side of the aisle. And though I have never seen this set up in a plane since, there was a table and every other row faced each other. So I was sitting in a seat across from a middle aged woman. Ideally my sister would've sat opposite me, but we didn't board in time to find any seats like that both with windows. After that I don't even remember taking off or landing, accept that it was difficult to get off once we did land as EVERYONE was trying to get their bags down and rush off the plane, so we had to wait.
That following summer we moved back into my grandma's house where we had lived from 1st to 4th grade.

To read more about my relationship with my sister Carolyn and what NOT to do with scissors, check out my 5th grade post from last session. (I promise it is shorter then this one!!)

This is the 7th post in a series of 12 I am doing to record my youth to share with my children and grandchildren someday at

Shaking the House Down!

2010-11-11T10:00:00.002+10:00

Fourth grade was first year we moved that I remember actually being effected by it socially. From 1st through half of 4th grade we had been living at my grandma's house, not far from my school. I had so many wonderful teachers at the school, and great friends from my years there, I don't know that I was 'popular' but I was comfortable for certain. Then we moved as my mom and stepfather tried to reconcile, he even bought me a puppy at Christmas and my little sister a nice CD player, which I always suspected as a way to get back on my mom's good side. And apparently it worked, as we moved closer to their job, a computer type of business (think Kinko's)about half an hour away.
My sister and I began attending a school we had passed many time in the past and always thought looked old fashioned and run down compared to the nice, new and clean facility our prior elementary school had been. I don't think it was a bad part of town, but the school hadn't been updated in a long time, evident by one example- they still used the card system in the library instead of computers. Our old school had taught us how to use it, but only as a formality because we rarely ever had too.
Growing up at my grandma's house, I remember always being jealous of the kids who lived so close to school they could walk. We were close enough, but not quite that close. My feelings towards that all changed when we had moved just up the road from this new old school, and now I actually did have no other choice but to walk. It was also the first time I had to worry about carrying a house key with me since my grandma didn't initially live with us, so we came home to a big empty house most days.
It was another big blue house, one of the biggest and nicest I remember living in, with a huge fenced in back yard and a basketball court too. I remember being excited about it, but then rarely going out to play. I was definitely an indoors kind of girl.
As for school, I was in a split class. I was in the older group of 4th graders which was just a handful of kids compared to the 3rd graders in our class. I don't know if its just a part of the 'oldest sibling' syndrome, but I was very upset at the fact that I was better friends with the younger 'little' kids then those my own age. Apparently at this school, by 4th grade most students had already learned about the 'birds and the bees' but I hadn't yet. I was considered very naive by my 4th grade classmates, and I always felt so small in that class. Thankfully it was the one and only split class I was ever in, but it began a pattern of a lack of self confidence in myself which continued and contributed to the rest of my school years.
At home, it didn't take very long for my mom to decide that her marriage was beyond reconciliation. I barely remember my stepfather being around when we lived in that house. One night, I think it was somewhat stormy outside, so my mom decided we would all sleep on the pullout sofa in the living room for fun. I don't remember if it was just me and my sister Carolyn or if the 2 youngest of my siblings were there too, but we waited on the couch as my mom ran upstairs to get some linens. Then there was an earthquake. Not surprising for the area, and to a kid it was great fun! And from upstairs my mom yelled down to us- "Hey girls, stop rough housing, you're shaking the whole house!" And we were just sitting on the couch laughing at our little secret because we knew it had been an earthquake and she didn't! We told her when she came back down, but I remember wondering how she could possibly have thought it was us since everyone knows you can't shake the house from the downstairs, just the upstairs!!
Well at the end of the school year, since my mom could no longer afford to for us to live in such a big house, it was time for another move. This time to some apartments in a different part of the city, where we would go to a brand new school, and I couldn't be happier!

This is the 6th post in a series of 12 I am doing to record my youth for my children and grandchildren to read someday at

The Gift of Hospitality

2010-10-26T10:00:00.000+10:00

So this week I am going to focus on some dear friends of ours, whom we miss dearly, but even that is so broad because we have many friends we wish could be closer to us! I will never forget Mikayla and Jason's wonderful hospitality towards us as we prepared to move from our East Coast home, to Guam.

We had met Mikayla and Jason in our young adult couple's Sunday school class at church. It was around September 2007 when we first got back to the East coast. I had spent the time Jon was in Cuba, living with my mom across the country, but it was nice to be back to the first place we had really had to establish our home as an independent couple. I admit while I loved being home and all the familiar things where I grew up, the business and wide range of city life had grown on me. I enjoyed being in a 'mega church', which was a huge change from my small town church of maybe 100 attenders on a very good day.
I don't remember exactly the how fast it all happened, but we clicked. We had finally found friends we felt comfortable with, that were at a similar point in life. We enjoyed having Mikayla and Jason over for dinner, and we spent time at their place, or out to eat as well. In fact, they introduced us to the Wii. It was New Year's Eve, we went over to their house for dinner and ended up staying until 1 am (I don't remember if that was actually the plan). For hours we played Wii Tennis, Bowling and Boxing. I felt like I was in youth group again, at one of our regular lock-ins! I had never had so much fun on New Year's Eve before! Natalie behaved quite well, even into the lateness of the night.
Fast forward to February, Mikayla was quickly approaching the due date of their first child. We had invited them over for dinner one night, and Mikayla was complaining of back pain. Well the next morning I got a call from Jason asking what was in that dinner because Mikayla was in labor!! They asked us if we could bring our camera because they didn't have theirs, you see Mikayla had been going to her morning OB appointment and the doctor was concerned about the baby's heartbeat, so she was sent to the hospital right from the clinic. So Jon stayed home with Natalie, as I went up to the hospital. Jason's sister was supposed to be there for the birth, another person to help Mikayla and the baby, but since baby Hannah arrived a few weeks early, his sister hadn't yet flown in yet (I think she was coming within a few days). I was only too happy to help when I got the the hospital, and whether it was from so much pain, Mikayla just didn't care, or because she really did want another woman there, she let me stay to help however I could. I considered it an honor. And I guess it was a help, because I was able to take pictures of there first moments as a family together! I wish someone had been at the births of my children to snap some early photos, but it just wasn't a priority for me or my husband to be taking pictures at the time!

About 4-5 months later, as we prepared for our move to Guam, leaving Mikayla, Hannah, and Jason, they were kind enough to let us stay with them. When it comes to overseas moves with the military it can take up to 2 months for our household goods to make the long journey to us, so we wanted to send it as soon as we could. What better time then right before I would be gone myself, with Natalie (2 1/2 at the time) to visit my mom for her wedding for 3 weeks the month before our overseas journey truly began. And when I returned home our apartment lease was ended, our stuff was gone, and Natalie and I stayed with Mikayla and Jason in their brand new house (which they were remodeling at the time!). Jon stayed with another friend, Eric, from his from work (who also had a young baby born the same month as Hannah), and who lived much closer to work, and he came over during the day to help with Natalie and Hannah when he wasn't babysitting Ava as a favor to Eric. Of course, I was in my 1st trimester of pregnancy with Zachary, which meant I was often nauseous, but as much as I could during the days while Mikayla was at work, and Jason was working on the remodel I played with Hannah and Natalie. It was actually a lot of fun, though it was cramped, during these few weeks. There was no one I would've rather spent so much time with before we left Virginia.
During our few weeks there we even went all together to Busch Gardens for the 4th of July. It was Natalie's first time at an amusement park and boy did she love the rides! And would you know, of all the years we spent in Virginia, so near to Busch Gardens which we could get one free pass to each year (military special), and both time we went I was in my first trimester of pregnancy!! The other time was when my mom and sister had visited us and I was 12 weeks pregnant with Natalie, and though I begged the doctor, they said I should NOT go on ANY rides at all! With my fear of miscarrying again, I did not dare to question that as much as I wanted too, and it was the same way the second time around. So though I enjoyed the shops and shows and even fireworks Busch Gardens had to offer, the closest I got to any ride was the train that ran through the park to shuttle guests from one 'country' to another.

Another fun story from while we stayed at Mikayla and Jason's house was first discovering Natalie had inherited my fear of bugs. While I am really only particularly scared of spiders and any bees or wasps, Natalie couldn't tell the difference at this age. One day when I sent her to the room we were staying in because she was in trouble, almost as soon as the door closed I heard the most ear piercing scream. When I went inside, Natalie was climbing from her small toddler size air mattress onto the taller queen size one, as fast as she could move. When I asked her what was wrong, in her panic she cried "There's a bug!!!" And I looked to see a housefly on her pillow! I couldn't stop laughing as I tried (and still try today) to convince her that flies and ants won't hurt her!

This is a post to record my Young Adult years at

Little Moments of Life On Base

2010-10-22T22:54:00.004+10:00

Around the age of 6, my mother had recently had a new baby girl (this made me the oldest of 3), and my grandfather and cousin had passed away, it was quite a year. But I still remember some little moments of everyday life surrounding those giant ones.
My stepfather was in the Navy on submarines, so we had the privilege, I always thought, of living in a house on base. It was situated on a col-de-sac, which was neat because it gave me plenty of space to ride my bike. That was the year I learned to ride a 2 wheeler, and boy did I! Growing up, we rarely lived in communities I was able to do this in very much- busy, crowded apartment complexes, or my Grandma's house which is out in the boonies surrounded by trees and a road with many steep hills. But on base, I enjoyed many fun pastimes that year.
Once we got invited to a friend's pool party. I remember being in awe that that had a pool in their very own back yard! It was above ground, and I just remember thinking it was huge!! To a six year old, it was very deep and plenty of space to swim and play. In the future when I saw above ground pools, I always thought they were lame and not deep enough, but this one stands out in my memory as being the biggest one I have ever seen (because I was so little at the time!). I even imagined what it would be like if we bent one of the sides over, like you could in the little kid pools, and the water flooded out. I pictured it being so much, it would wash away the cars from the street!
Then there was my own backyard, or it may have been our neighbors. I just remember that as it had a decline into the trees at the back, there was a little fenced in area, and steps cut right into the hillside. No wood, or stones, just the dirt, like someone took a shove at a perfect 90 degree angle to make steps up into the yard in the steep grassy hill. That part must have been on our neighbor's side, because I remember trying to get my stepfather to do it in our yard but he wouldn't.
Another brief glimpse from my life as a submariner's step-daughter, was going down to meet the submarine when it pulled in after a 3 or 6 month departure. One time particularly, my mom dressed me in this very patriotic dress, with red and white stripes along the bodice and a puffy skirt of blue with white stars. We got on a bus that took us into the restricted area where the submarines docked, though I don't even remember seeing my stepfather get off, just being on the bus in a dress I actually really liked that was perfect for the occasion.
I also remember listening to a lot of Ace of Base in my grandma's old white Subaru as she drove us everywhere. She lived with us here, as well as almost anywhere else we went, and she took care of me and my sisters.

This is the 3rd in a series of 12 posts I am doing to record my youth for my children and grandchildren at

What's Up?

2010-10-22T22:36:00.004+10:00

Well, that week seems like it was closer to a month long! As I sit down hoping to add a new Mommy's Piggy Tales for this week I am struggling to think of anything since I have been out of writing and remembering mode for 'so long'! Don't get me wrong, I truly love writing, but it was nice to not worry about it for a week, not wonder what to write about next. And honestly I don't think I could've kept going as last week wore on even if I wasn't having some technical issues, because my cold really bore down hard on me. Now though I am feeling physically better with only a lingering cough as a reminder, though this week has brought new challenges as my husband had to go off island for a week, and this is the first time since Zachary was 3 months old that we have had any time apart, though luckily by the time I even begin to adjust to being the only adult in the house, my Jon will be back, and soon we will be off to my sister's wedding!
I am so excited for our trip home which has all ended up coming together perfectly (despite much stress early on). Our whole family is in the wedding, my daugther is a flower girl, my son is a ring bearer, my husband is a groomsman, and I am a bridesmaid! And as of yesterday, I guess I will be singing in the wedding as well. I am honored she would ask me, but also quite nervous. I haven't sung on stage by myself in about 3 years. At least in my case, for a while I had built up to not being so nervous about it when I was regularly or occassionally singing at church for solos, but over such a time period having NOT done it, the butterflies are bunching up in my stomach when I think about it! Luckily the song is familiar, I just hope I do it some justice- From This Moment On, by Shania Twain, one of my sister's favorite singers and one I enjoyed when I was younger though I haven't listened to her very much in recent years.
Now that you are formally updated, and my new computer power cord is plugged in and ready to keep my laptop from dying down, on to my next post! Thanks for understanding my absence!

Technical Issues

2010-10-14T20:40:00.002+10:00

I am experiencing some technical issues with my computer, so I may not be on for a week or so! I promise to read all the posts of my Mommy's Piggy Tails group when I get back up and running! I haven't forgotten you!!

Who Wants to Marry Me This Time?

2010-10-14T10:00:00.000+10:00

I am honestly not sure when exactly this was, but I do remember I went to a school of some sort- whether is was preschool or grade school is sorta jumbled up in my memory.
I do remember that my mother and stepfather were managers of an apartment complex and while they lived in an apartment close the the front of the complex, beside the office, I actually lived with my grandma in a small two bedroom unit towards the back. It was just her and I, as my sisters (I think this was before my youngest sibling was born) lived with my mom.
I remember coming home from school and watching Care Bears in my Grandma's living room with my sister Carolyn. And sometimes if we were really good, we would get to have some fruit snacks, something my mom never kept in her own home.
And one of the good things about living in an apartment complex is having friends who live right outside your very own door! There were two little boys, brothers, who lived just across a small courtyard type area. And as any little girl, my favorite game was pretending to get married! In fact I had my first kiss (just a little peck on the lips- but that was a big deal to a very young girl!) with the older of the brothers. Though in fact, they would argue over who got to play the groom, and boy did that make me feel good!! Probably the only time in my whole life I had boys fighting over me!!

This is my 2nd post in a 12 week series I am doing to record my youth for my children at
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WFMW: Travelling with Necklaces

2010-10-13T15:55:00.004+10:00

I am very excited to share that very soon we will be making our nearly 16 hour trip home for a much needed visit with my family and friends! Let me clarify, I am excited to be at home for a while, not quite so excited for the travel itself with 2 young children! (Pray for us as we take the kids on some long international flights back to the states- my big boy Zachary is going as an infant in lap which should be interesting!)
But it had me thinking, how am I going to get my jewelry there without all my necklaces turning into one big tangled blob! That's when inspiration struck! I don't see how I didn't think of it sooner... snack size Ziploc baggies!!
After reading a post by ohamanda, and hearing her own tips for using large Ziploc bags for the children's outfits (tip #7), or to keep delicates separated from everything else neatly, I thought why not use the teeny tiny ones for my necklaces! Now I haven't done this yet, so I don't know how well they will stay untangled from themselves, but at least if you ask me, it is a lot easier to untangle one necklace from itself then from a wad of 10 others!!

I have no doubt this will work for me! Do you have any travelling tips or tricks you would like to pass on to me? I would appreciate any helpful suggestions, particularly for flying with young ones!

This is linked to Works for Me Wednesday at We are THAT Family.

Contact Me!

2010-10-13T15:28:00.002+10:00

Well, I have heard many other bloggers share their own disappointments when they find they are unsure of how to get ahold of a fellow blogger who doesn't have any contact info on their blog. Well I don't know if that is me or not, but I am guilty either way! At least until now!

I have added a new "About Me" page, and at the bottom is my new email address! So please feel free to email me directly with any questions or comments, I would love to hear from my readers!!

My new email address is crystalizedreflections@yahoo.com. I can't wait to hear from you!

Top Ten Tuesday: Surviving Sickness

2010-10-12T12:17:00.004+10:00

Well I have been the latest victim of a cold in our household! It has been sort of up and down, today is a down day, and appropriately, if you ask me, it has been raining! I actually enjoy the rain here as long as I don't have to go out in it. And honestly I prefer it be rainy when I am sick, don't ask me why, but it just feels more appropriate to me!! (I never said I was normal!) So here is my list of what I like to do when I am sick...

1. SLEEP!! Of course, being sick complicates that sometimes. For example, I can't stop coughing! And being a mommy further complicates it because I still need to take care of the kids instead of nap (though I will be napping during the nap time when both of them are down today).

2. Drinking nice HOT cups of tea. My favorites right now are Sleepy time, which has chamomile in it and relaxes me, and Orange, Passion fruit, & Jasmine Green Tea. That last one may sound a little different, but it is awesome!

3. I pull out some DVDs and just relax and watch them on the couch. While the kids aren't in the room, I watch Monk today, when they are with me, I am watching Disney movies- which are some of my favorites! Normally we really try to limit the TV time, especially for the kids, but when someone is sick- me or them- I tend to enjoy the little distraction that keeps them from driving me nuts!!

4. I pull out the soups and chilis! Tonight for dinner, we are having a Turkey & Black bean Chili from Finding Joy in My Kitchen. Takes me half an hour in the morning to throw together in my slow cooker, then we are set! I had already planned this for today, but now I am really looking forward to it. For lunch I will probably have some traditional chicken noodle soup- and since we all know I am a little strange already- I actually really like the condensed Campbell's one instead of the Progresso one with all the extra stuff in it.

5. I pull out my softest blanket and curl up under it. Sometimes Natalie even joins me, she likes blankets too. I don't know what it is about blankets, but I just LOVE soft, warm, cozy blankets!!

6. Time for the soda crackers! Or some of you may call them saltines, but I grew up in a house that always called them soda crackers! The first time I asked my husband to pick some up for me, he just looked at me funny and said "WHAT are SODA crackers??"

7. I pull out a good book. If I am not able to sleep while the kids rest, then I at least enjoy a little bit of my own quiet time with a good story. Right now on my list (for fiction) is one of the few Nicholas Sparks books I have tucked away for just such a day! And I can usually finish these in just 2-3 days, perfect time to recuperate from a cold!

8. I take my vitamins! I am terrible about remembering to take my vitamins, but if I am sick, I really try to put the effort in to remember so my body can be in the best condition to fight whatever bug off! Though if I really want to do myself a favor, maybe I should try harder to remember regularly so I won't get hit so bad in the first place!

9. I take HOT showers! Okay, so I actually do this regularly anyway, but I especially enjoy them when I am congested and get that temporary relief the steam and heat brings!

10. What do you do when you have a cold? Any tips or tricks you can pass on to me? I could use all the help I can get while I am feeling under the weather and have to care for 2 young kids still!

This post is linked to .

Our First Big Military Move

2010-10-11T11:00:00.001+10:00

As our first anniversary was only a month away, it came time for our big move out into the world. After the wedding we had decided to save money by continuing to live with my mom since the downstairs acted as almost a duplex. My sister's were on one side, then Jon and I shared the master on the other side of the house. We had our own kitchen and shared a bathroom with 2 of my sisters. I look back and think, POOR Jon! He was the only man in a house full of women for almost a year!
But after Thanksgiving in 2004, we packed up my silver Escort and said our goodbyes. With Diamond, our little black Pomeranian, and a map, we made our way from Washington state to Virginia. It took us a week. We took the long way going down through Oregon and California then crossing into states like Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas. That part of our journey was fairly uneventful. Though at a gas station just before hitting California, a gentleman was nice enough to point out that our tires looked like it was about to go flat. Luckily where we had stopped sold tires and it was early in the day, so we hung out a little bit as they replaced the tire, which I am sure saved us a lot of grief later down the road had something happened to the tire while we were out in the middle of nowhere at night!
We made no stops to rest until we were in Oklahoma, where we visited with Jon's family for a couple of days. We were quite anxious to make it to our new home and find an apartment. We made the rest of our journey going through Arkansas and Tennessee before finally reaching the Western tip of Virginia. Now reading the map, I thought it would be quicker to take a smaller rural highway through the bottom of the state to the coast, rather the go up and around, then back down to our final destination in Hampton Roads. So following the map we got off the interstate and looked for the rural highway. What we hadn't noticed was that this road was twisting and winding its way through a national forest!
We happened upon this portion of our journey as it had just begun to get dark out. So in the dark of night, on roads that were unbelievably twisting and going up and down the heavily forested countryside, we made our way going about 25 miles per hour. There were few and far between buildings of any sort. It was like something out of a horror movie. We had to stop once on the side of the road as the roads were making me dizzy, and already 9 weeks pregnant (with my first pregnancy which I miscarried), I had to throw up. It was the worst part of our whole road trip. We happened upon this old gas station, that didn't even take any credit cards, but luckily we had enough cash on us. The machines were dusty and had the sort of numbers that flipped down instead of something digital and technologically advanced! Even the men behind the counter looked like a cross between comical hill billies and horrifying mountain men.
Just as I was about to need another stop for my protesting stomach, we stumbled out of the dark woods and onto civilization of some sort. It was a small little town with very few hotels, but we quickly got checked into the Holiday Inn, where I continued to feel sick, but finally got some much needed rest.
I woke up feeling much better the next morning and ready to hit the road again. After the continental breakfast we received directions to get back onto the interstate going north, where it would intersect with the original interstate we never should've gotten off of. After that our journey was much easier for the last few hours.
When we arrived in Virginia though, we were greeted with the new problem, finding an apartment. This proved to be difficult since not many places took pets. And the best looking ones had income restrictions which we only barely exceeded. In fact all the places I had looked up prior to leaving fell in that category though none had that specific requirement listed on their websites. I had even called some to find out more information and still had not been told this rather important detail. But on our second day there, we did manage to find a suitable apartment which was our home for the next 2 years.

This is the 1st post in a 7 week series I am doing to record some memories from my young adult years at .

In Labor? Let's Go Eat!

2010-10-07T11:00:00.000+10:00

Though I think most women when they are at the end of their first pregnancy would be anxious to get it over with, from the stories I have heard, I don't think my mom was. When she went into labor with me, instead of worrying about making it to the hospital, she went out to eat! No wonder I love Chinese food, because that's where she went. It's very hard for me to imagine this, the last thing I was worried about when I was in labor with my first child, was food. I just wanted to get checked into the hospital!! But knowing my mom, she is a much stronger woman then I am.
I have been reminded much throughout my life, that she was in labor with me for around 36 hours. A number I feared, since I have been told a woman takes after her mother when it comes to how long labor may last- and yes, my first was around 32 hours or so. I had an epidural, I am not sure if my mom did or not, but I know she had back labor. I was a pain in her back from the beginning!
As for breastfed or bottle fed, a very hot topic for moms now, I was bottle fed. My mom tried to breastfeed me, but it was too rough on her and she was in a lot of pain, so it didn't last long. And again, like mother, like daughter, I was unable to breastfeed for similar reasons.
For the short story of how I got my name, check out this post.

This is the 1st in a series of 12 posts to record my youth for my children at

Wordless Wednesday: My Gifts from God

2010-10-06T11:00:00.001+10:00

Behold, children are a gift of the Lord, the fruit of the womb is a reward. ~Psalm 127:3

AMEN!

This post is linked to Wordless Wednesday

WFMW: For the Splatter

2010-10-06T10:00:00.001+10:00

When my daughter was first learning to feed herself, I rushed out to the store to buy a $15 splat mat to put under her high chair to spare as much of the carpet as possible from any stains her food may leave.

Honestly I wasn't very impressed by the overpriced piece of vinyl. It was never big enough to cover the range of my daughter's throwing arm. I often imagined I had a baseball star in the making for how far she managed to chuck the raviolis!

Now I know better, I need something, wider, longer, and cheaper!

For my son I went out and spent about a third of the money to get a vinyl tablecloth. It works wonderfully! I have more options in size, and it can still function as a tablecloth when I need it to (if I give it a good wipe down). It actually seems to even stay in place better since the underside isn't vinyl (at least on carpet). And I can choose the pattern and color I want as well, so it can match my decor or rotate with the seasons, if I feel the need for a change (or if I just get tired of looking at one particular design).

Tablecloth splat mats work for us! How do you keep your floors clean with toddlers pitching their food all over?

This post is linked to Works for Me Wednesday at We are THAT Family.

What Kind of Man are You?

2010-10-05T11:00:00.001+10:00

At some point in this past week, I was loving on Zachary and called him, "My little man!" And Natalie elaborates my statement with, "A cute, fluffy, little man!"
Needless to say, daddy wasn't a huge fan of Natalie's choice in adjectives for his son!

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Though I didn't catch much of what was said, in a case of what I am sure was being overtired after a later then usual night at church, Natalie began to chatter to herself...and kept going and going and going. She sat on the potty talking away, then moved onto her bedroom, and held a steady stream of one-sided conversation with whoever was listening, and didn't go silent until the lights were out! If I hadn't known any better, I would've thought her daddy had given her a cup of coffee with the buzz of energy she was running off of!

This post is linked to

Top Ten Tuesday: The Power of Prayer

2010-10-05T07:30:00.001+10:00

I know prayer is a very powerful tool. In fact it is one of the easiest things a Christian can do, but also something we tend to neglect so often. These are the burdens on my heart today. I have prayed over these all weekend, and continue to throughout this week. I want to be a prayer warrior for God. Will you pray with me?

1. For my family: Our family has been in waiting to get approval from my husband's job for an opportunity to go home for my sister's wedding. For over a month and half we have been praying and waiting- sometimes patiently, sometimes not so patiently- to receive our answer so that we may buy tickets. We are reaching the point though when we will have only 1 month to go and a decision must be reached on our part, whether or not to go. Pray my husband's work will give us their answer this week, before we have to make the final decision to cancel the trip.

2. For my extended family: This past week there was a birth on my husband's side of the family. Without going into too much detail, the pregnancy was hidden and there are still concerns of possible rape that may have occurred. My husband's family needs prayers for wisdom and healing during this time.

3. For my friends: A particular friend from church shared with me this past Sunday morning about another friend of hers who had passed away very suddenly. She leaves behind a husband and a 3 month old baby. It breaks my heart to think of a child growing up without a mother, yet so many do. Pray for those she left behind to seek the Lord's comfort in this time of grief.

4. For my church family: In our church this week, as I shared on my last Top Ten Tuesday post, we are having Summit Meetings with a guest evangelist, Harold Vaughan. It has been wonderful to hear the Lord speak through his powerful messages. Pray as the week goes on, more visitors may come and hear the Gospel, and more may find an eternal salvation through Jesus Christ.

5. For other moms: I read about Leslie Evans this weekend, and my heart was broken for her and her family. You can read more about her story here. Please pray for healing of her body as she is in a coma after giving birth to premature twins at 21 weeks pregnant, both babies have gone on to be with the Lord, and pray for wisdom for her family and doctors in the decisions to be made.

6. For missionaries: We are all called to share the Gospel as Christians. Each in our own way, but there are those who are specifically called as missionaries. Our church supports many, but in particular, there is a family on another of the Micronesian islands who are working on getting a radio tower built. Please pray for their safety in the construction of this tall structure using limited equipment.

7. For our leaders: I am not a fan of our nation's leaders at the moment, but I respect that they are in those positions. Positions I could never fill myself! It can't be an easy job, and I pray that God will give them the wisdom to make the right decisions for our country.

8. For our country: As a nation we need prayer. Beyond prayer for our leaders, but prayer for the people. I pray for people to come back to God, so that as a nation we can come back to God and remember what our great country was truly founded upon. We need to constantly keep the people our our nation in prayer.

9. For the world: There is so much in the world today that brings such sadness to my heart. The world is so ignorant and blind to the perversion all around them, that nothing is shocking or surprising to anyone anymore. I pray that God will lift the ignorance from their eyes and that they may see Him and see a better way to be living. And I pray that God's people will have the courage and passion to go out into the world to share His message of hope, the only real hope.

10. For YOU: What has God placed on your heart this week? Is there something or someone you need prayer for? Feel free to share in the comment section, and I will pray for you as well.

I know I shared this verse last week, but it is so important to remember...

Pray without ceasing... ~ 1 Thessalonians 5:17

And remember, it is just as important to say thank you as it is to say please. So don't forget to praise God for the many blessings He bestows on you as well. And for that matter, praise Him for the trials that come as well- they come so that we may be broken and used by the Lord, and that should always be our heart's desire.

This post is linked to

Wordless Wednesday: My NOT Camera Shy Guy!

2010-09-29T11:51:00.004+10:00

Zachary has been particularly adorable lately! And he is starting to say "Cheese!!" whenever I pull out my camera. Sometimes he even starts 'running' for the camera! I just LOVE it!!

And he is really walking now! Won't be long and I won't be able to get anything but a blur as I try to snap a picture of my speedy little guy!!

This post is linked to Wordless Wednesday.

WFMW: Journaling for Our Children

2010-09-29T10:00:00.001+10:00

It is so nice to know the things I try to teach Natalie do get through sometimes, at least the most important things.

As we were leaving for church one night last week, I looked up at the sky in which the sun was setting. It was a beautiful sight, pink and orange stripes ran across the sky from the horizon. I said, "Look at the pretty sky, Natalie!" and then she looked up and exclaimed, "Jesus painted the sky!"

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A few weeks ago Natalie had her blood pressure taken for the first time at the doctor's office. She did not like it, and now asks if she has to do that everytime we go to the doctor's....

Well as we went out to the car on our way to church a different night last week, I was holding Natalie's hand in the parking lot of our building. I gave her hand a little squeeze, and in a silly but curious way she asks, "Mommy, are you taking my hand pressure?"

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While I love sharing these funny and cute moments with everyone out in the bloggy world, I have decided to start a journal for each of my children- though Zachary isn't talking quite yet. I will record all the funny things they say and do, so not only I can look back on them when I need a laugh, but also so they can have a treasured keepsake someday to share with their own kids as they too discover the joys of parenting a child who speaks their mind- however silly or goofy the thoughts may be!! I already bought the cutest little journal for Natalie's cute words!

This works for us! How do you record these treasures for your own children?

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And if you are a sentimental sap like me and love that idea- you just may love recording your youth with Janna over at Mommy's Piggy Tales beginning October 7th! It will be a 12 week session (though you may write as often or not as you choose), and each week we will be sharing memories from a different age inour lives! Just think about having your story written out to share with your children and children's children!! What a great way to leave a legacy!! Check out one of my posts from the last session.

This post is linked to Works for Me Wednesday at We are THAT Family and
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Top Ten Tuesday: Treasures in Scripture

2010-09-28T10:00:00.001+10:00

At our church this week, we are approaching the 'summit'. Actually we are going to be having the annual summit meetings, in which a guest speaker comes and we have church services each evening of the week, Sunday through Thursday. It is a time for revival and being refreshed in the Holy Spirit, and I really enjoyed it last year and look forward to it next week. There are usually very dramatic messages that are truly convicting to me, which is just what I need right now. I have been feeling very unsettled, there has been a lot going on in our household, too much to truly explain. So as I pray this week for the meetings, and look to the Lord's Word for peace, here are some of the treasures He has given me to truly apply to my own life recently:

1. "...[Love] does not take into account a wrong suffered..." ~1 Corinthians 12:5b, I shared about this particular topic not long ago. I am still working on it though. My scope has widened though, and I am reminded of it as I sit in traffic, fuming over the car who cut me off, or as yet again my husband has gotten called into work on his day off. I don't get to pick who I practice love towards, and God makes it easy to remember- EVERYONE, even those who may make it difficult for me.

2. "..for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." ~Matthew 6:21, this has always been one of those verses for me that gets me every time I read it. What am I holding as treasure- money, my home, my hobbies, or most importantly, God? Is He my treasure above all else, or am I more focused on the things that will eventually pass away? I know where I want my heart to be, on the things of Heaven that please God.

3. "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo. I am with you always, even to the end of the age." ~Jesus, Matthew 28:19-20, A few weeks ago, while praying for the summit meetings with some other ladies, the first question they asked as we prepared to bow our hearts and heads, was "Who are you going to invite?" and I was caught completely off guard. In my defense, it was still weeks away, and had only been announced the week before, but I hadn't really thought about it. And God used that moment, to make me realize I need to always be thinking about it, I should be constantly inviting others to church. We are commanded to go out and share the Gospel, the very least I could be doing is actively and regularly inviting others to join me at church on Sunday, and it wouldn't even take much effort on my part!

4. "Her children rise up and bless her; Her husband also, and he praises her..." ~ Proverbs 31:28, I am constantly striving to be a better wife and mother. Although my husband has been acknowledging my efforts much more recently, I still know there is more I could be doing, I should be doing for both him and my children. I don't think I will ever rest from striving to be the Proverbs 31 woman, just as I will always strive to further and better serve the Lord- there is just no end to those tasks while we are on this earth!

5. "Do not fret because of evildoers, Be not envious toward wrongdoers. For they will wither quickly like the grass and fade like the green herb..." Psalm 37:1-2, Just as in 1 Corinthians 12 (see #1), I am called to not only forgive and love someone who has wronged me, but not be envious of them either! How hard is that?! If I feel wronged, the last things I want to do are love that person or to let it go. I want to hold onto it and find a way to repay them which I believe is rooted in being envious, jealous, of their power, position, or something they have that I do not. And yet God tells me I am to let it go, and love them. Definitely something the Lord continues to show me as He works in my heart.

6. "A fool does not delight in understanding, But only in revealing his own mind." ~Proverbs 18:2, We shouldn't only be interested in sharing our own opinion, but also willing to listen to others to find understanding and wisdom. As a very opinionated person, this is something I always need to remember, it isn't just about me sharing my thoughts, but also about understanding those of others, so that I can see from all sides and perspectives (which is why I will always encourage comments and ask for your opinions as well). I sure don't want to be that fool!!

7. "Rejoice always..." 1 Thessalonians 5:16, Did you hear that? ALWAYS, we are to always rejoice as Christian believers. Not complain, grumble, or whine, but rejoice!! I think many of us have a habit of seeing the negative things as we struggle or stumble through them in life, but God commands us to be always rejoicing. I believe it was last year's speaker at the summit meetings who put it something like this- what truly is the worst thing that could happen to you? You lose your job, lose your family (on this earth at least), and have to live under a bridge where maybe you get very sick and you die- but then you get to go to your Heavenly home, and what is not to rejoice about there?!! In the end, the worst thing that can come for us as believers is the physical death, but what a wondrous occasion it will be to go be with God in heaven, so truly we have nothing to whine about, do we?!

8. "...Pray without ceasing..." ~1 Thessalonians 5:17, This is another part of the above verse, another command from God. I thought both deserved their own number on my list because they truly are so important, but also very overlooked in our day to day lives. At our church's ladies night this past week, one of the things the pastor's wife touched on, was that if we are all being completely honest with ourselves and God (because lets face it, He already knows), we could all do better in terms of our prayer life. Note this passage- we are to pray without ceasing, it should be continual, and just a part of who we are to be in constant communication with God. I know I can always improve in this area- one way that has helped me recently is carrying a prayer journal with me in my purse and pull it out whenever I hear something I need to remember to pray for- also just stopping to pray for it right away before the opportunity to forget arises at all!

9. "A friend loves at all times..." ~Proverbs 17:17a, I have often taken advantage of this verse, I have many friends who have seen me at my worse and still loved me through it all. But do I remember to love all my friends with that same attitude? I hope I do! I like to think I will, not much has come to test me in this, but it is often something I try to keep in my heart. So that I may remember, if any circumstance comes up that is less then easy to deal with, I may be a friend in times or difficulty as much as in times of joy.

10. "For You formed my inward parts; You wove me in my mother's womb. I will give thanks to You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made....Your eyes have seen my unformed substance; And in Your book were all written the days that were ordained for me, when as yet there was not one of them." ~Psalm 139:13-14a,16, I watched a moving testimony of a woman who was an abortion survivor. She survived a horrible abortion procedure in which saline is injected into the womb for the purpose of burning the baby and killing it, before inducing labor (late term abortion), and she was born alive still!! Now she knows the Lord and His purposes for her and she shares her story. I have always loved these verses, and I try to apply them to my own life, to remember God has a purpose and a plan for each one of us. He is in control, He will sustain us, just as He sustained that little baby girl who was unwanted by her own mother, she survived only through God's powerful hand intervening in man's cruel plans. (Her name was Gianna Jessen if you want to goggle her, to hear her story!)

I hope somewhere among those verses, God has touched your heart.
This post is linked to

Are You More Popular than Christ?

2010-09-24T10:00:00.000+10:00

Jesus was not very popular.

Now the men who were holding Jesus in custody were mocking Him and beating Him, and they blindfolded Him, saying, "Prophesy, who is the one who hit You?" And they were saying many other things against Him, blaspheming. ~Luke 22:63-65

He didn't take the easy road or follow the crowd.

Then it happened that as Jesus was reclining at the table in the house, behold, many tax collectors and sinners came and were dining with Jesus and His disciples. When the Pharisees saw this, they said to His disciples, "Why is your Teacher eating with the tax collectors and sinners?" But when Jesus heard this, He said, "It is not those who are healthy who need a physician, but those who are sick. But go and learn what this means: 'I desire compassion, and not sacrifice,' for I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners." ~Matthew 9:10-13

And He is to be our example.

Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children; and walk in love, just as Christ also loved you and gave Himself up for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God as a fragrant aroma. ~Ephesians 5:1-2

We should be walking in His footsteps.

And He [Jesus] summoned the crowd with His disciples, and said to them, "If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me." ~Mark 8:34

Not trying to be popular so the world will like us, but being set apart so the world can see a difference in us, as children of God.

Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect. ~Romans 12:1-2

Do you look more like the world, with its popularity, doing what's easy? Or are you different, even unpopular, for NOT following the crowd?

Join Me in Recording My Youth!

2010-09-23T10:00:00.001+10:00

It is weird to NOT write a Mommy's Piggy Tales memory post this week! I have enjoyed so much sharing my own life but also reading about other people's stories as well. No two stories are the same, God gives us each a very unique and wonderful life that can never match up perfectly with anyone else anywhere or any time!! How awesome is that?!!

I am so excited though that Janna will be starting a second session of Mommy's Piggy Tales beginning October 7th. So if you didn't participate (or even if you did!) in the first one, you have a second chance!!

I am a very detail oriented, and sentimental person. I wish my own mother and grandmother had a copy of their life stories to share with me! I would love to read about what like was life for them growing up and see how it differed from mine. It has been a huge blessing to write out my own, so that someday I can leave a legacy for my children. Maybe they will learn from some of my mistakes, or maybe they will just have a more clearer picture of me, not just as their mom, but as a woman who once was a girl. It's so hard to believe that huh? Our mom's were once girls, and they felt some of the same emotions we felt in our own youth!

Now, to participate is so easy! All you have to do is share a little or a lot each week about a different year of your life. I know personally, just reading through some of the other ladies post's helped me trigger some memories of my own that were buried in my mind. Or look at a picture album, pictures capture moments in time and help us to look back and remember, use them! Talk to your family, see what they remember about certain events in your personal history. Maybe you have a recipe that trigger childhood memories, share that! Or a favorite childhood toy or book. It is so open-ended, anyone can do it!!

If you want to give it a shot, contact Janna at
and link up on October 7th. Hope to see you there!!

WFMW: Tired of Snacking on Smashed Up Granola Bars?

2010-09-22T10:00:00.004+10:00

I always find other moms using something in a different way then it is meant, but still making life easier for them, and think "Wow how creative and clever!"

I walk away wishing I had thought of that myself!

Well now it is my turn!! Even my husband has been pretty proud of me!

My problem: I throw granola bars, the soft kind, into my purse or the diaper bag, for a quick snack later. Sometimes later is a matter of days, sometimes weeks even, but I like to carry some with me for that moment when I need an extra pick me up, or the kids are getting hungry as I sit in traffic. BUT no matter how recently I added them to my bag, they get smashed by the ten million other things I 'need' to carry with me as well!
My solution: While cleaning up a few weeks ago, I picked up my husbands glasses case. It is one of the hard kind that snap shut. I looked at it more closely as a light just went on inside my head! It was the perfect size for my granola bars! I can even fit two of the kid's bars inside one, so I only have to carry around one to two of the cases (the extra for my own snack). I am quite pleased now to be able to pull out a bar for the kids and not have to carefully peel the sticky goop that used to be a granola bar off of the wrapper! YAY!!

Try it and tell me what you think! Do you have any other tips or tricks for totting snacks around for the tots without them getting smashed or demolishing them into crumbs?

This post is linked to Works for Me Wednesday at We are THAT Family.

Rings Aren't Tasty!

2010-09-21T10:00:00.002+10:00

Natalie and I played a game of Pretty, Pretty Princess before lunch yesterday. We went around the board slowly collecting a necklace, earrings, a bracelet, a tiara and a ring. Natalie won the game by being the first one to be wearing each piece of jewelry all at once. Then after being declared the winner, she took the tiara off, and said, "Your turn to be the princess, Mommy!" And handed it to me. What a sweet little girl I have!!

(This picture is actually from last Christmas when she got this game as a gift. We forced Daddy to play it with us, and he actually won!)

But I was still missing the ring, so I slipped the large fake jewel on my finger and showed it off to her. Pretending to admire it, I teasingly said, "Oh, your Daddy has great taste!" Of course I did not expect my 4 year old to find the humor in that, but I got a smile out of it myself. But then Natalie pipes in with, "Rings aren't for eating silly!!" Then I got a really good laugh out of it! And she was right, rings are not for eating, and in all honestly, probably taste horrible.

This post is linked to

Top Ten Tuesday: What I Want From Guam

2010-09-21T10:00:00.001+10:00

We have just under 2 more years of life here on Guam. And that is assuming our extension gets approved- which my husband insists should not be a problem (yet they are only supposed to take about a month to go through, and its been closer to 2 1/2 for ours with no word yet...). There is so much to do on Guam, and I want to take advantage of all of it before we leave- somethings with the kids, some not.

1. First on my list, my newest adventure I am so longing for, is to go boonie stomping to an underground lake we have been told about! Doesn't that sound awesome?!! Note: Boonie Stomping is a term basically meaning hiking. "Boonie" is a word that everyone uses on Guam, which I have been told basically means 'jungle'. So you have a boonie car (something you buy here, only to use here to get from point A to B, nothing fancy or expensive), boonie dogs (one of the many dogs you see who roam around in town and on the back streets who were most likely abandoned by there owners when they left Guam- there is no animal control service here)...

2. I want to go parasailing! Now when my mom and her husband visited last April they did this through a local beach club- but it was fully clothed sitting in some seat with a parachute attached- they didn't even really get wet. While it sounds interesting, if I had to choose, I want to go parasailing by being attached to a harness, directly attached to the chute. I want to feel a rush of adrenaline, not just sit in some ride like at a carnival!! So far though I am not sure if anywhere around here offers that.

3. I want to learn how to windsurf. There is a little resort island just off the southern tip of Guam called Cocos Island. All it is, is a resort because it is just a tiny strip of a beach basically! (And though I have heard it called a 'resort', I don't believe there is any actual hotel on the island, you just go for the day.) They offer lessons and then rental of the equipment. It happens all in one day- not like a lesson each night for however long, so all we have to do is get a babysitter for the day!

4. I would like to go to one of the water parks here (we have 3 I believe). Though I doubt they are anything super special compared to ones in the states, it has been so long since I have gone to one and I miss the thrill of dropping down twisty slides into a big pool! This is one I think the kids would also enjoy. Once Zachary begins walking more regularly out and about, we will definitely have a family day at one of these!

5. I want to go explore the tide pools! Now we tried this one right after labor day, but my kids didn't have as much interest in it as I did. Apparently next time we go, I will have Jon play with the kids in the sand as I explore a little!!

6. I want family pictures on the beach!! By this I mean good quality professional type ones, and I want to be in them, not taking them!! I know this may not sound like something 'to do on Guam', but with all the awesome beaches and weather, what better place could there be to get pictures done as a family to represent our time here on Guam!!

7. I have been told there is a botanical gardens somewhere on the southern end of the island. I have been to a few back in the states, always so beautiful. I would love to see if Guam's could rival those, in such a gorgeous tropical evironment, how could it not have some of the most beautiful flowers!!

8. Now on the top of my husband's list would be scuba diving. I don't know how much it would cost in the states, but I have been told it is dirt cheap here compared to stateside when it comes to getting certified to scuba dive. And here, as military, we can do it for the discounted rate of about $75!! And that certification is good for the rest of your life, anywhere you go!! How cool would that be?! Not to mention actually getting to go underwater in different areas of the island to see historic boats now resting on the ocean floor! And there are PLENTY here, after all Guam played a role in World War 2 against the Japanese. I think it would be awesome to see, the only reason it isn't higher on my own list- I am petrified of sharks!! I do hope to get over it though and go scuba diving sometime....lots of people do it each day around here and I have never heard of any attacks before, I am just so freaked out by the thought though!! I am such a wimp!

9. Back to the boonie stomping, I also want to go boonie stomping to the rugged coast lines! I have seen some great pictures, and I would love to know how to get to certain spots, just to see it for myself and take my own pictures! Words can't even describe some of Guam's beauty. You just look around in awe of our mighty Creator, and wonder how anyone could possibly think it is all just random!!

10. Lastly, but most importantly, I just want to spend more time at the beach in general. I want to explore different beaches, play in the sand with the kids, splash in the salty seawater, watch a sunset over the ocean. I want to enjoy it as much as I can before it is time to leave our tropical paradise!!

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A Clear and Familiar Voice

2010-09-20T10:00:00.002+10:00

Lately I have been hearing God speak much more clearly to me. It has been so refreshing and I keep thinking, why haven't I heard Him this often before?

He is everywhere. He is in every little crevice of my life, encouraging me, guiding me, loving me.

Just the other day, I was feeling down. I felt like I would never have the opportunity to truly grow my friendships, that have lasted bordering the acquaintance/true friend line for over a year now, in fact almost 2 in some cases. I have often wondered why my children don't seem to get invited to many other kid's parties or gatherings. But I had to realize, I bring it on myself. I can get so caught up on whats easy, staying at home, adhering to nap times that could really be more flexible, or worrying about the kids behavior. These all are great reasons to stay home, but they are also poor excuses to never get out.

(Sometimes I do forget that though I enjoy hanging out around the house well enough, I have a 4 year old full of energy who just wants to be a kid and have fun, preferably with other kids just as silly as her!)

I am normally a planner, but I could not ignore a phone call from a friend one morning after a lonely evening the day before. She wanted to give me a ride to a play date. My number one excuse, I don't have a car, blown completely away. And as I considered her offer, my mind instantly came up with a list of other reasons I shouldn't go; my stomach had been hurting since I woke up; I haven't showered yet, nor had I quite gotten the kids fully dressed and ready for the day; Zachary would need a nap soon and surely without his nap, or sometimes even with it, he can get pretty cranky when we go out; and then my usual excuse since this is sometimes an outdoors adventure- it is way to hot on Guam, and I hate being sweaty! But I also heard God speaking to me about even this 'little' opportunity. How could I be upset and complain about not being as welcomed into circles of friendship if I turned down every chance I got to spend time with these ladies? How can I let inconveniences ruin my opportunity to grow friendships with good, Godly woman who I admire? So I said yes! And though it did feel inconvenient at times with a mildly cranky toddler, it was well worth the time to talk and enjoy watching the children play together. Natalie needed it too, it is good for her to get a little time to socialize since her best friend (and neighbor) has recently moved away.

(Remember kids are 100% washable! I had to keep reminding myself of that as the dirt clung to Zachary's every inch...its easier for me to keep in mind when they are a little bit older and have a better sense of it themselves. For example, not sticking your filthy hands into your mouth! Zachary had his first taste of actual dirt!)

And during the fellowship I received the answer to my first question, why haven't I heard God speak so clearly before? Because I am constantly growing closer to Him, and the more I do, the more loudly He speaks, and the more familiar I become to His voice. It is a wonderful feeling to constantly be able to listen to His direction and know I am following in His will as He shares it with me, whether it is something that may seem trivial, such as whether or not to go to a play date. Or something huge, like whether or not we should extend on our time on Guam. Life may not always be perfect, but if I am following in His will, I know my life will have that bigger purpose that I so long for, as well as peace, even in the storms.

How clearly does God speak to you? Only in nearness with God will you find true purpose and everlasting peace.

Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. ~Romans 8:8a

Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may know the things freely given to us by God, which things we also speak, not in words taught by human wisdom, but in those taught by the Spirit, combining spiritual thoughts with spiritual words. ~1 Corinthians 2:12-13

Six Word Saturday

2010-09-18T17:08:00.003+10:00

CLEANING, COOKING, AND CONFUSION FOR DESSERT!

What a day! All week I have been working towards a little 'fall' cleaning. Maybe I shouldn't even call it that, since most people probably regularly mop their floors, but I don't. I just sweep and spot wash. But not this week! I have been dusting, mopping, tidying, and laundering everything I could think of!! Today was my big day of it because not only was my husband home to deal with the kids, but we had guests coming over for dinner...or so I thought!
I had talked with a friend of mine on Wednesday, but she needed to talk with her husband before confirming anything for the weekend. We have been trying to do dinner since around late June!! Something always comes up, something at church, or Jon's work, or just the craziness of life with toddlers! But she messaged me on Facebook Thursday evening to confirm, and I replied...I did reply, I swear it, I remember distinctly what I wrote and hitting reply, and feeling confident we were set, nothing was going to come up this time!!! Well Saturday is here, I made a cheesecake last night, and I made my meatballs for spaghetti and meatballs, YUM! 10 minutes to the time we had discussed Wednesday, I begin looking for my phone just in case they forgot which unit we were in. I find it in the depths of my purse...OFF. Uh-oh! I quickly plug it in and turn it on to find a message from my friend asking if we were on left at lunchtime!! I called her but didn't get through. I checked Facebook to discover my reply was not on the message she had sent me as it usually shows up! Luckily they hadn't made dinner yet or other plans and we did reach them, but what a crazy evening!! I don't know what I would've done if they hadn't come...I have a LOT of meatballs cooking for just us, even with leftovers!!
It was a great time of fellowship though as we ate dinner and watched the kids play. Well worth any 'drama' or confusion that may have come up if you ask me.

This is linked to

I Will Meet You in Heaven Someday

2010-09-17T10:00:00.000+10:00

Loss of any kind is difficult. It isn't something most can anticipate, and it is often hard to accept, especially when the wounds are still fresh.

Although my family picture only has 4 individuals in it, we are actually a family of 6. Two of my precious children went to meet the Lord before I even got a chance to meet them.

Jon and I had tried for about 8 months before conceiving our first child. That baby would have been due around July 10, 2005. I have tried to match a reason to my loss, but that early, there is just no way of knowing for certain. Was it the drive Jon and I made at 9 weeks, from one side of the country to the other? It was a stressful time, those days were the first I had ever been away from my home without the intention of soon returning. Still nothing happened to indicate any problems until 12 weeks, when some spotting and a panicked trip to the ER resulted in the tragic news that I would not be meeting my first baby here on this earth. What made it more difficult was the month that followed as I literally went through the birth pains as my body did what it was intended to in this situation. I wish there had been a way to know if I had a little boy or girl then. I wish I could've named them and given them a proper goodbye, but for some reason, the world doesn't hold these very young ones as actual babies, little souls once alive inside of their mommies. But I know I will meet this little one again someday in my heavenly home.
About three months later, I discovered I was pregnant with my Natalie, and a year after first feeling what birth pains were, I had my second baby in my arms.

I also want to share, I don't believe it is ever to early to share the news of a pregnancy with your friends and family. When I first discovered I was pregnant with my little one, I immediately shared our joyful news with our entire church, and much to the surprise of some, I was only 5 weeks along. I was told I should wait to tell others until I had 'made it through' the first trimester in case I lost the baby. Well I did lose that precious little one, but just as my friends rejoiced with me in the news of the pregnancy, they also were there to mourn with me the loss of my baby. If I hadn't shared, then no one would've known to pray for me. No one would've known to comfort and encourage me in my time of sadness. I have no regrets about sharing my news early.

Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep. ~Romans 12:15

It was the week of Thanksgiving, and I started it with much gladness. On a whim I bought a pregnancy test on my way into work. I wasn't really late yet, but somehow I just felt like something was different. We weren't trying, though we weren't actively trying to prevent anything. Jon and Natalie were with me. It was a Monday night, and I was working childcare while Jon went to a men's bible study group. Before I clocked in, I ran to the bathroom with my digital test- I didn't want any questions in my mind, just a 'pregnant' or 'not pregnant' reading very clearly displayed in words. After a few minutes I emerged and gave Jon the exciting news before sharing it with my boss and good friend Angela. I was overjoyed, around July 26, 2008, I would have another little baby to call my own. Despite my first miscarriage, and careful concern while first pregnant with Natalie, I thought miscarrying was behind me, but I was wrong. I spent one night sharing the good news with all my friends and family back home, only to have to place the calls again with tears barely a week later. Thanksgiving day I began spotting, and spent most of the afternoon and early evening in the ER. All the doctors could tell me, despite a pregnancy test done at the clinic the day before confirming my pregnancy, was that now all tests were coming back inconclusive as to whether I was even pregnant or not. My heart fell, and given my experience, my hope was snuffed out. Sure enough over the long weekend, it was confirmed by my own body, which I felt betrayed by, that I was losing my third child. And though I realize now that I will still meet them someday in heaven, during my time of grief, I was not comforted by it because I still did not understand why once again I had lost my baby. Because God's ways are not our ways, and we can't always understand or see what good can come of it. That's when faith comes in.
And sure enough 7 months later, when we had committed to not trying to get pregnant in anticipation of our big move to Guam, God surprised us with a wonderful gift, in the form of a 4th pregnancy, my little boy, Zachary. And though I feared another miscarriage under the stress of another military move, this time overseas, Zachary stayed right where he belonged during our travels which happened again around 9 weeks along, all the way until well past his due date.

I still don't understand God's ways in the loss I suffered. But I do realize I wouldn't have either Natalie or Zachary if God hadn't called my other babies home so early. And I hope that maybe somehow, by sharing what I have been through it might bring peace and comfort to others who have suffered this type of loss as well. It is never easy to lose a child, no matter how early. Pregnancy is a time of rejoicing in a new life about to enter this world, and no one expects to have that cut short so quickly. But if we remember to look to God, and find our comfort in Him, knowing His plans for us are bigger then our own, we can find peace in our grief.

"Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted." ~Jesus, Matthew 5:4

"For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways," declares the Lord. "For as the heavens are higher than the earth, So are My ways and My thoughts than your thoughts." ~Isaiah 55:8-9

And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. ~Romans 8:28

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction so that we will be able to comfort those who are in any affliction with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. ~2 Corinthians 1:3-4

Working with Jeff

2010-09-16T22:03:00.007+10:00

This is the final week for session one of Mommy's Piggy Tales! YAY! I made it!

This week's post is actually during my senior year and the summer following (though this week is 'post' high school), this is what truly stood out in my mind when I sat down to write, and since it is work related not school related so much I thought it works still. But I plan on continuing on with more post high school memories on Mondays with Janna starting in October.

My first job was at a thrift store. I got the job just before I turned 16 because my mom was the manager. I will save the details of it for another day (in session two of Mommy's Piggy Tales). When I was 18, and still in school, there was a new guy at work. His name was Jeff. He was handsome, with dark brown hair, and the type of eyes that always had that sparkle in them. And yes, briefly I had a crush on him. He wasn't too much older then me, and he made me laugh. I enjoyed working even the night shift if I was closing with him. He worked hard, so I wasn't picking up someone else's slack, but he also made it fun. But as for the crush, I knew it was just that, and I didn't agree with his lifestyle choices by a long shot. Lets just say he would not have been attracted to me no matter how beautiful of a girl I was. But we were friends, not close, but work friends. Though we had never hung out after work before I had actually asked Jeff to take me to my prom before I had gotten up the courage to ask Jon (see last week's post). Jeff agreed to be my 'date' if Jon couldn't go, but luckily Jon said yes, and Jeff was genuinely excited for me when he did.

One night Jeff and I were scheduled to work the closing shift with our supervisor Shawn. These were my favorite nights because Shawn was pretty laid back and one of the nicer supervisors. She didn't get mad or irritated when you needed help, she just helped you. And she wouldn't give into the customers who were being ridiculous asking for things to be marked down, at least not as much as some of the other supervisors did.
My night started right after school around 3, but Jeff wasn't supposed to show until 5, which is also when our second supervisor Sharon would leave for the night, and only the 3 of us would be left. it was shortly before 5 and the phone rang. I happened to be at the registers beside the phone, so I answered it. It was Jeff, he sounded...different. His emotionless voice told me he wasn't coming in again, ever. I was so confused, the way he was talking scared me. I don't remember who ended up taking the phone from me, Shawn or Sharon, but one of them did.
Later Sharon pulled me in the back, I was upset because something was obviously wrong. Though Jeff and I weren't very close, I still cared enough about him to want him to be okay. I don't remember exactly how much Sharon told me, but basically that Jeff wouldn't be coming back to work, but that he needed help. It was decided since it wasn't very busy, that Shawn and I could close just the two of us, though Sharon stayed later then planned. Once she left Shawn made more phone calls to Jeff to see how he was. Shawn and Jeff were close, at least for how close they could be as a supervisor and employee, they hung out after work sometimes with some other co-workers, doing things I would never have even if I had been old enough. I was always the naive and innocent manager's daughter, but I was okay with that- I knew I didn't want to know anything about that other life.
Shawn was getting very worried about Jeff, and told me she decided to go check on him after we closed (9 pm). Though she fought me at first, I told her I wanted to help him too, and if she didn't agree to it I would just follow her there anyway, so she caved. We rushed through all the after hours tasks, preparing for the next day, and were out the door pretty quickly. Jeff's place was actually right on my way home, though we had to park on a different road since it was only street parking in that part of town. I was glad Shawn had agreed to take me since I probably would've chickened out just realizing how dark that area was and parking a whole street away to walk wouldn't have seemed safe alone. We got to Jeff's house, his parents were across the country visiting family and this was actually one of the rare times he didn't go with them. He let us inside. I was shocked at how he looked, I don't think I had ever seen someone look that pale before. Like all the life had drained from his face, and the sparkle in his eyes was gone, in fact he didn't really seem to 'see' anything, just stared. He moved so slowly and steadily, as if just on auto pilot. Shawn told him to get his things, she didn't want to leave him alone, so he would go home with her. I don't remember what his reasoning had been, but he had locked the basement and thrown his house key down the laundry shoot, so we had to find a way to get to it before we left. The whole time I don't remember saying much. I cried, I hugged him, and just watched in shock at how different this person was to me. Like night and day. I helped Shawn eventually get him to the car and I got in my own and went home. I don't think I slept much that night.
Jeff never came back to work, though he stayed with Shawn and her family until his own came home. I wrote him a letter, which Shawn gave to him. His parents had decided to move him back to the East Coast where they were originally from and he had more family and friends. I hoped to keep in touch, and continue trying to witness to him. I had always snuck it into our conversations at work, inviting him and anyone who would come to church with me.
Sometime the summer after my graduation, Jeff came into the store. I can't remember if they had decided not to move, or just hadn't yet, but he found me in the men's department cleaning up and stopped to say hi. I remember showing off my engagement ring, and telling him more about Jon and prom. He promised to keep in touch (doesn't everyone- I know I do sometime realizing it may not happen!). I still think about him sometimes and pray for him. I know now what was going on that night. Jeff is bi-polar, and was having one of the lows because he had stopped taking his medication. Bi-polar is a form of depression, characterized by exactly what I saw in him, extreme highs and loads of energy, and then falling so low you don't even want to live anymore. This was the first time I truly witnessed that face to face with someone I knew and cared for and I will never forget it. It isn't just one of those things you read about, and this was just one more step for me in realizing how much I still someday hope to become a psychologist, to help others, to help more people like Jeff.

This is my 15th of 15 posts in a series to record my youth with other woman at
. Would you like to record your youth for your children and grandchildren to read about someday? Janna is beginning a second session on Oct. 7th for those who would like to join! I know I will be there sharing many more of my memories!!

Gravy Fingers

2010-09-15T10:00:00.003+10:00

I have a double treat this week, since in one night both my husband and daughter had me in fits of laughter!

After church Sunday evening, we stopped by the Wendy's drive-thru on our journey home. At the first window, my husband hands over his card to pay. A minute later the girl in the window is still trying to swipe it but the card is just not working, so she calls her manager over. The manager is the first to notice, Jon had given his military ID (with a strip on the back to further fool the eye) as payment instead of his credit card!

Then after arriving home and playing, I mean, eating her dinner, Natalie was told to go get her pajamas on. So almost ready for bed, only task left is to go potty, Natalie comes out into the living room. We had asked her to use the potty, so before we could scold her for not doing what she is told she explains, "My fingers are gravy." Both confused by what she is saying as well as what this has to do with using the potty, it finally clicked...GREASY is what she meant. She couldn't get the door knob to the bathroom open because her fingers were greasy from her french fries!!

I can't wait to hear what funny and crazy things Zachary says someday! If he takes after his sister, he is sure to be a great source of constant entertainment!!

This post is linked to

Top Ten Tuesday: Homemade Christmas Gifts

2010-09-14T15:11:00.000+10:00

This year we won't be getting our reenlistment bonus in October as we had each year since we have been married, so funds will be lower then usual. And considering we will also be travelling right before the Christmas season, we will be spending money then as well, so that we may spend some much needed time with my family. Overall, money is tight this year, so I thought it would be fun to give homemade Christmas gifts to our family and friends. Here are some of the items I am hoping to have Natalie help me create.

1. Calendar. I want to have Natalie create a beautiful hand print painting, one for each of the seasons, and then just have the one picture for 3 months before you flip it to the next. Hopefully I can find a place to get the actual pictures laminated and have it all bond together so its sturdy.
2. Apron. (Or shirt, baseball cap, tie or tote bag.) Hand-painted or draw with fabric markers, to make a personalized, wearable gift.
3. Framed artwork. I found some great ideas at Family Fun to give the simple child's artwork a little extra fun twist. Particularly the painting in the rain and painting like Georges Seurat, look fun and easy! And then I will mat and frame each piece so its ready for the wall!
4. Personalized Stationary. Using blank note cards and envelopes, I will let Natalie draw and stamp to crate designs on the front of the cards, and they will be one of a kind, truly personalized stationary.
5. Place mats. For our young family and friends, I thought a fun place mat would be a great gift. Using large construction paper and additional paper cut outs, I will have Natalie glue shapes on in fun patterns and designs, then get it all laminated.
6. Jewelry. Another great one for little girls! Natalie will love making some fun necklaces with brightly colored beads to give to her friends.
7. Throw Pillow. I don't sew, but I know how to make a knot! Using pieces of fleece, I can make blankets or throw pillows as gifts!
8. Magnets. Anything can be made into a fun magnet! You can even use clay to mold and design your own and just hot glue a magnet to the back!
9. Soap. This is especially fun to make if you throw a little toy in it, and there is a prize for the kids who regularly wash their hands! Or another idea was to use a fish cookie cutter and skewer to make little fish then string them up as your catch of the day for decoration with a purpose!
10. Christmas Ornament. Since we are talking about gifts for the holiday season, what better idea then a new handmade, homemade trinket for the tree. And this is pretty open ended. You can take the clear glass balls and fill them with almost anything for a fun look, or you can make Popsicles to make a fun frame with a cute picture inside (isn't that what Grandma really wants anyway?!). You are only limited by your own imagination, and even if you can't think of many ideas, with a computer and Internet connection the possibilities are endless with hundreds of ideas waiting to be discovered!!

And these are only 10 possible ideas, there are so many more out there!! I am excited to begin some of these projects with my daughter and figure out what to give to each person!

This post is linked to

Oh How I Miss Autumn!

2010-09-13T21:29:00.003+10:00

I find myself feeling so very jealous of my dear family and friends back home in the states. While some may long for a full year of fun in the sun, right about now I feel the need for the change of season that won't be coming.

I miss the hues of crimsons, golds and caramels on the trees, as well as blanketing the ground. I miss bundling up in layers of sweaters and jackets, scarves and gloves. I miss watching my breath come out in puffs as I breathe in the frosty air. I miss nights curled up by the fireplace drinking hot cocoa and snuggling by my sweetheart. I miss the cold.

I remember once in Virginia, which is actually a slightly warmer climate then my true home, stopping to get gas. I was in jeans and a t shirt, it was somewhere around 60 degrees, so while I wasn't comfortable exactly, I definitely wasn't freezing by any means. This man in a sweater was in front of me, and looked so surprised as he stood there hugging himself watching me casually wait for the tank to finish filling up. He just gawked and said "Aren't you cold?" And I explained that this was pretty much spring time weather where I grew up. Summers even rarely got up very high, maybe a handful of days over 90, but generally 80s at most. So for me, 60 degrees was a good middle ground. I laugh at that now!

I get the distinct feeling when we go home this year for a November visit, by body will be going into a bit of a cold shock! After all, for 2 years now I haven't left the warmth of this humid, tropical island. I am guessing by the time we leave again, our bodies will just begin to remember their roots and we will be thrown back into the fire that is Guam.

I know this is the place we need to be right now, and for the next 2 years. But I don't think I will ever stop longing for the change of seasons. I have never even been a very big fan of change in general, but this change from bright grassy greens and sky blues, to caramel leaves and fiery trees, I welcome. And then the bittersweet fact, the older I get the faster time seems to pass, even as I long for it to slow down, so I know it won't be long before I get to enjoy the colors of autumn again.

Minutes Forever Burned Into My Memory

2010-09-11T12:16:00.005+10:00

Every generation seems to have at least one major event that has been burned into our minds exactly where we were and what we were doing when we heard the unbelievable news.

Older generations may remember what they were doing when they heard Pearl Harbor was attacked. Or where they were when they first learned JFK had been shot. For the current generation, it's how we discovered the impossible had happened on 9/11.

It was the beginning of my junior year. I was excited to be taking AM swim, which meant I was at school a full hour and half before anyone else. Wet from washing all the chlorine out of my hair, I rushed from our school pool up to the main building. It was always chilly this early in the morning and having damp hair only made it worse. Relief washed over me as I entered the warm building on the top of the hill. Though there were still minimal crowds and the start of classes was still a good 20 minutes away, I hurried to my first period, back out into the brisk morning on the other side of the main building and into one of the newer portables. I had U.S. History with one of my favorite teachers, Mr. S. He made history come to life, he made it real and entertaining. He made us feel like we were a part of it.
That morning, history would be made, in fact, little did I know it already had. Sitting at the table where I was assigned, I did my usual ritual to prepare for class. I pulled out the necessary binder and book. I even brought out some other homework to finish up before class began. The lights weren't even on yet, though Mr. S had just stepped out and another girl who sat with me, Rachel, had come in. She also got to school bright and early to secure a parking spot along the street. Only seniors and some juniors got stickers to park in the parking lots around campus. (I happened to be one, having won the parking spot lottery in which about 10 of 100+ juniors hoping for a spot were picked!) Rachel had been sitting in her car for probably about an hour or more before school started (I did this most of my sophomore year), and she had been listening to the radio when they announced that at 5:52 am (PST) the first plane had hit, and a mere 9 minutes later the second plane had crashed into the other twin tower. Rachel told me what had happened, but at the time I was only barely aware of what the twin towers were. And I couldn't believe or grasp what she was telling me. It seemed unreal and in fact I didn't really believe her when she shared it. I kept thinking it must me some hoax the radio show she was listening to had been doing. But sure enough only minute later Mr. S came back into the room and flipped the TV on and reality hit me, though I still couldn't believe what I was seeing. Time warped and though all this happened in only a few minutes, in my mind it feels like it was hours.
Impossible. How could something like that happen here? Though in history we read about times or war and conflicts, that is all it is, history. It just can't be happening here and now, in my time, in my country. My safe and secure country.
As clear as those early morning minutes still are in my mind, the rest of the day is a blur. TV screens on in every classroom, replaying the horrific images that should only be found in our nightmares. Students crying and in shock. Though we lived across the country from this terror, it hit us all as though it happened in our very own backyard. No, it happened in our front yard, a city, we thought about as glamorous and untouchable, with its tall, important buildings, and streets filled with yellow cabs. Now was buried under dust and rubble. Death was heavy in this city once teeming with life. And it was felt everywhere, from the piles of twisted metal and stone that once stood tall, to the hearts of those watching from the sunny beaches in Hawaii. A cloud had spread over the entire country now united in mourning.

That is what I remember from that tragic day 9 years ago. Do you remember where you were when the unimaginable news first broke the stillness?

Don't forget to take a moment to remember and pray today. Pray for the families who lost loved ones. Pray for the troops who are still out fighting the war that began 9 years ago. Pray for our nation as it still heals from its deep wounds.

Our Love Story

2010-09-09T10:00:00.002+10:00

It seems throughout this process of remembering, its been all about the guys in my life. From the death of my grandfather and cousin when I was very young, to my first male teacher whom I couldn't stand, to my friend Chris, and then last week my first boyfriend, Steve. So this week I will just stick with that theme (and in the next session I will share more about some of my best girl friends). Get ready, this one is pretty long, I remember very vividly much from certain things this year!

Senior year started out rough. I had a falling out with one of my best friends. Victoria, within weeks of school starting. We didn't speak for months. During that time I became closer to another friend of mine, Josh. He was the ex-boyfriend of another close friend, Erin. They had dated a long time and while he was upset about the breakup, and one of the only classmates I knew in my physics class (lots of labs that you need partners for- and I think he understood more of it then I did- gotta love teachers who grade on the curve!!). So Josh became one of the people I leaned on and hung out with for much of the year, as I was dealing with losing the friendship with Victoria. He was always very kind to me, and though we weren't as close as I was with Chris, I was so grateful for his friendship senior year.
By the middle of the year, February, things began looking up, as Victoria and I began speaking again, and shortly after that I met the man who would become my husband.

I was at church early one Sunday morning, going over the worship songs for the service. Roy, who had been my youth leader, was now the interim pastor as well as the only person who could play piano in our church. So he played (and sang) and I sang with him. I remember my friend Timothy, who was then the youth leader, pulling into the wet parking lot. Watching from the sanctuary window, Jon, dressed in a dark blue turtle neck sweater with an orange stripe around the middle, and dark denim jeans, with a nice leather jacket on, stepped out of the passenger side back door holding a box of donuts for our Sunday School class. I just thought "Boy, he sure is cute, I wonder how old he is..." I was still quite boy crazy at this age, always looking for that potential guy God had for me (remember I knew I wanted to marry young, and I was ready for commitment- which is what scared most of the boys away of course!). Timothy was in the Navy, so I guessed this cute boy was probably someone he invited from his boat. I was 18, so I hoped he wasn't too much younger, though I figured he probably wouldn't be interested in me since I was still in high school.
Roy and I had pretty much finished up practicing, so I headed for the building our Sunday school class was in, just sort of kiddie corner to the sanctuary doors (separate buildings). At this point, Jon says he remembers seeing me get out of my car the first time he saw me, I don't remember going back to it for anything, but maybe I did. During Sunday school, Jon was actually more involved then I was in the discussions. He even shared a prayer request that his grandma had recently had a stroke. (If you know him now you wouldn't be surprised at all by this, but back then, me being super shy, even around this group of adults I had known for years, I was pretty quiet and rarely shared much even for prayer requests, so I was surprised this stranger was so involved!)
Well this Sunday just happened to also be Timothy's birthday (at least I am pretty sure it was his- might have been Debby, his wife's though). So after church, most of the youth group went out to eat at Godfather's pizza. Well I was growing seriously curious about this boy, by this point all I knew was his name, John (didn't find out it was Jon for Jonathan until a little later) and that he was on Timothy's boat, so he was in the Navy. I jumped at the chance to ask Timothy more questions, and when he got up to get a refill, I followed him to ask my questions. I don't remember what I asked, but my biggest question was how old is Jon? I knew in the Navy he would be in trouble for being with someone too young- if he was older- since I was actually still in school. Well it turned out Jon was only a year or so older then me (actually only a week short of a full year older).

(This was while we were away at the competition, in the bus finishing up getting ready for the performance. I do miss this sort of stuff the most of all my high school experiences!)

From there I don't really remember when we exchanged number or whatnot, but Jon continued coming to youth group with Timothy, and sometimes (eventually always) I gave him a ride to and from the Navy shipyard about 20-30 minutes away from my house & from church. We talked on the phone and we chatted through AOL a lot.
One time we went mini-golfing with a group of friends. I got to be one of the drivers, and the ride was more fun then the actual game, that was until my other friend who also drove, insisted Jon ride with her (later I found out she liked him- though supposedly she was trying to help me get up the courage to ask him out! Oh teenage drama- how I DON'T miss it!!). I was worried though, because she was much more popular, especially among the guys, completely the opposite of me! But I truly enjoyed being with Jon so I endeavored to find out if he liked me. Once we established our friendship, I felt like I could be myself with him, and he made me laugh a lot.
Finally after talking to Timothy and checking with him about whether or not it would be appropriate, I got up the courage to ask Jon to go with me to my senior prom. I was so nervous! Anytime I had ever asked a guy before I had either gotten I flat out no, or been laughed at, but as much as I wanted to be- I just wasn't the 'sit-and-wait-patiently-for-the-boy-to-take-initiative' type of girl. Then I found out later, Timothy had somewhat misunderstood his role in my concerns, and told Jon I would be asking!! I was embarrassed more then angry by this. I am not one to hold a grudge, and Timothy is just not the kind of person it is easy to be really mad at! Either way, Jon said yes! I think it was the next week when I took him home, as I pulled into the street to drop him off outside the gate, he very shyly and sweetly asked if he could kiss me. I will always remember that! Jon says he was afraid to just try because he could tell I was the goody-two-shoes church girl, and he didn't want to offend me. Well I didn't want to say no, but I barely knew him still, so I offered him my cheek for a quick peck. He is still to this day embarrassed a little by that whole situation! But I think its absolutely sweet.
By the end of April, I had to go away for an extended weekend because our concert choir always went to a certain competition each year (more then one actually- but this one we did all 3 yrs I was in choir, while the others varied). It was across the state, about a 4-6 hr drive through mountains part of the way. I loved going on the bus tours! Our director always managed to get us nice tour buses instead of the uncomfortable yellow ones, especially if we were going somewhere more then an hour away! On the ride there, I was on the phone with Jon for a bit. I don't remember who called who, but Jon eventually got to his point. Very hesitantly but sweetly, he asked it we could be 'boyfriend/girlfriend' (he didn't ask to 'go out' like any boys in my school would've) and he sort of stumbled over the words like he was embarrassed and not sure how to exactly phrase his words. I was absolutely giddy as I said yes! We ended our call shortly after this though because we were approaching a tunnel. But I quickly told my friend Bethany who was sitting beside me, and before I knew it all the girls on the bus were giggling over my phone call!

(One of our 6 prom photos, and my absolute favorite! My sister was so angry that I got this dress because she wanted it for the next dance she went too, but she didn't like hand-me-downs and I wasn't the same size anyway.)

Then it was time for my prom. May 10th, just a month before graduation. I was so excited to officially have a date to this major event. We made reservations to go out to eat at a nice restaurant with Josh and some of my other friends. We had a group of just over 10. Jon was a perfect gentleman! Even though I drove, he opened doors for me and even paid (another something fairly new- I was usually the one who paid for things even with just friends since I was the one with a job!).
Then we went to the dance, which was okay in terms of a dance, like I said, what made it really great was that I actually had a date! Oh and our teachers were our valets for the evening (nothing like that for any of the other dances). I believe it was my physics teacher, Mr. N, who took my car. Jon and I spent the evening hanging out and talking when there wasn't a slow song on. We got 2 packages of photos done- I wanted plenty of documents of my big night with him! And he very kindly danced with my friend Shannon at my prompting. She didn't have a date, but had come with our group, and I remembered how much I hated sitting out all the slow dances with all the guys taken, I didn't want her to feel like that all night. (And she didn't, between all the guys in our group, I don't think she sat out any dances though she was the only one dateless!) Eventually the evening ended and I took Jon home.
I know people assume teenagers don't really fall in love, but instead lust. But I knew very early I loved Jon. Despite all my boy craziness, I just knew (and so far I am not wrong!!). Later that month we said I love you and kissed for the first time.
Jon was there for my graduation, he bought me a pair of gold angel earrings because he said I was his angel (though I never wore them because they weren't my style- he still struggles with finding jewelry I will actually wear).
About a month and half after graduation, on our 3 month 'anniversary', Jon ended up having to work, despite date plans with me. So the next night I planned a big night for us. We started with miniature golfing, then we went to a movie- only there wasn't anything romantic playing, so we saw Tomb Raider. Afterwards we drove down to the waterfront. It was dark and deserted but nice and quiet- small town so we weren't worried or anything. I had a picnic packed of some sandwiches, sparkling cider and strawberries with whipped cream. We had previously talked about marriage, he even asked sort of playfully once before, but we decided that wasn't the 'real' way he wanted to ask. But being the girl I was, I was impatient. I knew what I wanted!! So I stood up and asked him to get on his knees, which he did. And then I told him to just do it, and he did, he asked me to marry him, though he was upset to be prompted and not ready with a ring to give me then. Of course, after all of that, I said YES! And on the way home he called his mom to tell her. Back at home (by this point he was regularly sleeping on our couch, with my mother's not to thrilled approval- and no we never snuck him into my room, I was a good girl after all, since it was getting expensive to drive back and forth so much each day- I drove him to work each morning, I worked in the same direction, and then picked him up afterwards- note to my own children- this mama won't ever allow that, so don't bother ever asking!!), I had set up on the downstair patio, a radio with some romantic CDs, and I had wrapped purple lights up around the posts, and we danced under the stars. My mom cried tears of joy (and sadness that her oldest would be out of the nest soon) when I told her the good news the next day.
Well the months flew by, and Jon and I were married just before Christmas of that same year! Actually I found out on my wedding day that it was my grandparents (Dad's side) 45th wedding anniversary!! Though it wasn't planned that way, and I wasn't particularly close to that side of the family, I like how the timing was just perfect like that. And they were able to drive to be at the wedding from 2 states away (though they arrived that day and left the next- so I didn't get to visit with them really). We had an evening wedding, themed for my favorite holiday, we even had a Christmas tree up on our 'dance floor', and up until about 2 years ago, used the same tree and some of the same decorations every year. We will be celebrating 7 wonderful years of marriage this December.

This post is the 14th in a series of 15 I am doing to record my youth with other women at

It is also linked to Favorite Memories Friday at Mom's Toolbox.

When Life Isn't Fair

2010-09-09T09:52:00.005+10:00

Even when it is something I don't necessarily want to hear, I just love it when God so obviously is speaking to me through whatever means available.

Let me explain a little background info: My sister announced last June she was getting married. Of course I want to go, but along the way we have hit more then one bump in the road. In fact it has seemed more like a roller coaster ride then a bumpy road, trying to get my husband's leave approved (he is military, and nothing about being in the military is ever simple!). It isn't a matter of being told 'no' though, just 'wait' and then 'wait' again. We have jumped through many hoops trying to get it through, and there are many complicated reasons we have had problems, most of which were out of our hands, and to me, very unfair. Our biggest issue is time and money, it is expensive to leave the island, and we need to buy tickets in advance, as well as order me a bridesmaid dress if I will be able to get there. The whole thing has dragged out for over a month now for us, and I haven't felt any peace throughout the whole thing!

My husband feels defeated, and he just wants me to let it go and wait more, but I feel wronged. I want to call up his chain of command and say "That's NOT fair!" I want to find a way for 'justice' to be done, the kind of justice when I get my way, and the person unjustly standing in my path gets reprimanded.

And then today, I was looking through the new posts of the blogs I follow when I came across a post titled Why not just be wronged?. At first, I did not want to click on it. I didn't want to hear that I should just accept what has happened and let it go. After all my anger and frustration are justified, this just shouldn't be happening to us.

But I could not deny God His chance to speak to me through this blog. It was obvious, this was for me.

Why not rather be wronged? Why not rather be defrauded? ~ 1 Corinthians 6:7b

Commit your way to the Lord, Trust also in Him, and He will do it. He will bring forth your righteousness as the light and your judgement as the noonday. Rest int he Lord and wait patiently for Him; Do not fret because of him who prospers in his way... ~Psalm 37:5-7b

It isn't easy to accept, but sometimes we will be wronged, even as Christians. Even the world has their own way of saying it- Life isn't fair. Ultimately though God's justice will prevail, and that is what matters. I am not the judge, I am not the one who should seek punishment and reprimand for those who I feel are against me or have wronged me. Sometimes we need to just let it go, instead of having it fester in our hearts, creating an infection that can spread to other parts of our lives. If we want to be healthy in our walk with the Lord, it is important to let go and move on, even if we are being wronged. God is in control and He will work everything out for good, for His will.

As for the wedding, I hope I am able to go. But ultimately God knows best and He is in control. Even if I don't like the answer, just remembering He is the one in control, brings me peace. I was just struggling with keeping that in mind because in my heart I didn't want the answer to be no, or even wait. I wanted to be the one behind the wheel, but I am reminded once again, that God is the better driver when it comes to my life. For now I will just continue to pray that everything falls into place, and we are able to go, whatever the answer may be.

(And if you haven't already, I seriously encourage you to check out Mary DeMuth's post. Maybe you will also get something from it!)

Wordless Wednesday: Beach Picnic

2010-09-08T07:01:00.005+10:00

Jon ended up having an extra day off yesterday, so we went on a last minute picnic at the beach since it was low tide. The kids weren't as interested in the tide pools as I was, but it was still a nice afternoon with the family!

Our Little Family

My Sweet Little Big Boy

My Beach Beauty

Zachary showing off his new skills.

Natalie loves playing in the sand, its all she really wanted to do.

Jon relaxing under a palm tree with Zachary, if there had been a breeze, this would've been absolute perfection.

Natalie and I found a crab, this was the biggest. We also found a whole bunch of tiny ones and some hermit crabs as well. This was why I wanted to go at low tide, I remember doing this with my mom and sisters when I was younger and we would go to my great Uncle Mike's place by the water which had a rocky shore. We would just flip over the rocks and watch the teeny crabs scatter.

Ready to Hand Over the Keys?

2010-09-07T10:06:00.004+10:00

Jon went in late this morning due to my appointment to get our new car key cut and programed (how can that take an hour and a half??!!). So as he is getting ready for work, Natalie is sitting at the table playing a game, and she says, "Daddy, I want to take you in to work today."

So Jon asks her why, and her reply is, "Because I want the car today to go somewhere."

And I thought she wouldn't start asking to borrow the car until she at least had gotten her license!!

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In other news, I am extremely excited because my little big boy is finally walking! Over the past weeks it has been 5 steps or so, here and there. Then last week he walked about 10 ft, steadied himself with his hands on the floor before straightening back up to walk another 5 ft or so. And yesterday, as we celebrated Labor day by having some friends over for lunch, Zachary was so excited and trying to join in the big kids play, he was walking better then he ever has before! He got a lot of practice in and hopefully that will really show in the next week or 2 and will become regular! It is particularly exciting to us since he is 18 months old and has struggled with crawling and walking for a while now, so it is such a blessing to see him progress finally!!
And now he can walk in my sister's wedding as the ring bearer in November!

This post is linked to

Top Ten Tuesday: Rainy Day Fun

2010-09-07T10:00:00.001+10:00

I actually love rainy days...as long as I don't need to go outside! I am mostly a 'homebody' anyway, so I prefer to be in the comforts of my own home except for the occasional itch to get out, especially if the kids are getting to rowdy for me inside! On Guam, we have 2 seasons, dry and rainy. I am not sure when the exact months outline each season, but right now and most of the end half of the year, it is wet! It makes it feel almost like fall to me if I stay inside and turn the AC down to a cool temperature and wear cozy socks on my feet. Of course as much as I would like to spend those days curled up in a blanket with a good book, the kids require other entertainment. So here is some rainy (or not so rainy) day fun:

1. Curl up with the kids and read to them. I enjoy finding a book that I can connect to some fun craft as well.

2. Bake cookies! My daughter loves to help by pouring ingredients in and mixing. And then of course her favorite part is helping to gobble them all up afterwards!! We even have an apron just for her.

3. Have an indoors picnic! I actually use an inexpensive vinyl tablecloth as a splat mat under my son's high chair, so I would just clean that off a little, lay it out in the middle of the living room and eat our lunch on the floor. I open the blinds too, so we feel like we are outside more, but we still stay dry!

4. We go to our local Aquarium, where we have a membership (so its free for us to go often)! Its called Underwater World, and most of it is this long tunnel of plexiglass, so you are actually walking through the huge tanks with all the fish, sharks, and sea turtles. I count this as a rainy day activity because we don't get wet, our parking garage at home is covered, and so it the one at Underwater World! So if I happen to have the car (one car family here), this is a good activity if we really need to get out, but don't want to drown in the downpour- seriously it can rain super hard here, but its still really warm and muggy so you don't really want to wear a raincoat to shield you, and with 2 young kids, the umbrella is hard to figure out and you only get wetter in the process!!

5. Movie time! I love movies and have a huge collection of children's and adult's movies. And we try to make it an event, with popcorn, and fruit smoothies, lights dimmed, and everyone cuddling on the couch (or in the bed, my daughter likes watching them in our room). Zachary is still too young for this though, so we save it for his nap time.

6. Creative crafts. I have a huge bin of craft materials I bought in the states for times just such as these! Some are kits, some are just random odds and ends to be really creative with. Though I am still working on just getting Zachary to figure out coloring and NOT eating the crayon!

7. Music video making. I love to sing, my daughter loves to sing, and my son...well he likes to make noise! So what could be better then pulling out any noise making toys or just pots and pans for him to bang on as Natalie and I belt out some tunes! Or sometimes we just put on some music and dance around! (Our favorites are songs by the Imagination Movers, its hard not to catch on to their fun and educational music!)

8. Build a fort. Oh how I LOVED building forts when I was a kid! I don't know a kid that doesn't like this, even Zachary gets pretty excited about it- then proceeds to accidentally pull it all down. But the beauty is, its never to difficult to rebuild, all you need are sheets or lightweight blankets, and chairs or other tall furniture and usually some weights to hold the sheet in place help too (think books or magazines, nothing breakable)!

9. Get dressed up! This one is a girl's all time favorite, but most young boys will join in for the fun as well! Zachary likes to try my shoes on and wear hats sometimes (just so he can pull them off and laugh as I put it right back on!). One day I hope to have more general neutral stuff for him too, like doctor outfit, police/fire man, train conductor, that sort of thing. For now its mostly dresses and necklaces and fairy wings for my daughter!

10. Go out in the rain...unless your children are made out of sugar and will melt (my daughter seems to think she is sometimes). Bundle up (assuming you aren't on Guam) the kids in their rain gear and let them go out and make mud pies, splash in a few puddles, and enjoy another day God has given us. The best thing about kids is that they are completely washable!! I do recommend dry warm clothes as soon as they are inside though- we don't want anyone to catch a cold after all!

This is linked to

NJROTC and My First Boyfriend

2010-09-02T10:00:00.005+10:00

Almost there! So close I can taste it! The end is in sight!! The end of high school that is, and yet high school is really only the beginning!

(This is me and the two teachers who ran NJROTC, my great uncle is the one in maroon.)

In my junior year, I joined NJROTC. For those who don't know that stands for Navy Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps. I only did it for 2 of the 3 trimesters actually, I can't remember if I dropped a math class or chemistry from the 1st trimester to do this, but either way I couldn't stand either of those 2 classes. In chem, I had the kind of teacher who assigned homework, put up the answers for you to correct yourself, then 'went over' what you didn't understand. I got a C, my first C, and I was done. I never understood it when my teacher explained it anyway, because he would do it in a manner that made you feel stupid for even asking. You know, like he knew how to do it, it was so simple, how can you not get it?! My math teacher was pretty much the same way, though I was lingering on a B- in that class, and I already had all the math credits I needed.
So I decided since one of my best friends, Victoria did it, I should too. I already knew a lot of the people in that crowd, and thought I would fit in well. And it just happened my great Uncle Ed was the Captain of my school's program. He was so excited and proud when I joined, and of course everyone knew me from before, unfortunately it was mostly as 'the Captain's niece'. I got great grades in this class, it was mostly just learning about different subjects within the Navy. A little history, a little english- actually a whole new form of english because I was required to use terms such as "I need to use the head." instead of the normal word, head means bathroom for all the people who don't speak sailor-ese. We also did running- oh great more PE! And we had uniform inspections once a week. We had to go a whole day wearing the most ugly, unflattering uniform and uncomfortable shoes for all our classes, then were inspected by another student who was ranked above us, I believe it was our chief who did it (they rank just like in the Navy- we even had a student commanding officer-CO- and second in command (XO) and so on down the chain). And the inspection was part of our grade as well. During the inspections we could get hit for hairs out of place, not keeping our bearing- which means standing perfectly still and looking straight ahead with a straight face while your entire group is inspected (really a struggle for me)- for having ribbons or collar devices not perfectly lined up- some many inches from the tip of the collar, etc- or on not knowing the answer to questions your inspecting officer asked- for example: who is the Secretary of the Navy? (insert current SecNav here). It was like torture to me!!

This is also the year I had my first boyfriend. I say first, but he is the only other guy I 'dated' other then my husband really. He was also my first kiss. I was at one of the ROTC dances, which happened fairly often and weren't by any means formal. I was upset about something, crying, but I don't remember what. I was sitting on the bleachers and Steve came up to ask what was wrong. I was shocked, someone I didn't know, and a boy, actually cared?! Well he ended up asking me to dance, and later asking me 'out', which just meant we were an item, not that we actually went anywhere particularly. Steve was also in ROTC and he was actually a year younger then me in school. But he was so sweet to me, and no one had ever treated me like that before. For Valentines day he brought me a rose and a small amethyst heart necklace. And on my days off we would hang out after school up at the building the ROTC shared with a recruiting center. It was an old armory with a lot of extra space just up the road off campus (and I would've hated ROTC more if I hadn't had a car to make the drive in- otherwise you were expected to walk and you got a little extra time between classes to make the trek). If we weren't there, we would just drive around or hang out at my house.

(Steve and I at the ball. Sorry, I don't have any pictures of me in my uniform for a good reason, but it would've looked just like Steve's here minus the gloves.)

One day as I drove Steve home, before he got out, we kissed. It was his first and my first so neither of us had any clue what we were doing! It was wet and sorta gross (no offense Steve!), and it felt weird, but I was still curious and eventually we kissed again...a lot. By about a month and half of the couple thing, I was getting irritated. Steve had problems with his step-father, and always said he couldn't call, or couldn't talk long because of him, but I wanted to talk to my boyfriend more! We wrote notes during the day, but it just wasn't the same to me. And then it ended...almost. We 'broke-up' and about a week later, at an after school ROTC thing, as I was getting in my car, Steve jumped the fence after getting a chocolate rose handed to him by his mom in her car which was kiddie corner from mine, and apologized and asked if I would be his girlfriend again. I said yes, and we began the whole high school dating ritual again. We passed notes, we hung out, we kissed, and we talked more at first. We even went to the one formal dance ROTC did each year, the Navy JROTC Ball. It was a lot of fun, and this was my second year going (remember I hung out with this crowd, so I went the year before with some friends). This dance was way better then the normal high school dances. We had a sit down meal, we were served, not buffet style (which is what the actual Navy Balls I have gone to since with my husband, lean towards), and best of all, it wasn't just in the school gym, but in a nice lodge on base.
Well Steve and I just weren't meant to be. After another month and half or so, we broke up again, this time for good, and not really on good terms. I had gone to the movies with his brother, mom, and him. On the way back to their house (his mom drove us all), we were all making fun of Steve, playfully. But he got very sensitive about it and when we got back to his house, him and I stayed in the car to talk...or argue. I think our biggest issues should've been clear to me earlier on. Steve kept telling me he couldn't trust me when I wanted to talk about things that bugged or upset him. It was always 'too personal', and for me, I thought- if there is no trust, how can we be in a relationship together? And though that in itself was reason for us not to date, he had shared with me he didn't want to have kids until he was at least 30 if even then, he honestly sounded like he didn't want any. He didn't even think he wanted to ever get married! And I knew I wanted to marry young (which I did) and have children (which I did). I would never have changed my mind about those two things for my life, yet I thought I could convince him or change his mind. So it couldn't have lasted much longer then it did anyway!

This is my 13th post in a series of 15 in which I am recording my youth with other ladies at
. Only 2 more to go! And if this sounds like a fun idea to you, be sure to sign up with Janna for the 2nd session which begins in October!

Teach Me Tuesday: A Conversation with God

2010-08-31T22:00:00.000+10:00

God was the one teaching me something in the last week, well at least something quite specific, though He is always teaching me something...if I just remember to listen.
So as I have already said, we have cancelled our cable TV. Now let me tell you why...this is the conversation I had with God about a week ago. Imagine this as a Father sitting down to talk to His daughter about a bad habit, that's exactly how it felt in my heart.

God: Crystal, I think you should cancel your cable.

Crystal: *Sigh* That would save a little money I suppose...but maybe not quite yet, after all, some of my favorite shows are in the middle of their seasons! And its so nice to sit back and watch Food Network with Jon after a long day of chasing kids around, I would miss that too much! Maybe not.

God: Crystal, you need to cancel your cable.

Crystal: *insert whiny voice* But I don't want too! I like watching my shows, they are so good.

God: How many times do those shows distract you from getting housework done? Or going to bed at the same time as your husband? And you know when you leave the TV on for 'background noise', Natalie will end up mesmerized by it.

Crystal: Well I can just turn it off more, I will turn it off more. We don't need to actually cancel cable if I just keep it off more often, and then I can still watch my favorite shows. Yes that will work out well.

God: And haven't you tried that many times before?

Crystal: Maybe...

God: And did it work for you then?

Crystal: *whispering softly* No...but I really want to watch my shows.

God: And why are those TV shows so important to you?

Crystal: I don't know, I just like them.

God: Are they more important then Me? Would you choose those shows over Me?

Crystal: Well...no, they shouldn't be...but, but...

God: Crystal, I think you need to cancel your cable.

Crystal: Yes, God. I think you are right.

When God first convicted me, I didn't want to cancel our cable because I really wanted to be able to watch my favorite shows when they came on. But I quickly realized that at that, my strong desire to NOT let go, I NEEDED too. And though I did want to procrastinate calling, I am looking forward to using the time I would've end up sitting in front of the TV, to spend more time playing with the kids and growing closer to God.

Top Ten Tuesday: Farewell Cable TV!

2010-08-31T10:00:00.000+10:00

Today is our last day of cable TV. We have decided to save money and reorganize our priorities. But there are a few good shows I will miss watching each week...

1. The Great Food Truck Race This is a new competition on the Food Network, they are on their 3rd episode and half way through the race. We actually had to shut off the TV quickly before they showed the 'next week' trailer, so I didn't know what I was missing!!

2. White Collar On the opposite end, this show is on its 2nd to the last episode of the season and totally has me hooked based on the trailer. Good news is most USA shows are available to watch on hulu.com, but usually I don't get around to watching them online, so it'll be there for me, but I will probably not take that extra time to look it up! I will miss the witty humor between Neal and Peter though.

3. Psych I love to laugh, and this show, as goofy as it can be, totally makes me bust up! But it also adds that crime solving element with the humor which was what drew me into Monk. Its just that right balance! So good! This one Jon and I have talked about buying the DVD seasons for sometime. Right now though we are still hoping to finish our Monk collection!

4. House I love the mystery, what illness is it, what is House going to do next? It's so unpredictable, you just never know! Though at first it did take a while to get past the 'inside' views of whatever is wrong with the patient, its not too graphic or anything, but those with sensitive stomachs, be warned!

5. Chopped I love seeing the crazy baskets of ingredients and seeing what each chef will come up with! It totally makes me want to get creative and make something no one else would think of! Of course I am not by any means trained in the kitchen, so mine wouldn't be very yummy since it would be a very uneducated guess at what flavors go best!

6. Food Network Challenge I am always amazed at what the pastry chefs can turn a cake into! And its because of shows like that, that made me want to learn at least a little about decorating cakes!

7. Smallville This one I won't miss too terribly much, since I am not actually watching it regularly, but rather buying the seasons once they come to DVD anyway. But only because I still haven't figured out which channel the CW is here on Guam!! Plus its in it last season anyway from what I heard.

8. Rachael Ray Show She was the very first Food Network star we loved to watch on 30 Minute Meals, and it was so great when she got her own show! She just seems so sweet and down to earth! And I watched her talk show since it started, the first and only talk show I ever watched. Though now I get most of my fixes from her magazine since I can't figure out when or which channel this show is on either! I guess that fact won't matter much tomorrow!

9. Iron Chef America Between the Next Iron Chef America and the actual show, I have grown to see food in such a different light. Just as with Chopped, this show makes me want to experiment with different foods, and I have learned a little about what should pair well together, and what may be a bad idea!

10. Law & Order: Special Victims Unit For a while I wanted to be a lawyer or even a detective. Solving crimes and helping the victims get justice is just so appealing to me. And the mystery involved in trying to solve the crime and catch the bad guy, like a game or puzzle- though in real life I realize it wouldn't be so cut and dry!

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Project 52: S'Mores Please!

2010-08-30T22:31:00.005+10:00

Since we missed quite a few weeks due to late work nights, we decided to do another one, now only 3 days after our last date night! And hopefully this weekend we will get out for another one even!

Jon was feeling to lazy to bother changing out of his uniform- though of course he took those awful boots that hurt his feet off!

So date night #3, and we had ourselves a little campfire fun! Jon used his charcoal starter to get a fire going on our patio (all cement so no worries), and we roasted s'mores! Yummy!

YUM-O!

We just sat out on the patio in the dark eating our delicious treats and talked about mostly Food Network. How appropriate as we enjoyed our gooey treats!

It was a nice date night, reminding me of many other fun bon-fires with my grandma where we would roast some marshmallows into toasted goodness before adding the chocolate and graham cracker! Ah, childhood, how we miss you!

I'll Pray for You

2010-08-30T16:24:00.007+10:00

How many times do you tell someone you will pray for them and then forget?

"I'll pray for you."

I know when I say those words, I am making a promise to that person to lift them up in their time of need, and asking God for His wisdom and blessings for them. But between saying it and sitting down for my usual quiet time, after chasing the kids around all day, feeding them breakfast, lunch and dinner, cleaning up behind them, then finally hustling the children down for bed or nap time, I have usually forgotten. Or at the very least I can't remember all the details. And though God knows all the details, sometimes I just wish I had taken the time to write it down. Even if I pray for them right away (another great habit to pray without ceasing throughout the day- 1 Thess. 5:17), its so much better to write it down so I can remember for the rest of the week!

So starting today I have new small prayer journal that fits quite nicely into my purse. My plan is to carry it with me always, so when God brings someone in my path that I need to pray for I can write it down! That way I won't forget anyone.

Added bonus, I will know all the important details when I want to go check in with someone to see if prayers have been answered or they need continued prayer for the situation. Something I need to work on: lifting others up, encouraging others and reaching out not only to the lost but to show compassion for my brothers and sisters in Christ, through prayer and encouragement.

I believe it shows someone great love and encouragement just to know they are not forgotten in their times of need, and by continually reaching out and keeping updated on situations, it portrays that love so beautifully.

Therefore, confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another so that you may be healed. The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much. ~James 5:16

Is there some way you keep track of all the different things you plan on praying for throughout the week?

Project 52: Tub and Talk Time

2010-08-28T10:00:00.002+10:00

Well I won't even bother counting the weeks it has been since I did my first Project 52 post! We will just stick with 'awhile'. Jon has been caught up in working a lot lately and has spent many days at work for 12+ hours. So anytime we did have together we were spending as a family since the kids have missed him a lot. And then once the kids went down, at least Jon (if not both of us) also hit the hay, too exhausted for any efforts towards a 'date night'. Finally though, now that things have started slowing down a bit at work, we decided it was time for some us time alone.

It has been awhile since we took advantage of our master bathroom's jetted tub, so we decided we needed some relaxation, in the form of a nice hot soak. Jon turned up the water heater so the huge bath tub would be nice and warm once full, and I lit a whole bunch of candles around our tub, including our favorite Yankee candles scents of Lemon Lavender and Vanilla Lime- both quite relaxing fragrances! I added some bath salts and blew up our bath pillow.

Then after the kids were down for bed we took a candlelit bath and talked. It was really nice to just soak in the hot water. We laughed and we talked, about many different things, including my favorite subject- baby names (no we aren't expecting or even trying, but we often disagree so I am always throwing names at Jon to see if he has changed his mind about some I like).
It was a short date night, since Jon couldn't take the heat very long, but it was nice to reconnect. It has been a long time since we just spent some time alone together to talk and enjoy each other's company.

We are hoping to do another date night at home Sunday night. Hopefully everything works out for that, we need to do some catching up on time as a couple!

Favorite Memories Friday: A Family Once More

2010-08-27T10:00:00.001+10:00

I need to thank Janna from Mommy's Piggy Tales for introducing me to this fun blog carnival over at Mom's Toolbox!

One of my very favorite memories is from August 2007. Just a week before Natalie's first birthday in January of the same year, my husband Jon left for Cuba. With only a week and half notice, Jon had been called to go for an IA (Individual Augmentation) to serve at the camp for detainees in Cuba. He would be gone for 6 months after first spending a few weeks in training in a different state. This would be our first real deployment since we had met (though he had been away for a matter of weeks at a time before). I was so scared at the thought of being alone to care for my 1 year old daughter for that length of time so I packed up and left our East coast home on Natalie's birthday. A few days later I was home on the West coast where I spent the entire time and then some, that Jon was away.
It wasn't exactly fun, though I learned a lot during that time and I enjoyed being home with my closest friends and family. I know the months my mom got to spend with her first grandchild were priceless to her. But all the while, I rarely got to talk to Jon. I had no phone number to be able to call him. I relied solely on his timing, though if there had been an emergency I knew to call the Red Cross (thankfully there were no such occasions), but it was still quite difficult, and in his absence my heart did indeed grow fonder!
In August, after his return to his command on the East coast and getting some much needed leave approved, Jon flew to come get my daughter and me.
I had butterflies in my stomach as I searched the crowds of people around the luggage carousel. My mom had Natalie and was with me. And then I saw him, a much more muscular and tanned version of my husband. His brown t-shirt hugged his chest and arms much more snugly then I had been used to. And his smile was bigger and wider then I could ever remember. It was like everything around me just disappeared, and I forgot my mom and Natalie were even there as I ran into his open arms! I don't think he has ever held me as tightly as that wonderful embrace. We were reunited at last and the world was right again! As long as I live, I will never forget our very first reunion from a deployment and I know there will be many more.
I look forward to another reunion next April as Jon goes on another deployment, though I wish I could skip the actual separation. I know though that it will be fine though with our wonderful friends here on Guam to help me. I will rest in the knowledge God would never give me more then I could handle, but I will indeed grow stronger through it.

Surviving the First Year of High School

2010-08-26T10:00:00.003+10:00

High school at last! But it wasn't all it was cracked up to be I soon discovered.

My electives this year were Women's Ensemble and French 1. Both were year long electives, so all my other classes were the usual required ones, engligh- though I took college prep english for each year in high school, a math class, I went as high as algebra 2 before quitting all math classes in high school- I despised math, biology, and of course physical education- this was the last year I would be required to take any classes involving sweat and locker rooms, I took 1 trimester each of fitness, swim, and health class (which I opted out of weights to take!). I did actually end up taking AM swim for part of my junior year because I actually enjoyed that class, but it was not required, it was a class that was held before the school day officially began.

I liked most of my teachers and I believe most of them liked me. But then there was my French 1 teacher, Mr. J. Before I had been in his class a week, I began hearing rumors that this was his first year back after spending time away for throwing books at students. And honestly, it was hard not to believe by the end of the year. He was the only French 1 teacher, so I couldn't transfer out of his class unless I wanted to take a different language, which I didn't because I thought French was such a romantic language. If I ever visited a foreign country during that time in my life, it would have been France, to go see the Eiffel Tower and the Louve. I loved everything I thought to be French!
Of course, its hard to tell for sure if it was Mr. J, himself, or the students who had all heard the rumors, but he was an odd teacher. I often felt bad for him as most of the students lacked even an ounce of respect for him or his teaching. I had always been a goody-two-shoes, so I was never one to show disrespect to anyone, let alone my teacher. Though the other students regularly tried to push his buttons, and on occasion he did snap. He would throw a book or an empty desk even, at the wall and yell at us all. Then sometimes we would have substitute teachers for a few days, though I doubt any of his students ever let his outbursts slip, they genuinely seemed to get a kick out of being cruel to this poor teacher who had a short temper.
Mr. J only ever gave the simplest work to top it off. I retained very little from his class, and was completely unprepared for French 2 with a teacher who was quite the opposite of Mr. J, and expected much more from her students then we had learned previously. I remember on one particular occasion when Mr. J had us gather old assignments that had already been graded, to turn in this big packet. I hadn't been able to find most of mine in my mess of a room, so when he asked for them I told him I had forgotten it at home. Much to my astonishment he said, "I am sure you got an A," and told me not to worry about it!! Of course now I think that was horrible for a teacher to play favorites like that, but then I was just happy to not have to admit I didn't actually have half the papers (why turn back in ALREADY graded assignments anyway? He wasn't the only teacher who did this and I still don't understand why).

This was also the year I made a lifelong friend. One of the first guys I could really call a best friend. His name is Chris. We actually met through one of my friends who was his girlfriend of a couple of years at this point in school. He was a senior, and that's why I only met him this year. I remember the first time I met him, I thought he was weird and I was right! It was spirit week at school, and each day we had a theme and everyone came dressed up to match it. This particular day was 'mondo bizzaro' day, everyone came dressed in just the craziest stuff, and Chris was no exception. While I think I either turned my clothes inside out or had them on backwards or something like that (Chris probably remembers better then I do!), he was wearing his girlfriend's homecoming dress (though he did have a shirt on underneath)!
Not to far into that year, his girlfriend broke up with him. And though I was originally friends with her, Chris and I had clicked. So as one friendship (we weren't that close to begin with) dissolved, another one blossomed. Chris and I both had the same lunch all year, at least one day (we had 'A' days and 'B' days, 3, 2-hour classes each day). We often spent them just walking around the hallways at school talking about everything and anything. Chris was upset and still missed his girlfriend. I was pining for a boy who didn't like me romantically, and had been for going on 3 years at this point. So we encouraged each other in our circumstance, we were there for each other. Chris always referred to me as his 'little sophomore friend', even after that year ended and I became a junior and Chris graduated.
Over the years we have still been there for each other. He even was kind enough to help me make a move across the country when Jon got sent to Cuba on 10 days notice! Chris flew to the East coast and helped me pack stuff into a trailer and then drove back to the west coast with me, Natalie and our dog Diamond. There aren't many friends who would use their time off and money to reach out and help someone like that, but that is just Chris. He is a loyal and faithful friend through and through. Anytime I go home for a visit, I still make time to get together with Chris too, though we don't talk as often as we once did. While I have many friends back home, there aren't many I truly miss, and he is definitely among my top 3. Chris made my sophomore year infinitely more bearable!!

This is post 12 of 15 in a series I am doing to record my youth with other women at
.

Top Ten Tuesday: Drifting Off to Dreamland

2010-08-24T10:00:00.002+10:00

Does anyone else ever have trouble getting to sleep some nights?

After a long day of chasing the kids, dealing with multiple meltdowns, making 3 meals for 3 picky eaters (I am just as particular as my children!), trying to read and do my own bible study regularly, and brainstorming for blog ideas, I often find at the end of the day my mind is buzzing at a million miles per hour and I am unable to shut down for some much needed rest.

So after lying in bed for anywhere from 15 minutes to an hour, I must find something to help me ease into a deep sleep, before I lose to much precious time as I know my early risers will be up at the crack of dawn ready to begin the day- even if mommy is barely able to drag herself out of bed!

1. The first thing I go for is my favorite Sleepy time Tea. Chamomile is also a nice soothing tea, but I personally enjoy a nice warm mug full of my Sleepy time blend tea which is chamomile plus spearmint, and I sweeten it with a bit of Splenda and honey. YUMMY! I actually drink this throughout the day as well, it helps me de-stress a little when the kids are driving me up the wall!

2. Read a book. For me it can't be something on the computer, or a magazine, it must be a good fiction book that I can curl up under the covers and read a few pages of until my eyelids quickly begin to droop. Though it can be a tough balancing act, if I am too far into a book, or just get easily caught up in the story- this can backfire bad on me! I have stayed up until 2 or 3 am on more then one occasion, as I literally can NOT put it down! And if it is a how to book, or a bible study book, I have to pay too close attention too, then I also have a hard time dozing off to it!

3. Drift off to dream land listening to some soothing, uplifting music. I love worship music. It reminds me to be thankful to an almighty, wonderful Savior, and it brings me immense peace. I just pop my ear buds on and set my iPod on my nightstand and close my eyes, before I know it I am out (and I usually find my iPod somewhere on the floor in the morning).

4. I pray. What better way to unload from my hectic, crazy day, then to talk to my Awesome Heavenly Father! He is always there to listen and lift any burdens I may have.

5. I write notes. One reason my mind may be going, going, going, is because this is sometimes the time I find the most inspiration. Its like all through the day I sought ideas for dinner, for crafting, for blogging, for baking, for party plans and a whole long list of other things I must use my creative juices for, and I can't seem to get my thoughts together. But as soon as my head hits that pillow, and bam, the light bulb in my head is light up, so bright in fact it's impossible to sleep through!! So I try to always keep a notebook or pad and pen on my nightstand, so I can write down any thoughts I know I need to get out so I don't forget by the morning hours!

6. I eat. Sometimes I am not good about actually eating dinner. After spending an hour or so in the kitchen prepping and cooking a meal, I honestly have no appetite when the finished product rolls out of my kitchen. Some nights I literally have to force myself to eat, or I wait until everyone else is done and then I sit down to eat a little. But if it is one of those nights I don't, then by bed I have to find something to fill my belly or sleeping becomes very difficult.

7. I talk. I talk to Jon or just talk through my thoughts out loud if he isn't home or awake. If you know me, you know how much I like to talk! It just helps me get everything bouncing around in my head out so my mind can rest.

8. I watch TV or a movie. Even if it is a new one I haven't seen, sometimes all it takes is laying down with the TV on and I fall right to sleep, and not always when I want too! I think part of it is from my childhood, I remember falling asleep with the door open and hearing the TV on in the living room as my grandma and mom stayed up watching it. It was comforting to me not to worry because I knew they were awake and watching over me, and since I could hear the TV, all other noises were drowned out, like the creaks and squeaks of our home 'settling', or whatever it was!!

9. Count sheep! Yes sometime this old-time advice actually works! It can be anything really, just count, and count, and count until you can't count anymore!

10. When nothing else works, I take a Tylenol PM. This is my absolute LAST resort, because I never feel as rested in the morning when I take one as I do otherwise. And I only take it if I have a full 8 hours to sleep. (And I am NOT saying anyone else should do it. So don't take any just because I do, ask your doctor if its okay first!)

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And The Tables Have Turned!

2010-08-24T09:00:00.000+10:00

We have been explaining to our daughter recently about not interrupting others when they are speaking. Primarily when my husband and I are talking between the two of us, something she tends to do most often in the car.

Well today after church, as Jon and I worked on making lunch in the kitchen, Natalie starts telling me about a friend's new shoes (wow, it begins this early huh?!). Jon then interceded because he actually noticed the shoes of this particular friend as well, and he was trying to better explain what they looked like as my 4-year-old's description left a lot lacking. Next thing I know Natalie is very politely noting to Jon that she was talking to mommy and he interrupted her.

So Jon apologized and Natalie says, "That's alright Daddy. Just be sure not to do it again, okay?" in the exact same tone Jon uses with her when she interrupts us!! It was so cute and funny! I couldn't help but burst with laughter at hearing her say this!!

So our children do actually listen to us sometimes, huh? I just wish that she would apply it herself more often, instead of only remembering it when it comes her own chance to correct us!

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.

Just To Be Crystal Clear

2010-08-23T12:25:00.006+10:00

Just a little clarification, because I wouldn't want anyone to misunderstand what I was trying to say in my previous post about the mosque.

I am not supporting the mosque. I simply have found most of the reasons I have heard opposing it to be less then sound.

I don't believe that a strip club is more morally wrong then a center built for the purpose of worshipping what I believe to be a false god. For God, all sin is black and white, and unfortunately without Christ's blood, we can never be clean from sin- we are all blackened by it until you give your life to the one true God, Almighty.

Most importantly as a Christian, I don't endorse something so completely wrong biblically. Muslims do NOT worship the same God as Christianity (and I would say further, many people who claim to be Christians are actually worshipping a different god then I do). My God, is the one and only God of the Old and New Testament. He gave His Son, Jesus, to die for my sins on a cross. He is loving and merciful. His Word, the Holy Bible is the only holy word, not to be added to or taken away from. And His Holy Spirit dwells in the hearts of those who have believed in Him and welcomed Him into their heart and life. That is my God, the one and only true God in all eternity.

As I said before, I just find most of the reasoning I have heard opposing the mosque to be ignorant or just plain wrong. And legally we have no right to keep them from building it.

I also think that ultimately we gain nothing as Christians by being prejudiced to the Islamic community. They are no different then all the other lost souls we are called to be a light to for Jesus Christ. We need to pray for them all, Muslims, Atheists, Catholics, Mormons, and many others who have been decieved by Satan.

Again this is my opinion. Please respect it and I will respect yours. I ask anyone who wishes to leave a comment to be thoughtful when doing so or I will not approve your comment. Thank you.

Friends Forever

2010-08-23T11:15:00.004+10:00

A song I learned as a girl in brownies. I could sing this over and over with all my closest friends as we made wonderful memories to last a lifetime.

A circle is round,

It has no end,

Thats how long I want to be YOUR friend!

And now as an adult, I am still amazed when God blesses me with new friends. You never lose your true friends, they will always remain in your thoughts and heart. Even when they must travel on, start a new adventure somewhere else. Meet new people and make new friends. But the old ones will always be treasured.

It isn't easy leaving your friends. I should know, we have had to pick up and move twice as God through the Navy directs our path. But today I am sad because of friends who will be leaving us bright and early on their last morning in this tropical paradise. All through the ups and downs they were there for me and I hope I was always there for them, I tried to be. And their friendship is as gold to me. They will forever be in my heart, whether we meet again on this earth, or one day in our eternal heavenly home.

I will always praise God for giving me the gift of their friendship, and all the wonderful friends we have made and will make during our time spent here on Guam!

Remember another song, this one I learned at church, by Michael W. Smith...

Friends are friends forever,

If the Lord's the Lord of them.

And a friend will not say never,

'Cause the welcome will not end.

Though it's hard to let you go,

In the Father's hands we know,

That a lifetime's not to long,

To live as friends.

The Great Debate: Why Not Build a Mosque?

2010-08-20T12:30:00.006+10:00

First of all, I really don't like to speak on politics and whatnot because my intent is not to stir up anger in issues that many get very passionate about. On this occasion though I felt convicted about it since I recently changed my opinion on the matter, and I see so many of my friends adamantly against this. So here is my opinion on the subject of a mosque at Ground Zero.

I realize I am about to join a minority here, but after a friend challenged my ignorant views about this issue, I have decided to change my opinion. There has been a very heated debate going on about the proposed mosque at Ground Zero. On Facebook I see many friends who proudly oppose this outrageous attack on 9/11 victims and their families, and I in fact at one point agreed. This was before I found out the real facts and God has been convicting me since to humbly change the side I had chosen. I was quite resistant at first, battling it out inside my own mind, coming up with excuse after excuse for how wrong it is that they would even think to put in this symbol of Islam on an American landmark that represents the terror we suffered at the hands of radical Muslims. But I began to realize the arguments against it just didn't seem to stand on as firm ground as I once thought. They were built on emotional foundations of fear and anger.
It is easy to say it would be un-Patriotic to build this mosque, and find it insulting that Muslims want to have this particular site, but despite that, even if it was some sort of Islamic symbol of their 'triumph' over the U.S. (I use the word triumph only to display how some believe the Islamic community may view it- I do not believe in any way it was a triumph over us), a symbol only has the power we may find in it. While I don't think this is the case, if the Muslims did want this mosque as a tribute to their 'triumph' on 9/11, let them have it. As Americans we need to move beyond the fear and pain we still cling to from 9/11. It will never be forgotten, but this controversial mosque is only going to serve as a symbol of defeat if we chose to let it. It doesn't change what happened that day or what will happen in the future. But by being almost afraid to let it be built simply because of what Islam could be viewing it as only gives gratification to it. If someone teases me and makes fun of how I look or act or what I believe, ultimately if I ignore them then their mocking is useless. Didn't your parents ever tell you that? Aside from that though, I think the facts of the matter speak even clearer as to why their is little reason to even debate this issue.
Did you know that the mosque is actually being built just over 2 blocks away from the actual site of Ground Zero? And the land has already been purchased and was being used as a worship place for Islam, long before this became a heated issue? In our economy today, it would be ridiculous to expect the owners behind the mosque to try to sell it and pick a new location. And it isn't the only thing in that area, there are strip clubs and other morally wrong businesses even closer to Ground Zero. And if 2 blocks still isn't far enough away, how far is acceptable? Where do we draw the line?
Did you know there is already a mosque that was established in that area before 9/11? No one has asked that this other mosque be torn down.
Did you know that a chapel was built just outside the Pentagon that holds a number of services affiliated many different religions, including Islam? No one ever opposed this, yet the Pentagon was also struck by a plane on that fateful day in history.
Do you realize we are taking out the acts of a handful of radical Muslims on the entire Islam community? As a Christian, I know I wouldn't want people to judge me on the acts of some radical groups and churches that also claim the title of Christian. I find it absolutely heartbreaking that people who claim to be followers of Christ could stand outside of funeral homes were a soldier's life is being honored and mourned with protest signs proclaiming hatred in the name of God. But the reality is that they have the right to practice whichever beliefs they chose, we all do as Americans.
Part of what has made America a nation set apart is the freedoms it offers. Freedoms that allow us to practice any religion we want- even Islam. This is what it ultimately comes down to. Freedom of religion. No matter how much I think mine is the 'right' religion, no matter how much it may seem disrespectful to some that this mosque be so close to Ground Zero, no matter what they may practice within its walls, the freedom is theirs to choose as citizens of the United States of America.
You may call me un-Patriotic as now I am among the few who do not oppose this new mosque at Ground Zero, but I am the wife of a sailor, I pray to the same God the founders of this great nation looked too when they were being persecuted for their own beliefs. And though I am not saying I am for having this mosque or religious center built, I just think if we all look closely at the issue, legally, morally, there really isn't a very strong argument against it. I respect those who oppose it though, many of my own friends do. But if you take a closer look, is there really very much to debate?

God tells us to love everyone, and that too isn't limited to the color of their skin, the religion they practice, or what country they may come from. We are called to love even those who would seem unlovable through our own sin stained glasses, even if they have hurt us in the past.

"A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another." ~Jesus, John 13:34

"But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you..." ~Jesus, Matthew 5:44

Remember this is just my opinion, which I have the freedom to express just as you do your own. Feel free to share any other arguments for either side in the comments, but as always keep it clean and respectful. Thank you.

Resources:
CBS News
Forbes
Forbes
Yahoo News
Examiner.com

My Cinderella Moment...Sort Of...

2010-08-19T11:00:00.000+10:00

Looking through my yearbook from freshman year, I think it was the first time I had a large chunk of comments that said more then "Have a fun summer!". This was the year, as the big students on campus, we had our own talent show. I never understood it in the former years, but only freshman had a talent show. Of course as a 7th or 8th grader I thought how unfair that was, but when it came my turn to participate, I was all for it!!

(This is one of the 2 photoes taken for the yearbook this year, I didn't like this one so I had retakes done but for some reason, I have more of this photo then the other one.)

I suppose it was intentional, wrapping up everything from the year all at once, but our formal freshman dance fell on the same day at the talent show. In fact the talent show was at the end of the school day and our dance followed after the school was cleared out.
I was so excited when my dad took me to buy my very first formal dress! I couldn't believe how expensive they were though. Who would pay $100+ for a dress you may only wear once?! Well, we did! I felt like a bride in my long white gown that sparkled with bits of silver woven in some of the floral pattern on the fabric. I felt almost naughty having a gown that only had spaghetti straps and along the side had a gradual slit from the waist to my arms, held together by strands of the fabric in a criss-cross pattern. I even had shoes to match! I was Cinderella already to go to the ball!! But first I had to face a whole day of school in my formal wear.
Of course I wasn't the only one dressed up, most of the upper class men were as well. I even remember in my history class a boy named Jared, who I thought was one of the cutest boys in my grade, told me I looked beautiful! For a girl who felt invisible for much of her time in school, I about melted to hear those words from this cute and popular boy!!
Before school let out, all the freshman headed to the gym for our very own talent show. I was so excited and so nervous! But everything went perfectly! My friend and youth leader, Roy, showed up to play the song on the piano as I sang, "Hero" in front of all my friends and classmates. And I also shared a poem I had written in honor of our years in junior high.
Afterwards I said goodbye to Roy, as I found my way into the line of freshman lining up outside the school to wait while last minute touches were done inside to prepare for the freshman dance. Everyone was in a particularly kind mood, as school was about to be out for the summer and our junior high days were almost behind us. Girls who had always stuck their noses up to me, were all the sudden so sweet and offered me a great job on my song and poem.

(This was actually my sophomore year homecoming dance which I went to with a group of friends from my youth group, but it is the same dress I wore from my freshman formal- I am the one in white!)

Once inside for the dance, I don't remember much about what happened but my 'date' was a boy I knew named Jesse. I wasn't really interested in him, but I wanted to have a date, so I had approached him to ask, very last minute actually. He didn't wear a tux like some other boys had, instead he was just in khakis, a white t-shirt, and a fleece vest with sneakers. We danced a few times but otherwise I hung out with my friends in the lunch room area talking. I wasn't really into any of the fast dances that even at that young age seemed dirty to me some of the moves the other kids were doing. I did however love slow dancing. It seemed so romantic to me. I was Cinderella dancing with Prince Charming...well a boy at least. Though I think those thoughts came from the idea of a boy actually asking me, showing some interest in me more then the actual dance itself. Mostly the school dances were just about socializing with my friends and having your picture taken when you were dressed up in layers of tulle and satin and shiny sequins and glitter.
I remember always looking forward to all the school dances throughout the years with so much anticipation, only to feel hurt and upset during the dance as I sat alone while all my friends danced with their dates. Even the freshman formal ended up in tears, as the next day Jesse began telling everyone I forced him to take me. And of course in junior high, no one dared to think, how on earth I could've 'forced' him to take me?!! He was believed with unquestioning faith and I became the subject of a short-lived rumor that quickly fizzled out though not before leaving me feeling hurt and betrayed by him.
I guess that is just part of the drama we refer to as junior high!! But I will always remember my shining moment as I sang Mariah Carey's "Hero" in front of almost 300 of my peers!

This is my 11th post in a series of 15 that I am doing to record my youth with other women at
. We are almost done with the first session, but starting in October there will be another one! Check out the website and email Janna to participate! It is a lot of fun, and someday now my children can look back and know what shaped the woman I am and get to know me even better! What a treasure to leave your children and grandchildren!

Discovering My Prince

2010-08-18T08:30:00.002+10:00

As I was looking through old photos today, reminiscing about school dances (see my Mommy's Piggy Tale on my 9th grade year on Thursday), Natalie came up to check out what I was doing.

She looked over my shoulder at a picture of me in my beautiful homecoming gown from my sophomore year of high school and a boy I knew then standing beside me and she says "That's not you and your prince!"

(This is me and my actual prince!)

How cute! I than pulled out one from my senior prom, which I did attend with my now husband and her father, and Natalie proudly replies "That's you and your prince. He's my daddy!"

I just love that! How sweet! And she was totally right, Jon is my one and only prince! Smart girl!!

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Top Ten Tuesday: 10 Past Posts

2010-08-17T10:00:00.004+10:00

Well, it was just recently I marked my 100th post!! Now I want to take a look back at some of those posts! Please check them out, and share which post of mine is your own favorite (it can be any of them, you are not limited to these 10).

1. My first post: This was my basic introduction and why I was starting my blog. My original title for my blog was "Cherishing Life's Little Blessings" but I honestly felt it was such a mouthful and just didn't quite hit the mark I was hoping for myself. I don't know if it's any less of a mouthful to say Crystalized Reflections, but I am much happier with this title!

2. A post I enjoyed writing the most: Wow, what a tough one! I enjoy writing almost all of my posts! I especially love sharing my memories in each of my Mommy's Piggy Tales posts, I can't believe we are already into the junior high years! Almost done with this session! But more then that I feel encouraged myself when God lays something on my heart to share, so for my favorite post, I am going to go with It's Not Enough. I think we all need to keep that in mind as we can easily get into a routine and sometimes it can become ONLY that, a routine, instead of your life, His life.

3. A post which led to a great discussion: I don't really think any have led to a 'great discussion'. But one I had hoped to get more discussion out of was about the Mystery Elmo.

4. A post on someone else's blog you wish you'd written: There are so many I have read and wished I had thought of that! This one in particular, because I love how Charissa from Everyday Adventures compares the trials in life to not only a 'room' in a house, but to a dentist office. I truly and passionately despise going to the dentist (as I am sure I am not alone in this), but what an amazing comparison that just hits the nail right on the head! So check out Charissa's post God's Most Beautifully Decorated Room.

5. Your most helpful post: This is the post I hope has been most helpful, not sure how to determine what everyone else has found most helpful. It's actually a 2 part post, beginning in A Victim's Story, and ending in From Victim to Victor.

6. A post with a title that I'm proud of: Introducing, Natalie, The Naive Jester. These are a few of my favorite 'kids say the darnedest things' moments with Natalie.

7. A post you wish more people had read: You just can't reason with a wasp! I had fun writing this one! It was amazing to me the revelation I had in realizing that the wasp was not out to get me!!

8. A post with no words: So very many of my two beautiful children- but I just love the spunkiness my daughter is radiating in this particular wordless post.

9. A post you never published: More then I could name! I recently went through and 'cleaned house', and went from about 60 drafts to 20 that actually felt I could get to sometime! One in the works though that I WILL finish one of these days, is about deployments, and what I have and can learn from them.

10. Reader's favorite post (based on comments): This was one of my Mommy's Piggy Tales posts about my childhood. In this post I shared about the year one of my sisters was born and also the year my cousin and grandfather passed away within weeks of each other.

Which of my posts have you most enjoyed reading? Please tell me, I would love some reader feedback!! I want to make a 'best of me' page, but since I am biased and I like to think all my posts are the 'best of me', I need your help, so tell me which posts, as my readers, you think I should include in the 'best of me'. Thanks!!

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Do You Eat Daily?

2010-08-16T10:00:00.001+10:00

I don't know about everyone else, but I have grown quite accustomed to eating multiple times a day, every day. Sure occasionally, I will go without much or anything to eat for a whole day, and you how I feel by bedtime? Weak, tired, exhausted, I have a short temper and become agitated and aggravated by every little thing. It does not feel good to be that hungry.

And yet sometimes, that's exactly how I let myself get when it comes to fellowship with God.

I guess it should be of little surprise to me that Sunday is my favorite day of the week, followed by Wednesdays. Those are the days I regularly spend a great portion of my time with God, in prayer, in worship, in fellowship. I am focused on Him for the better half of Sunday, and I spend most of the day Wednesday looking forward to the chance to go to church and be with others in study of His word and in prayer to Him.

Just as I get physically weak when I go without food for an entire day, I also get spiritually weak when I try to make it through my week only sustained on fellowship with God for two of the seven days! Just as Dr. Vaughn said at church recently- you wouldn't try to eat all you can for the week in just one or two days?! So why then do we seek to get all our spiritual sustenance all at once for the week and not touch our bible as it gathers dust for the other five-six days? Why don't we seek Him and talk to Him daily just as we eat three meals a day?

We need to not only physically satisfy our hunger daily, but spiritually as well. God desires a fellowship with us every single day, and that will bring us closer to Him and further from the world.

Rejoice always; pray without ceasing; in everything give thanks; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus. ~1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

Notice how Paul doesn't mention taking a break in there? Instead he says to always rejoice, not just on Sundays. Pray without ceasing, not pray only on Sundays. In everything give thanks, not be grateful at least on Sundays.

And just as food gives us strength to carry out our daily tasks and work, so the time we spend with God, in the word and in prayer, strengthens us for the daily spiritual battle that is constantly raging even within our own homes.

Therefore, take up the full armor of God. so that you will be able to resist in the evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm. Stand firm therefore, having girded your loins with truth and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and having shod your feet with the preparation of the Gospel of Peace; in addition to all, taking up the shield of faith with which you will be able to extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. With all prayer and petition pray at all times in the Spirit, and with this in view, be on alert with all perseverance and petition for all the saints... ~ Ephesians 6:13-18

WOW! What imagery this creates!! We need to be constantly alert because we are in a spiritual battle, and I am sure you can ask many of the men and women over in Iraq- in a battle, you don't get to just take a few days off!! You need to keep yourself strong and prepared always because you never know what is going to come your way next. It is the same in this spiritual battle, we need to be walking with God always, so that He may give us the wisdom and strength to make it through!

Would you go into a battle hungry?

Six Word Saturday

2010-08-14T09:07:00.002+10:00

WEEKEND WORK, WEEKEND OFF, PARTIAL WEEKEND.

This has been the pattern recently, IF I am lucky. Jon thought Thursday he would end up working this weekend, so I prepare myself mentally for no family time or help with the kids. :( Than he finds out Friday he WILL have the weekend off, YIPEE! I start to plan things I would like to do, try to see if anyone wants to get together. :) Within an hour though something new comes up and when he gets home (or I go pick him up), he breaks the bad news that he will be working for a little while part of the weekend! :/ I am very grateful he will at least be home for the majority of the weekend, though he was really upset that his only day to sleep in (Saturday, because Sunday we have church), he has to get up early to run in to work until about lunch time. Poor guy! I feel more frustrated and bad for him though, he had an awful and long work week- 18 hours Wednesday, 24 hours Thursday for duty, which continued into 13 hours for Friday before he finally got to come home! He is such a good husband, father and provider though and he works very hard to take care of his family! What a wonderful blessing he is to me!!

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Two Junior High Treasures: Mrs. G and Lindsey

2010-08-12T17:27:00.005+10:00

Eighth grade is for me just a cluster of little but sometimes big memories, though I didn't always know they were big at that time. In a lot of ways, good and bad, it was a beginning.
One of my favorite classes in junior high, was creative writing. I was very self conscious in everything because I had low self esteem and self image. But in creative writing I blossomed! I felt right at home and it was really one of the first classes I felt I excelled in and also enjoyed. In fact, when we were in a group once, sharing and revising our freshest short stories, no one could come up with anything wrong with my story, not even a spelling error. My teacher, Mrs. G, came over, she would always say there was room for improvement and she would help them find something on mine, because really no one wanted to give anyone any criticisms. Mrs. G read my paper, and when she looked up she had a huge smile across her face. She said they couldn't find anything to fix, because there wasn't anything wrong! I was so excited! I felt proud to find my niche. I could write.
In another class, later that year, Mrs. G was my teacher yet again, this time for life management class- basically similar to home ec. We learned recipes and cooking skills (which I quickly forgot) and also we did simulated games when we would have 'money' and draw different jobs and circumstances. No egg babies or getting 'married' luckily, though I did have an egg baby for a babysitting course I took in 5th grade. During one of our simulated games, Mrs. G pointed me out to the whole class as being the smartest with my money, because I was the only one saving any (of course saving it is a lot easier when it's pretend money!!). I felt so proud of myself, and believed that would mean I was ready for the real world. Little did I know how much that class didn't really cover!! Mrs G, though hated by most students, became one of my favorites as she encouraged me and boosted my confidence throughout my junior high years. I even would see her come into the thrift store I worked at during high school. She always came in once a year, maybe twice, right before school would start and buy mounds of clothes (I worked there 4 years, and I was working each year when she came in)! I learned a lot from her, not only about writing, but also many skills that did stick with me from that life management class (apart from the cooking).

Something else that happened during my years at junior high (7th-9th grades in my school district), was learning that a good friend of mine had melanoma. Her name was Lindsey. She was actually in my creative writing class, and she was very talented. Not only could she write, she could draw as well. She ended up designing the cover for our class 'book' that we made as a collection of our favorite poems and short stories we wrote during creative writing class. It had lots of palm trees and water falls on the cover. Lindsey loved to draw palm trees and waterfalls, she would've loved Guam.
I remember Lindsey sitting at the lunch table showing me the small crater in her forehead where they had removed the cancerous mole. She tried not to make a big deal out of it, and since I knew little of cancer or what to say to her, I let it go. Life went on that year and it didn't really come up much. What I didn't know is that melanoma can be deadly. We didn't see each other much in high school. It was gradual, and I don't remember exactly when, but by senior year she wasn't attending anymore and I saw her once at the store without her hair. I still didn't know what to say, though it broke my heart inside. I remember around graduation encouraging my friend Victoria to go visit with Lindsey (who she was a lot closer with then I was). Victoria was scared, maybe of saying goodbye, or seeing her as she was now, sickly. She asked me to come along, but I came up with an excuse not too. I was scared as well. Victoria went to see her, I didn't. A few weeks later after coming home from work, my mom, with tears glistening in her eyes asked me to sit down. I knew something was wrong but I had no idea what it could be. I refused to sit down and insisted she just tell me, but all she could do was hand me the piece of newspaper with Lindsey's picture on it. As soon as I recognized it as an obituary I broke down and cried. Once I was composed, I immediately tried to reach Victoria, to see how she was. I don't remember if she had known or not yet, I think I may have been the one to reach her mom and tell her, and then I went over to their house to be with her. Later we went to the funeral together.
I still cry at the thought that I never said goodbye to Lindsey. I never talked to her about Jesus, and I don't know if she knew Him or not, so I may never get to see her ever again. How could I let the chance to share with her and say goodbye slip through my fingers? How could I say no, when God tugged at my heart to talk to her in her last weeks? It is still something that sometimes haunts me now, and sometimes it all feels like a dream. How could any of it be real? Graduating high school should be a time of celebration, how could a girl who should be excited as her life is just beginning be gone in just an instant?

This is my 10th post in a series of 15 that I am doing to record my youth with other woman at
.

My Own Obstacle Course

2010-08-12T16:38:00.003+10:00

Have you ever run an obstacle course? One obstacle after another as you pray each one will be the last and hope the finish is within your reach? Well that is how my week has been! One obstacle after another! And actually, individually I would consider these each, just little things that add some excitement to life, but clumped together, I wonder when it will ever end? Is there a finish line in sight anytime soon?!
It started out as 2 very grouchy kids on Tuesday morning. Zachary continued to struggle with bumping his head on everything he came in contact with, and I had many tears to soothe as his mommy. Natalie woke up with her sassy attitude in full swing, which earned her more then a few spankings before lunchtime, and repeated the second half of the day. Don't they ever learn? Jon worked late as what has become the usual, and I was mildly craving some adult company by the time he did get home. After sharing that he felt the next day would be at least a little shorter, so I would be able to have the car, I opted NOT to get the kids up and dressed at 4:30 am, just to take him into work so I could have the car. Alas, Wednesday still brought children waking up on the wrong side of their beds, and a little more mildly fussy and naughty then the previous day. And by 4, not being able to reach my dear husband, I assumed I was not going to male it to church. But not taking him to work so I could have the wheels for the day was a blessing in disguise, because had I gone through with that plan, I may have been able to go to church, but I would've ended up having to pick Jon up from work with 2 overly tired and cranky kids at 11 pm!
However I did choose to take him in for duty this morning, because by now I was seriously yearning to at least see that there were other adult somewhere on this island! I had to get out. I am normally quite happy being a homebody, staying in my nice cozy home surrounded by the familiar, easily able to put my children down for their naps if they get out of hand. But by last night, I just needed to get out for a little bit. So after lunch today I decided we would run up to the Air Force base to do my favorite hobby- shopping! I needed a few things anyway, so anxious to leave I quickly packed the kids into the car the second they finished their last crumb of peanut butter and honey sandwiches. We listened to music for half the car ride, then I decided to give my mom a call. I hadn't talked with her in a little while, so we chatted a little until I approached the gate to get on base. I hung up and whipped out my ID. The DoD official checked the back and front of my ID at the guard house and allowed me to pass without a word. Barely past the guard house I saw the outbound lane blocked off and a long line of cars, and I thought, That can't be good! As I drove slowly forward and saw more of the extent of the line, I noticed many drivers had turned off their cars and were getting out and talking amongst themselves. Again I thought, That can't be good! As I moved forward, watching this seemingly endless line at a standstill, I also had the thought- I guess I will just take my time shopping and pray the line is gone by the time I am done- though I kept wondering what was going on.
I reached the fork in the road that normally splits off, on road in the direction of the commissary among many other places, and the other to the gas station, and Exchange, and continuing on to the schools and whatnot. Orange cones were blocking off the entrances and exits to this road, as well as a man in uniform directing you away. That can't be good! I still had no clue what was going on, but I found my way around to the exchange parking lot through a back road. As I pulled in, the parking lot was the fullest I have ever seen it. I parked in the back and noticed as I got the kids out that many people were sitting in their cars. Again, That can't be good!. As I walked up to the door, a few people were gathering, though the automatic doors were not opening. That's when I heard from a few others that the base was on a lock down from 2 separate bomb threats. No one was being allowed in or out of the exchange (or any other establishment), and no one was allowed to leave base (though coming on was no problem at all)! Luckily within a few minutes we were actually allowed inside the exchange with the warning, once you come in, you can't leave until the threat is over. I figured my only other option seemed to be sit and wait in the car, so we went in. There are much worse places to be stuck. Inside the exchange, there is a food court with play area, and of course shopping (including a furniture department with plenty of comfy sofas, and even some TVs hooked up to play movies). So we spent our time shopping, I bought the kids each a book, Zachary got a little turtle on wheels toy, and Natalie a tablet and coloring crayons, then we ventured to the food court for some cookies (and lunch for mommy who hadn't eaten), and then I remembered there was a play place, so Natalie spent some time climbing around as Zachary munched on some cheerios and got his diaper changed. We had actually went to use the bathroom when we came out and discovered the food court and store emptying out, we were set free finally! It was only about 2 hours for us, felt longer. The kids were good, but it still wasn't a picnic or what I had in mind when I was so desperate to get out of the house! I didn't rush out, though secretly I was very anxious to get off base. I waited about 15-20 more minutes to ensure the rush of people leaving would mostly be over. The last thing I wanted was to sit in traffic!
When I did leave, the obstacles weren't quite over yet. It began to rain, and I don't mean a light drizzle. I mean, if you stepped outside, you would have to swim to get to your car! We are talking, can barely see the lines on the road sort of rain. I have driven in worse before though- try driving in pouring buckets of rain in the pitch dark on a nearly deserted highway during a thunderstorm!! NOT fun!
But somehow we made it home. Back to our comfy, cozy little place in the world. And the outcome of all this? My restless desire to get out and about- TOTALLY cured...at least for now anyway! In fact I don't want to go anywhere but church this weekend, and I am certainly not looking forward to going back up to base for grocery shopping anymore either! And I have to wonder too, if maybe the lesson God was teaching me, was to have a little more patience, and just be happy I have a home, even when I am just itching to get out of it!!
Well that was my crazy week. Tune back in later for my Mommy's Piggy Tales post about 8th grade, it is still a work in progress at the moment!

Top Ten Tuesday: Just A Few Blogs I Enjoy

2010-08-10T11:00:00.003+10:00

This week I thought I would share about some of the blogs that have really encouraged me these past months. So here is the list of 10 of my favorite blogs (in no particular order, and by no means all of my favorites).

1.
This blog was started by a friend of mine from church. Her name is Janna, and she also blogs at The Adventure of Motherhood. Her blog was what initially got me thinking, hey I could do that! She has been a great encouragement and inspiration to me from the start, and I am just loving her new blog Mommy's Piggy Tales, which is all about recording your youth so that someday your children and grandchildren can read about it! We are just over half way through the first 15 week session now, but there will be a new session starting in October. I encourage everyone to contact Janna and begin recording your memories in October, I am even going to do it again, which is funny because I didn't think I could make it through this first one, but it has been such a treasure to me each week!!

2. Many of the things Kristen has written about have challenged and convicted me. I want that American Dream too, but do I want it more then I want to serve the Lord? She also does a lot of fun giveaways. So stop by her blog and I encourage everyone to read specifically her post When Jesus Isn't Enough.

3. Marsha is the mommy behind this blog and she is a true treasure. It is hard not to feel like God is against you when you lose a child, but she has pulled through and found comfort in the Lord in the midst of terrible tragedy. It is an encouragement to me to know God can get us all through any trial as long as we look to Him, He will never forget us, but always love and comfort us.

4. Everyday Adventures. This is a blog I have only been reading a very short time and already I feel refreshed by the topics Charissa shares on. She reminds me of things I need to keep on top of in my walk with the Lord. Her words seem so on point with how I often feel myself!!

5.

I love the title of Kathryn's blog! So witty and so true! As Christians we should be 'singing in the rain', we should be joyful even in times of trial, and Kathryn's writing wonderfully reflects the title of her blog. And as another military wife, it is good to be able to share and encourage one another, as not everyone can understand the struggles that are unique to military life.

6.
This is another new blog for me, but what a wonderful idea, and so far I am enjoying what I read. Kathryn of Singing through the Rain also does one of the bible studies on this blog. Basically they have 5 different bloggers who each are going through a bible study one day a week! I encourage everyone to go check it out!

7. Of Such is The Kingdom. This blog just celebrated it's 1st birthday! It has been a joy to read about Olivia's childhood, and also her child's, as we have shared with each other and other women on Mommy's Piggy Tales.

8. Ordinary Inspirations Traci has wonderful insights and wise words on so many different topics! It has been a pleasure and inspiration to read about her views and God's truths as she presents them, as well as her many informative posts and reviews of products. One post I found particularly good was about change, something I myself do NOT like, but her words are very true, we should not be like gross stagnant water!

9.
Cameron is another mommy blogger who is doing the Mommy's Piggy Tales with me! She has some great views on many topics as a mother and awesome tips for new bloggers!
And she is also very respectful of others views and choices, especially in caring for your child, check out her post Let's Hear it for the Parents Who FEED their Babies!!

10.
I have been trying out a few of SnoWhite's recipes, and so far so good!! I am constantly looking for quick and easy, but yummy meals to make for our family. One of our recent favorites from SnoWhite's many wonderful recipes- Ham & Broccoli Shells- which just also happens to remind me a whole lot of a pasta dish my mom and grandma used to make with ham, broccoli and spaghetti noodles! We have had this once a week now for going on our 3rd week!!

This post is linked to which is hosted by ohamanda, another great blog I might add!

It's Not Enough

2010-08-09T10:00:00.000+10:00

It's not enough.

Going to church every Sunday & Wednesday is not enough. Surrounding yourself with good Christian friends is not enough. Tithing regularly is not enough. Blessing your food before you eat is not enough. Doing daily devotionals is not enough.

God is not just a routine. Jesus is not just someone we sing pretty songs about. The Holy Spirit is not just a feeling. Being a Christian is not just being a part of a church.

If anyone thinks himself to be religious, and yet does not bridle his tongue but deceives his own heart, this man's religion is worthless. Pure and undefiled religion in the sight of our God and Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained by the world. ~James 1:26-27

There is so much more that we often miss. God wants to be so much more in our lives. Jesus wants to do so much more through our lives. The Holy Spirit wants to dwell within our lives.

Submit therefore to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. ~James 4:7-8a

Nothing should come before Him. Nothing should distract us from Him. Nothing should hold our hearts above Him. Or something is wrong.

If we are redeemed we are called to be apart from this world. Our life is no longer our own, it is His. And we need to remember that.

Do not love the world nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world. The world is passing away, and also its lusts; but the one who does the will of God lives forever. ~1 John 2:15-17

You don't just represent yourself, or even your biological family anymore. You represent the church family. You represent Him.

For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them. ~Ephesians 2:10

This is something we all struggle with at times. We are selfish, sinful people by nature, but we need to overcome our sin. Just as Jesus overcame death.

"O Death, Where is your victory? O Death, where is your sting?" The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law; but thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing your toil is not in vain in the Lord. ~1 Corinthians 15:55-58

It isn't easy. But anything less is just not enough.

More Than You Probably Ever Wanted To Know...

2010-08-07T11:00:00.000+10:00

...about ME!

Wow! I made it to my 100th post! How to celebrate? How about 100 things about me, some you may know, some you may not...

1. I am the oldest of 4 girls raised by my mother.

2. I have 2 older brothers though they were not my mom's nor did I grow up with them.

3. I love remembering, even if they aren't always happy memories. We learn from our past, it shaped who we are now, and what God will do with our futures...NO regrets!

4. Though I would never encourage it for another, my husband and I met and married in less then a year at a very young age. But hey, 7 years later, still happy, worked for us!

5. My husband says I have sense of humor cancer, to which my regular reply is "Yep, I have 6 months to be funny." Yet those 6 months have indeed come and gone (at least according to my dear husband).

6. On that note, I long for the sense of humor of Lorelei Gilmore from the show Gilmore Girls. She is so witty!

7. Gilmore Girls, one of my favorite shows of all time! I want to steal Lorelei's sense of style as well as her humor!!

8. I am watching one of my Gilmore Girls DVDs as I write this. I own every season on DVD, as well as my other 2 favorite shows, Smallville and Monk.

9. I have wanted to be an architect, a lawyer, a counselor, a singer, a teacher, and most of all a mother, since I was young.

10. I have had 2 miscarriages, one just a few months before each pregnancy that stuck.

11. While I am anxious for a 3rd child, I am fearful of losing another baby first. (Refer to #10)

12. I actually look back and miss childbirth!! Yes I had an epidural, and that made me more able to appreciate and enjoy the moments.

13. I did not breastfeed, though I would've loved too if not for my snacker and over-eater.

14. My favorite ice cream is Breyers Rocky Road...not just any rocky road, I like this one because the marshmallow is swirled in and the almonds are covered in chocolate for a nice little bite!

15. Christmas is my favorite season. It just makes me feel warm inside!

16. Considering #15, I do not like celebrating Christmas on a tropical island. When I feel warm inside, I prefer it to be cold on the outside!

17. I think about and buy Christmas gifts ALL year long!

18. Have you ever heard of Gary Chapman's The Five Love Languages? My 'language' is gifts. I love to give them and show my love that way, and getting them is pretty nice too!

19. Pine Trees verses Palm Trees....my vote goes to the Pine Trees!!

20. My favorite season is fall, I love all the bright vibrant colors and even the gray rainy days.

21. My favorite colors are blue and purple.

22. Absolute best food for a rainy day- grilled cheese and tomato soup! It just tastes cozy and comfy!

23. Despite what you may think, I actually have the 2 most smoochable, most adorable kids on the planet!!

24. I obsess over baby names and finding patterns within my own children's...for example I couldn't imagine not naming our next child something without a long Ee sound at the end of it, like Natalie and Zachary. Also has to have 3 syllables. (Though my current list does not reflect these.)

25. I love my Kitchenaide mixer! But I am not so crazy about the rest of the Kitchenaide products.

26. A baby is a precious and treasured life from the moment of conception and abortion is murder. Period.

27. Luckily for all sins, even murder, God forgives and offers us a chance to become new in Him.

28. I do not like Obama or anything he is doing in office, but I respect that he is our president. Just as I wish more people had respected Bush was our elected president regardless of his mistakes. No one is perfect, even presidents make mistakes, U.S. history is full of them!

29. I am very opinionated...can you tell?

30. I love history! My ideal vacation would be full of visiting historical places all over the globe.

31. One of my favorite books is Pride and Prejudice.

32. Another of my favorites is Jane Eyre.

33. My favorite book in the Bible is a toss up between Esther and Ruth.

34. I can listen to a CD for months before I move on to something else- a fact which drives my hubby bonkers!!

35. When I was in junior high I had a full wall of my room plastered with Leonardo DiCaprio posters. I even named my puppy Leo. I was sure I would marry him.

36. Or on a more realistic note, if I didn't marry the Titanic star, the only other man I could possibly ever marry was a boy 2 years older then me. He was my first 'love' and my heart was his if he only asked for it from the time I was 12 until I was about 17 (though he never did).

37. I NEVER had a fear of commitment, that's for sure!!

38. I saw Titanic 7 times in theaters. The most I have ever seen any one movie in theaters.

39. I love going to the movies! Drama, action, adventure, Disney, pretty much everything but horror and some of the more disturbing types of comedies that are so popular at the moment.

40. I sometimes wish I could have been born in the Victorian age. Though I realize the versions of it I love are all romanticized and I probably wouldn't have been to keen on the trials of the time.

41. My favorite day of the week is Sunday. My husband is usually home with me and we get to go worship a magnificent God among wonderful friends. And its usually the one day a week I actually get a nap in!

42. I consider home, just the presence of my children and my husband, all of us together as one, no matter where we may go.

43. Still, I long for a big house to do whatever I want with! Paint the walls bright colors, grow a garden inside my white picket fence, knock down walls to make an extra large family room to dance around in!

44. One of my favorite pastimes is to put on some tunes and belt them out!

45. My heart melts when Zachary claps after I finish singing a song!

46. Snuggling is the best cold weather activity!

47. I LOVE blankets!! Soft, cozy, heavy and comfy to curl up under. Big, long and wide over backs of chairs and tables for a fort. Small and light, perfect for a game of peek-a-boo.

48. I collect Disney movies. Sometimes its even just compulsive, "What if someday Natalie likes this movie? I must have it just in case!"

49. Though I love my adorable kiddos, I wish I could have a girl with fiery red hair and emerald green eyes. I don't know why, but this blond-haired, blue-eyed girl whats something different!

50. I hate coffee, but I wish I loved it.

HALFWAY!! I applaud you for making it this far!! You should win an award!

51. I enjoy a warm cup of tea, though I feel like I am doing it an injustice if I must dilute it with milk.

52. I enjoy playing Wii Resort sword fighting! And I actually beat my husband and his friend in that at a certain level they were stuck on, I flew through easily!!

53. When I went with a friend once to a lock-in at a bowling alley, I bowled almost non-stop the entire night (while others played pool and just hung out). My wrist was killing me the next few days!!

54. In 5th grade I head-banged with a friend for a full hour. Then went home and threw up. I have not head-banged since.

55. I am not afraid to use cookies to bribe my kids occasionally!

56. We potty trained Natalie by giving her 1 M&M for going number 1, then 2 M&Ms for going number 2. Hope it will work the second time around with Zachary!

57. More then any other experience as a parent, I hated and dread potty training!! Give me the sleepless night, even the colicky baby, but please let me send my kids away to learn how to use the potty and don't return them until they are 100% accident free!!

58. A dream of mine used to be to open a Bed & Breakfast in the Pacific Northwest.

59. But as of late, I am torn between that and going back to school to be a social worker or a school counselor.

60. I loved my high school counselor! I felt totally inspired by her and she treated me like a valued human being, not some ridiculous high school student went I felt pretty unimportant in life.

61. I enjoy baking and decorating cakes.

62. I have fun planning and decorating for children's birthday parties in creative ways.

63. I feel creative when I make the wall art for my child's room according to whatever 'theme' we are using. Natalie's is currently ladybugs and Zachary's will be monkeys by his next birthday.
64. I am beginning to think I am a *little* OCD.

65. I would totally sacrifice style for comfort when it come to clothing...much to my husband's disappointment.

66. I am a lazy slob at heart. And my husband is the neat freak.

67. I still sing into my hairbrush on a regular basis.

68. I love making fun of ridiculous commercials with my husband. We could laugh for hours about one pointless commercial.

69. I collect kitchen gadgets, though I realize many are unnecessary.

70. If we have a big enough house someday, I want a room dedicated to books! Bookshelves lining the walls!

71. When I was little I wanted to be Sleeping Beauty- how awesome to just fall asleep and wake up to a dashing prince rescuing you though all the while you are unaware you even need rescuing!!

72. I miss my long hair! I have very thick hair though and I get terrible migraines, the long thick hair weighing on my head did NOT help!

73. I am the whitest girl ever! I often got called 'Casper' growing up. And that is why I don't wear shorts (my legs are my whitest feature)!!

74. I can play connect the dots with all the freckles I have!

75. Clue was my favorite game growing up, now its Apples to Apples.

76. My argument for having a 3rd child (which my husband was at first against) was that when he is deployed I still want at least 4 of us at home so we can play most of my board games!

77. I also really want to have at least one child where I grew up, so that my mom can be around to really experience being a grandma up close and personally, instead of just pictures online and an occasional visit. She didn't even meet her grandson until after his first birthday! That makes me sad!

78. I have a dog named Diamond who is the sweetest little girl you will ever meet! She would be an awful guard dog (and not just because she is a Pomeranian). Oh and she is living with my mom while we are in Guam.

79. Someday I want a chocolate lab named Digger, a black lab named Ebony (or Onyx if its a boy), and a hound dog named Bayard (yes, like in Alice in Wonderland).

80. My husband would prefer just ONE bigger family dog. NO cats!

81. I used to eat Kraft Macaroni and Cheese, every single day after school for most of junior and senior high school!

82. I now can't stand the boxed kind, though my daughter loves it! (Like mother, like daughter!)

83. If we own any movie and a sequel comes out, like it or not, I have to have it! (Like I said, maybe I am just a *little* but OCD!)

84. I would love to home school my children, but I know I don't have the patience for it.

85. My kitchen is sunflowers and chili peppers!

86. I try not to miss church very often, but when I am debating about going for whatever reason and decide to attend, I have never regretted it!!

87. I use Crest Pro-Health products.

88. I have had one root canal, and my advice to everyone is that flossing is more important then you think! No one ever told me that when I was growing up, it was something I watched my mom do and never got the hang of it myself until they invented those nifty flossers with flosser heads! Root canals are NOT fun!

89. I actually have never dreaded doctor's appointments, dentists on the other hand make me queasy! (I guess if you read #88, you know why!)

90. I often sit back and marvel at how awesomely God has blessed my family! He is such a magnificent God!!

91. I think breakfast is not only the most important meal of the day, but the easiest and most fun to make!

92. If you can't already tell, I am a kid at heart!

93. I am a pack-rat, I hate throwing stuff away, but moving so much and living in small apartments with no storage, I have had to learn to let go.

94. I think socks are meant o be fun and colorful with funky designs, but most are boring and white :(

95. Iced Tea from The Cracker Barrel is the best drink ever!

96. The first thing I want to do when I get back to the states is go to an Arby's for a Beef'n'Cheddar smothered in Arby's sauce!

97. After Arby's, I am so anxious to go on a ferry ride to Seattle and walk along the waterfront up to Pike's Place Market. So many wonderful memories of dates with my husband up there! We even occasionally would walk all the way up to the Space Needle!

98. My first job was at a thrift store at the age of 16 and I worked there for about 4 years. I now can't stand them and I really don't care for second hand stuff either anymore.

99. I can't stand bracelets or wristwatches. I just don't like having anything on my wrists. Necklaces and earrings though I love!

100. I prefer New American Standard and New King James Versions of the Bible.

Do You Suffer From Mommy Guilt?

2010-08-06T09:00:00.000+10:00

Does anyone else suffer from Mommy Guilt?
It never ceases to amaze me the butterflies that disrupt my delicate stomach as I head out the door without any attachments. Just my purse, my keys, and me. Oh and of course don't forget those darn little fluttering bugs inside me!
My husband is a huge blessing to me. He is not one of those guys that for some reason thinks its the wife's job to tote the children around, regardless of a perfectly capable daddy sitting at home doing basically nothing. Note to the guys, if they are your kids its not considered babysitting for you to watch them, its just your job as the other half of the team that made them to also help with their care! So it shouldn't be necessary to get permission from you if we want to leave the house without the children occasionally. But as I already mentioned, I do NOT have one of those husbands.
My Jon is supportive of me going out for frivolous or fruitful excursions quite often. I think sometimes he even feels annoyed as I linger in the hall, reminding him one more time what to feed the kids, when they should be up from their naps, requesting if he has a chance and doesn't mind could he give the baby a quick bath. Then after stepping out the door, I turn right back around to come in and throw in the extra reminder that the diaper cream is right beside the diapers, so he should be sure to use it since the baby has a bad rash. Again I make it to the door, only to realize I actually forgot to grab my cell phone, you know just in case he has a question to ask me or if I remember something urgent to share with him, like that older sister should definitely have a glass of milk with her next meal, she needs the calcium after all.
Somehow I do eventually make it all the way down to the car and turn it on. The butterflies have turned to bowling balls by now, rolling around my insides, as I roll out of the parking lot. The heaviness usually stays with me until about half way through my outing, though I always have my phone well within reach and check it for a missed call often- though how I could miss one the way my hand hovers near it I don't know!
So why do I suffer from this 'mommy guilt' when I go out alone? Have I become so ingrained in the role of mommy that I don't know who I am without those little hands to hold? Motherhood has become so second nature to me that its like breathing, but take away my air and I begin to suffocate! My kids are like the air to me, I need them, I have given so much of myself to them, its hard to stand from all the holes inside of me when we aren't together. I feel lightheaded, the air is thin.
I know someday these feelings will change. I will grow as my children do and eventually I will have to let go. I will have to find myself again, not as a mommy, but as me.
Who was I before the kids? Someone I don't think I could ever be again, because motherhood has changed my life so drastically, but as with anything I have grown from it and I am stronger for it. But I will grow to worry less about them, to enjoy sleeping in without the internal alarm going off when I expect them up, without the constant clutter of toys or crumbs to clean from the floor. Of course by then, it will be new little hands to hold in my own worn and wrinkled hands, new crumbs to clean from the floor again as well as toys cluttering my living room.
But for now this is who I am. I am mommy, mother, mama, and mom. It's just another adventure God has set before me and I am excited for each challenge it presents, even learning to let go gradually as they grow and maybe someday the 'mommy guilt' will pass.

Big Events with Big Impacts

2010-08-05T11:00:00.003+10:00

In the time surrounding this year many events and changes were happening in my life. I began junior high. I fell in love for the first time. My father, and shortly after one of my brothers, came to live nearby. My brother then left again, though my other brother joined my dad eventually. Someone I considered a father figure betrayed my trust in the deepest way possible. My grandmother began to have series of strokes that would eventually lead to serious memory loss and physical disability. And we began going to church where I found my salvation. But I will only share about some of those this week while others you can check back at my previous posts for as they are linked.

(My grandma and grandpa on a trip to Hawaii when I was only 4- I didn't get to go but I always remember hearing about it! They loved it!)

While each of those events had huge impacts on my life, one that actually broke my heart the most was watching my grandmother deteriorate. In my mind it all started during one of those historical moments that everyone knows exactly where they were when they heard the news, and mine I can connect with 2 other huge changes for me. It was when I heard Princess Di had died in a tragic car accident.
Around this time, my father had also shown up at our house. I had been at a friend's for the weekend, it was dark when I got home. My mom, as if walking on egg shells, told me as I came in through the front door that someone was here to see me. Over the years I had occasionally heard from my dad who was a few states away, but it had been years since I had seen him. And with no warning that I can remember, poof, he was back. I don't even think I said one word to him that night. I saw him and while my younger sister, Carolyn, was eagerly ready to welcome him back with open arms, I wanted nothing to do with him! I went down to my room and wouldn't come out.
Eventually I was willing to talk to him again, though I don't remember how long exactly it took me (not too long). I remember sitting in our family room with Carolyn on one side of him and me on the other. I was still not feeling very forgiving toward him, but I was at least talking to him, however resentfully. This was where I was when my Grandma came to tell us that Princess Di had passed away. I don't think I was particularly aware of who that really was or how it effected my world, but I was sad. I was an emotional girl, so it didn't take very much to set me off. As my grandma gave us the news, I remember her going to lean on her arm, with her hand against the entryway. But her hand missed and she fell, not hard, I don't even think she hit the floor before she caught herself. For some reason though, this is what I have in my head as one of the huge indicator that something was wrong with her.

(My grandma and me when I was very young.)

I was a grandma's girl growing up. I was actually the first grandchild and therefore very spoiled since we lived with her on and off all my life. At one point I believe around preschool or kindergarten, I even lived with her in an apartment, just the two of us, as my mom and step dad managed the complex from the manager's apartment. This was so I could have my own room, but I just loved being so special that I got to live with my grandma!
There were other signs that something was happening to her. She had a lot of doctor's appointments it seemed. And I remember being very fearful of her driving around by herself. I felt like if I were with her, I could help somehow if something happened. I often would go with her places, especially if she were crossing over a bridge, even when I had homework or just really didn't want to go. I felt I would then be responsible if something bad happened, and the butterflies would begin churning in my stomach until I gave in and forfeited whatever I had been doing to stay with her and keep her safe.
At some point she was officially found to have had a series of strokes, that eventually happened again and again, and later she was diagnosed with dementia as well. It was difficult for me to witness. With my mom working often, sometimes I would be left to help take care of her, by making her meals and helping her to the bathroom. This happened on and off, as my mom and aunt traded off with caring for her. My aunt lived in California though during the early years, so for months at a time I would have to help my mom while she was working. Not only was it physically difficult, I wanted to just be a kid and found taking my grandma to the bathroom gross, but emotionally it was heartbreaking. Her memory came and went, but most of the time she had no clue what my name was. Sometimes she would call me Sandy, who was one of her sisters. Even harder then that, was hearing her not knowing who my own mother was. Her first daughter, who loved her and cared for her all those years, and she couldn't even remember her name. I couldn't even wrap my mind around how much that must have broken my mom's heart, but I imagined how it would've made me feel.
My grandma died before Natalie's 1st birthday. She met Natalie once, though I doubt she realized who it was. I wasn't there when it happened but my mom says my grandma knew her at the end. I don't remember enough about her spiritual life to know whether I will see her in heaven, but as she had a childlike mind at the end of her life I hope maybe she is up there waiting for me, and one day I will get to introduce her to her great grandchildren.

And as for my relationship with my dad, it has grown over the years. Slowly at first, but I think that's the way it needed to happen for me. I now believe we have a good relationship though maybe not the traditional one. We email each other on and off, and now I am the one living more then a few states away!

This is the 9th post in a series of 15, I am doing to record my youth with other ladies at
. Another session will be starting in October and everyone is welcome to join in on the fun!

Click here to view the rest of my Mommy's Piggy Tales posts, from how I got my name through 7th grade.

Thankful Thursday: Written Words

2010-08-05T09:00:00.000+10:00

This week I am most thankful for books. Books have the power to teach and enrich our lives. They can be encouraging, inspiring, understanding, and distracting (in a good way). I love the written word and admire all those who are able to share so much so gracefully with their words!
Right now I am reading "Beautiful in God's Eyes" by Elizabeth George. It is a book about the Proverbs 31 woman. It is so uplifting to read about this passage particularly and I am inspired to become a better wife, mother and woman of God.
Another book, I will always cherish for the encouraging words I found just when I needed to hear them, was "Your Scars Are Beautiful To God" by Sharon Jaynes. Through that book God helped me to realize I shouldn't be ashamed of the different tribulations and trials I have gone through, because He wants to use them as beautiful tools to reach out to others in similar circumstances.
Ultimately though the best book is the Bible. God's written word, divined by the Holy Spirit through many different authors. The book from which countless others have been penned just to discuss and explain its contents!
If you haven't guessed yet, I love books of all shapes and sizes!

Wordless Wednesday: Funny Summer Flashback

2010-08-04T10:00:00.001+10:00

This is about 2 years old, but such a cute and funny picture of summer!

This post is linked to Wordless Wednesday.

Like Mother, Like Daughter...So It Begins!

2010-08-03T11:00:00.002+10:00

After pulling into church Sunday morning and unloading our little family from the car, I began to walk my daughter in the direction of her Sunday school class. Before getting to far we ran into her friend Joel who was tugging on his dad as they waited to find out if this was the Sunday for class promotions.
Natalie was excited to see Joel, it seems the week she has been feeling deprived of social interaction.

Walking up and standing in front of Joel, Natalie held the sides of her skirt in her hands and swinging just a little from side to side, she says "So Joel, how do I look?"

It was just priceless! Especially as it reminded me of the way I ask Jon each Sunday morning what he thinks of any outfits I have put together, no matter how often in the past I have worn it. She certainly is taking after mommy!!

This post is linked to

Top Ten Tuesday: I WANT This!!

2010-08-03T09:00:00.001+10:00

This is my list of the things in my Amazon cart. I am a regular online shopper at Amazon because it is one of the few places I can count on for a wide range of 'stuff' that will ship to me all the way out here in Guam, without charging an arm and a leg! I also think they have very competitive prices on most items. I seem to place an order at least once a month, and that is actually scaled back as I work on my self control as an admitted shopaholic. Mind you this list is all thing I want, not to be confused with my needs. Nothing on this list is something I can't do without, therefore it stays in my cart until I feel we can spare the extra money after we have given our tithe at church, bills have been paid, and money saved. I actually have about 60 items currently 'saved for later'. And I routinely go through and clear the items as I change my extremely indecisive mind about certain things!

1. The Power of Words and The Wonder of God by John Piper. Of course there are a number of books in my cart, as you learned of my love of books beyond what I can read, last week! This one is not one that was recommended to me but rather something I stumbled across online and found the synopsis intriguing. It speaks about the significance words actually play in our history- think about it, God created the world with His words, and so much power even today, our words have for good or evil purposes. This book discusses the importance, as Christians specifically, that our words have. As a writer, I know the power of words, so I am anxious to buy this book and read the words within it! *I have never heard of or know anything about the author or his religious affiliations, so as with anything I am unfamiliar with, I always double check any claim that is made to be biblical in the ultimate book- the Bible, as I encourage everyone to always do!!*

2. Peggle Dual Shot is a game for my Nintendo DS. Though I haven't played it in quite a while, I have been on a hunt to find a new game that I might enjoy. After all, Jon did spend quite a bit on this Christmas gift for it to be collecting dust. This game I also thought may be something simple enough Natalie could try sometime, like on our flight home in November. She isn't at the point that she cares about winning, she just enjoys pushing the buttons and seeing a reaction on the little screen.

3. The Lightlings by R. C. Sproul is a children's book, and I am always searching for good children's books. I used to buy them even before I had any kids of my own! I look for ones with colorful, fun, and beautiful illustrations and pages with not too many words but also not too few. Something entertaining but also educational in some way whether it teaches honesty or kindness or about science or math. And if I find one with a biblical lesson it is one I just must buy! This book in particular, has beautiful illustrations and a story to teach biblical redemption to children. It even has a question and answer section for parents along with scriptures. *I have not read this book, these are merely the reason I would like to get it based on the few pages I have viewed and the synopsis given.*

4. Here Comes Peter Cottontail DVD. Yes I am aware it is no where near Easter time! This is one of those finds I keep putting off, but I do truly want it for the kids. It is one I remember from my own childhood, and though I realize it is not a lesson on the true reason we celebrate Easter and its meaning, we are sure to share the story of Jesus regularly even when it is not Easter time. We do give them an Easter basket each year, (as well as Christmas gifts) but we tell them those gifts are from Mommy & Daddy. And we talk about the ultimate gift of Jesus sacrifice (and birth).

5. Yedi Houseware Heart Teacups & Saucers, I absolutely love these cups and I can't wait to have a tea party with them. They also have espresso sized ones, and I would like to purchase both sets and do a mother daughter tea party for some of my closest friends sometime. I am a party planner, and I can come up with any excuse to get together for good food, good fun and good fellowship!

6. Speedo Swim Suit, I am so tired of my hot pink swim suit that I have had since I was first pregnant with my daughter. It isn't maternity or anything I just remember having it then. I have gotten a new one since, only to realize I can't stand how low cut it is and I feel like I may as well walk around in just my bra for all it shows, despite the fact it is actually a 'tankini'. My next one will be this suit, which is high cut on top and a one piece which I prefer anyway. After all I don't want to get into it when my daughter wonders why I can wear a two piece and she isn't allowed to. That's just one battle I would rather avoid and modesty is something better taught by example.

7. Monkey Crib Sheet When I thought about what I wanted to do for Zachary's big boy, toddler bedroom, I thought of the blankets we used to swaddle him in. They didn't have monkeys on them, but they were either soft green or blue with brown dots or circles. I also thought about how I liked this mod monkey 2nd birthday party set from Birthday Express, and was inspired by the monkeys with the colors. You see Natalie's room is ladybugs and we followed by having a ladybug themed 2nd birthday, and getting pictures of her as a ladybug to go on her walls. So I will do the same with Zachary. He will be my little monkey! Unfortunately I haven't found a bedding set I particularly liked so I will be making a blanket or two with the colors and patterns of monkeys I want and I just need a monkey sheet to match (as well as some solid colored ones and patterns he has now that match).

8. Big Truths for Little Kids: Teaching Your Children to Live for God by Susan and Richie Hunt. I have been searching for a good devotional book to read to Natalie each night before bed. This one just sounds and looks like what I am hoping for. It claims to have an easy to read story format and will teach the basics of Christian faith to a Baby to Preschool aged child. Hopefully soon we will be able to even get Zachary to sit and listen. We have been reading to Natalie before bed since she was an young baby, but Zachary will never sit in our laps long enough to let us finish even a page! He just tries to grab and play with the book, while Natalie would simply use the time to relax with mommy or daddy before bed. Interesting how different each child is!

9. Hamilton Beach Set 'n Forget 6 qt Slow Cooker, Jon and I used to have a tiny one but we got rid of it because none of the recipes ever called for one so small! Now though I am yearning for one again, a bigger fancier one this time. I have not always been good about making dinner regularly, but as I strive for that I believe a slow cooker I can prepare ahead of time would help me in that. I enjoy soups, stews and casseroles which I think would all be easily made in a crock pot. An added bonus, this one has a meat thermometer that goes into the meat and can be set to cook until it reaches the desired temperature. And it has clamps to hold the lid on for easy travel! A huge bonus for going to pot lucks or fiestas at church! Another wish list item is a bread maker, but I haven't come close to figuring out which one I want!

10. The Pursuit of Holiness by Gerald and Jerry Bridges. This book helps Christians to understand how we can try to live more holy lives. It discusses what we should be relying on God for, but also what we need to take responsibility for ourselves. What I guess I take that to mean is like the question I have heard asked many times before- If I wear a seat belt, am I really trusting God to keep me safe? Now that specific question is just an example, and I find the meaning to actually be a bit simpler in the fact that obeying God also involves obeying the law, and it is the law to wear your seat belt. Ultimately I feel it is should always be part of my life to further pursue a closer relationship to God, and if this book offers any tips, or if God convicts me while reading it, then it is worth the time to read. *I have never heard of or know anything about the author or his religious affiliations, so as with anything I am unfamiliar with, I always double check any claim that is made to be biblical in the ultimate book- the Bible, as I encourage everyone to always do!!*

Well that is my shopping cart on Amazon right now. It changes regularly as I am super indecisive as well as frugal. Bet you never thought you would meet a cheap shopaholic, did you? Well that's me to a tee! Shopping and I have a love-hate relationship, I love to buy new stuff, but I hate to spend the money!! I am learning though to be more balanced. Its a gradual process.

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You Can't Work Towards Grace

2010-08-02T13:12:00.006+10:00

One of the common answers to the question "Are you going to Heaven?" would be something along the lines of "Yes, because I am a good person." So often people think by being good, doing good things that they will make it to heaven. Sadly though they are wrong.
Grace is the only way to get through those pearly gates. By the grace of God, which He offers freely, your name can be written in the book of life. You can live eternally in heaven one day!

For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast. ~Ephesians 2:8-9

How awesome is that?! Truly there is no way we could ever work our way to righteousness because no matter how hard we try, even the best of us sin. It may be in your heart, something only between you and God, or it may be something huge, that our earthly law penalizes with prison. But God offers grace to everyone. To Him all sin, big or small, it is black and white, there is no gray area.

As it is written, "There is none righteous, not even one; There is none who understands, there is none who seeks for God; All have turned aside, together they have become useless; There is none who does good, there is not even one." ~Romans 3:10-12

Though while works do not get anyone admittance into heaven, not even Christians, as believers under grace we should endeavor to do works for the Lord.

But are you willing to recognize, you foolish fellow, that faith without works is useless?...For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so also faith without works is dead. James 2:20,26

Because just as you would thank someone who gives you any kind of gift, we should show our gratitude for His awesome gift of salvation, which was purchased for us at the ultimate price, through the death of His Son.

But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from the wrath of God through Him. Romans 5:8-9

The precious blood of Jesus Christ that saved us from our sin should also be what motivates us to do works for Him. Not because we need to for us to enter heaven, but because we want to in our love for Him and His sacrifice.

Project 52: Scavenger Hunt

2010-07-31T22:15:00.005+10:00

In order to keep things fun and fresh in our relationship, Jon and I are going to start dating again! This is a blog carnival by Simply Modern Mom.

As close to each week as possible, we will set aside some time just for us. Occasionally we may get a babysitter and go out to do something fun. But mostly we will stay in and just get creative in finding new fun ideas to do to spend time together around the house after the kids are down for bed. I already have a huge list of things just to do at home!! Part of the fun is you want to try to do something different each time. You don't want it to fizzle out if you just watch a movie every date night, then it won't be as special, it'll just become the usual.

So for our first Project 52: Date Nights, I came up with a surprise for Jon. I sent Jon down for a little swim in the pool for about 20 minutes as I 'setup' for his surprise (he knew something was going on). Swimming relaxes him, so though I initially had planned this for a night he got home later from work- something happening a lot lately- I realized those nights he may not be quite up for this type of date.

When Jon came back up from his dip, he found the first note on our front door, he was going on a scavenger hunt! This note explained the game and requested he not stray from his tasks, as well as provided him with where to find the next clue. He was confused because when he first came into the house he expected me to be hiding in the bedroom as the end result, and instead I was waiting for him still in my jeans and t-shirt, watching him follow along.
The next clue led to a toy, then to our iPod player where I had it already on our song, I Will Be Here, by Steven Curtis Chapman, when he pressed play. Then my note sent him down to our mailbox where I had hidden something special for him to slip into when he returned upstairs. He said he ran in his excitement to find out what everything led to! But when he returned from the mailbox I was hiding, as he hoped. But he wasn't yet allowed to come join me. First he went around the kitchen, from clue to clue, gathering strawberries, Reddi-whip, sparkling cider, and glasses. His last clue sent him to come find me in our bedroom where we enjoyed our snacks and cuddled. We had fun and just enjoyed our time together. It was the perfect first date for the beginning of our own Project 52.
And I had so much fun preparing and writing the clues, that even rhymed!! Just be sure not to make them too difficult, you don't want him to take too long figuring them out as you wait for him.And it was all very inexpensive too! The only things I had to purchase were the strawberries and the sparkling cider, everything else, even the Reddi-whip, we already had on hand! See, you don't need to spend a lot of money, or even leave your own home to have fun and exciting date nights at home!!
I hope this inspires others to do something creative for their spouses! Check back for more great, affordable date nights (and maybe some day dates as well)!

Send Me a Treasure of a Handwritten Letter

2010-07-30T09:00:00.000+10:00

Letters.
We have all gotten them.
Its amazing how treasured these simple pieces of paper can be.
Aged and delicate from years of being folded and unfolded, sometimes stained by tears over time.

I have a box of old letters, from my dad, from my brother, from friends throughout my life, and I could never part with any, though some are beyond legible in their current state.

Now in my impatience, I eagerly wait for that instant reply through my electronic mail. Always bright and new, no matter how long ago those words were composed. No character, just a white screen with little overly neat and perfect black typing on them.

But beauty is often found in the flaws and the best things in life are worth waiting for.

I miss my snail mail letters. Even if they test my sanity as I wait and wonder for weeks if the intended recipient received my paper present and will be replying with their own for me, I still long to have those pages to tuck away in a special place to look at occasionally throughout the years that pass, and remember. They invoke so much more memory and emotion then anything I could pull up on my computer screen. They are gifts of the time and thought taken to share with me stories from across the miles. They are a little piece of the love from family and friends fit into a tiny envelope.

Far above any jewels or gold you could send me, I crave a handwritten note, one that someday I can pass on to my own children as an heirloom, a memorial, a bit of the writer suspended in time and space, the words as ageless as the paper it is written on is aged.

Have we forgotten what a treasure a handwritten letter can be?

Thankful Thursday: It's YOUR Turn!!

2010-07-29T15:43:00.004+10:00

I am thankful for my readers! The blog world is still fairly new to me, but I still get excited to know others are reading and interested in what I write! I deeply miss school for the opportunity to be challenged with a variety of essays to write on anything from history, such as Was the nuclear attack on Hiroshima necessary?, to classic fiction, analyze the topic or pride in Pride and Prejudice. Yes, those were actual essays I wrote in school and still have tucked away somewhere. I had always felt a sense of accomplishment when the teacher would add to the assignment the opportunity/requirement to read or discuss the topic for the class. I just don't think I was as motivated to write not thinking others would be reading my words. Even in my poetry, I longed to share it with friends and to get feedback for what I had written.
So today you are the star! Your comments and feedback to me are appreciated mightily! After all you make it all worthwhile for me to write! You are the one who takes the time to browse and read my many thoughts, and sometimes even tell me your own! So THANK YOU!!

An Awkward Return and An Awful Teacher

2010-07-29T10:00:00.006+10:00

I think of sixth grade as the beginning of my descent into the 'unpopular crowd'. Really this is one of the first years I noticed there was a distinct line between unpopular and popular. I had gotten a taste in my 4th & 5th grade classes but I thought that was just at the different schools I attended, not universal. Actually as I got older it upset me less and less to be apart of that group. Sure it would've been nice to have more boys think I was pretty, and by high school I would've loved to be on homecoming court, but as an adult I don't feel I missed out on anything important.
This was the year I returned to the school I spent 1st-4th grade (half of 4th grade) attending. It was very awkward for me. I knew some of the kids in my class already from my earlier years, but we had not kept in touch in my absence. Instead of welcoming me back, which is what I expected particularly from one girl who had been a very close friend from 1st grade on, I was accused of 'staring' at her and told to knock it off- or else. I didn't remember staring at her, I had noticed her in my class, but I had been searching the faces of everyone, looking to see who I should remember. Apparently I had lost the good graces of all the kids I had once called friends, though I did eventually make new ones.
In addition to my threat from an old friend, my first day of 6th grade was only made worse by our first assignment. We broke up into partners and interviewed each other. Then we were to write a couple paragraphs about that person and our teacher took our pictures to add to our little introduction article. Then in the coming days we would spent a little time introducing our partner to the class. Unfortunately for me, our class had an odd number of students, and like the rotten cherry on top of sugar free, freezer burned ice cream sundae, I was partnered with Mr. W, my first ever male teacher.

(This was the photo attached with the interview, I apparently couldn't wait to throw away most of it, but I have never been one to toss pictures...even BAD ones it seems!!)

I don't have any lasting memories of the interview I did with him, but I have plenty of the year that followed. I may have decided ahead of time I would not like him, considering that traumatic first day, but he quickly proved me correct in my decision. I can't pinpoint exact reasons, but I know on more then one occasion I felt extremely uncomfortable around him. I do remember one time in particular, I was upset with some of my friends after a big fight, so upset that I felt physically ill. I went to the nurse and with little evidence other then how I said I felt- no fever- I convinced them I needed to go home. I don't remember how much of it I exaggerated, I am sure a little bit just because I couldn't stand to be in the class after such a big fight, I remember crying about it. My grandma was called and I went home with her, without having to face those particular friends for the rest of that day.
I was not so lucky the next day, my mom made me go back to school despite my protests. But my fears were pointless, whatever the issue had been, by the following day all was forgiven and forgotten, at least by most. However Mr. W was not happy with my quick recovery from my 'illness' the day before. At our first recess he held me in and asked if I had been lying the previous day about being sick. I denied it adamantly, and in truth, I hadn't felt 'well'. I remember crying tears of anger that he would question this as he hit his point, that I went home because I was upset about a fight with friends. While he was essentially correct, I didn't feel it was any of his business. It was between me and my mom, and maybe the nurse who had made the decision to allow me to go. How dare he accuse me and take away my recess when I had done nothing wrong! (And I would like to note as a parent now, I would still disagree if a teacher did this to my own child. There have been plenty of days my kids didn't feel good and the next they were back to normal, bouncing off the walls!). As far as I was concerned this teacher was the worst teacher I had ever had or would ever have! I was overjoyed by the end of the year to be leaving behind not only elementary school life, but most importantly Mr. W!

One other little memory I will never forget is from the end of the year. As I had tried to get everyone in my class to sign my yearbook, even people I didn't like, I shyly asked a boy in my class named James. And his reply was "You wish." And all the boys he had been in the group with who had already signed my yearbook just laughed and snickered as I held back tears from those 2 little words. I had never much cared for him to begin with, but I genuinely hoped to have everyone sign and not only was he refusing, but he embarrassed me, like it was wrong I should even speak to him. Yes, I was relieved when this school year was over. Just more proof that the division between the popular and unpopular was beginning!

This is the 8th post of 15 in a series I am doing to record my youth with other woman at

Wordless Wednesday: A Smile That Lights Up My World

2010-07-28T10:05:00.002+10:00

Linked to Wordless Wednesday.

Hold the Flavor Please!

2010-07-28T09:00:00.002+10:00

I just must share my daughter's most recent 'Kid's say the darnedest things' moment.

This is actually a picture of her from the Fourth of July, but you get the idea, the girl loves her corn on the cob!!

Jon had decided to grill our corn on the cob for dinner. Natalie is a huge fan of corn on the cob, so though she wasn't sharing in our grilled steaks I had made sure to get her some corn to share with us. As Jon brings in the slightly charred cobs of sunny deliciousness, Natalie scrunches up her nose in disgust and says "Can you take the brown off mine?"
Jon and I chuckle a little and he replies, "That's called flavor! It's what makes it good!"
After a few moments of deep thought, Natalie looks up again at Jon and asks very sweetly and innocently, "Can you take the flavor off mine?"
At this point Jon and I are laughing pretty heartily as Jon says "Sorry, but no kiddo!"
And Natalie refused to eat her flavorful corn that night! But I sure did enjoy mine, poor girl didn't know what she was missing out on!

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Mommyhood Memos: Just Can't Hold It In!

2010-07-27T11:40:00.002+10:00

You know your life has changed when...as you hold your naked baby, she pees on you and all you have to say in that over-enthusiastic silly voice is "Oh look you just peed on me!" as if it were just some cute little inside joke!

This is actually exactly what happened when my husband was holding my daughter in preparation for her first real bath! It was hilarious!

You know your life has changed when...your baby pees on you as he laughs about it and you begin to laugh just tickled by the thought that he did it on purpose instead of being grossed about wearing his pee-pee!

This also happened and much more recently! Just a few nights ago as I changed my 16 month old son (who hasn't done this in a long time), he started peeing on me and was instantly laughing about it! Instead of being upset that he got me, I just couldn't stop laughing at the fact that it seemed like he was doing on purpose to play a little prank on me!!

Check out more Mommyhood Memos on Adriel's blog and write your own!

Top Ten Tuesday: My Bookshelf

2010-07-27T09:00:00.000+10:00

So this week I thought I would share about 10 books from my bookshelf I need to finish reading! Most I have started and just set aside and haven't gotten back too. They are not forgotten though. I see them screaming at me from amongst the tattered and well loved books. They are shiny and new, no pages folded down yet, a crisp spine I have yet to flatten with some weights to keep open, pencil and highlighter free...so far. Some have collected dust from the years up there, some are barely out of the Amazon box they shipped in. I just love books, and apparently too many then I can read at once!! So here is my rather varied list in no particular order...

1. Beautiful in God's Eyes by Elizabeth George. This is the one I am currently working my way through, little by little. It is a very easy read, but to fully glean all I can from its pages I try to read it when I have some quiet in the house, the reason I fail to get through it very quickly!! It is a book about the Proverbs 31 woman of virtue that has recently become some of my key verses from the Bible, as I strive to be a better wife and mother to my family.

2. The Lucky One by Nicholas Sparks. I LOVE love. So I enjoy many of Nicholas Sparks' novels. They may be a bit predictable, but I am usually quickly sucked in by the thoughts of 'knights' rescuing their 'damsels in distress'. Of course there is no armor in his novels, they are definitely more modern romances based in our current time. And most are centered in some small town, fictional or non, in North Carolina. Through these books I have fallen even more in love with small town life and particularly the coast of North Carolina!

3. Experiencing God Around the Kitchen Table by Marilynn Blackaby. I also have her husband's book, Experiencing God, waiting to be read on my book shelf. It has lived there since I was 17! My love of a large library and God started very early!! This book though is a new edition to it within the last year. It is a Focus on the Family book, which was why I bought it. I find the little I have read to be so encouraging as I am making my way through life as a homemaker, wondering how can I minister when I am at home all day with 2 young children? Another easy read, that you can jump into at any point in the book that interests you, put it down and come back to another section when it appeals.

4. Lose Your Mummy Tummy by Julie Tupler. This is one of my newest additions, less then a month old. I have skimmed it, but it is not exactly what I was expecting. Still I plan to read more into it, preferably very soon, as I endeavor myself to lose my mummy tummy...hopefully in time for my sister's November wedding.

5. Romancing Your Husband by Debra White Smith. I have had this in my collection since February. I have read the first 2 chapters and found it quite interesting. I have always been under the impression that the man should be the one to romance the lady, but it can go both ways! In fact, if I expect him to be romancing me, I should be trying to romance him first! This has helped to remind me of that age old wisdom- do unto others, as you would have them do unto you. There is also a 'companion' book to this for the guys- Romancing Your Wife. My husband has it, but he is even worse about reading books then I am!!

6. Dare to Repair by Julie Sussman and Stephanie Glakas Tenet. I was given this at a Navy wives meeting once when we first moved to the East Coast. I have skimmed it but I have not used it yet, though I am sure soon it will become regularly pulled from the shelf as my husband gets deployed next year. It gives simple instructions on fixing anything from unclogging a toilet to cleaning a clothes dryer's hoses and vents to freeing someone locked inside a room. It is specifically for women written by women. So far, I haven't had to pull it out because I just wait for Jon to fix the many tasks it lists in the book, but when he is unavailable and the building's maintenance is gone for the day, this book sure will come in handy from the basic to the more complex jobs around the home. Now if only they made one for simple repair on the car!

7. "Don't Make Me Count to Three!" by Ginger Plowman. I actually picked this book up from a clearance section in a Christian bookstore shortly after Natalie was born. It looked interesting and I figured one day I would need it, but alas it has sat unused on my shelf until recently. It is actually just under Lose Your Mummy Tummy on my current reading list, only because the tummy thing will take some time and I don't have much before November! I was reminded of this useful tool in the last parenting class I took at my church. I couldn't believe I actually already owned a book that was recommended! I am anxious to put it to use as it gives very good biblical advice on discipline
and teaches how we can use scripture for reproof. It also has a handy chart in it for some bible verses to reference on certain topics as well an appendix on How to Become a Christian, How to Lead Your Child to Christ, and How to Pray for Your Child.

8. The Four Seasons of Marriage by Gary Chapman. I bought and read Gary Chapman's The Five Love Languages long before he came to do a conference at our church while we lived on the East Coast. So I was excited to see some of the other books he also had to offer. This one I found particularly interesting. It shares about the four seasons a marriage may go through and how to identify where you are at in your marriage, as well as provide helpful strategies to get through it and build a stronger commitment between you and your spouse. As someone who is in the 'summer' or 'satisfied' season at the moment, I may be a little complacent as I put off reading it.

9. Simply Sweet from Pampered Chef. My latest addiction is Pampered Chef, as I host yet another party this week! In my last order I bought this book, one of their newest in the current catalog. I was enticed by the scrumptious looking pictures of Strawberry Cream Cupcake Dessert and Giant Rocky Road Cookies, and I just had to have it! That was about four months ago and I still have not ventured into the kitchen to master any of the delicious recipes hidden in its pages. Of course I may put it off a bit longer as I try to learn a little self control in the area of my sweet tooth. But still one thing I truly love about the Pampered Chef cookbooks is the pictures! I can't stand the cookbooks in boring black and white, and few if any pictures. I need to be able to see it if I am going to crave it!

10. Fancy Nancy: Poet Extraordinaire by Jane O'Connor and Robin Preiss Glasser. Well, technically, this one is not on my bookshelf and it isn't for me. It is actually spending its days in the bottom drawer of my nightstand as an intended gift for my daughter on any special day if she is being distinctly well behaved and needs a new book to read. I actually have more then one tucked away because I tend to buy a few at a time, only showing one to her on each occasion, and stashing the rest away. This one I, as a poet myself, was quite excited about owning! I will admit, Fancy Nancy has become a favorite of mine and I am just thrilled that Natalie has latched on to my own little obsession. I love the colorful and bright illustrations, and each book teaches a good little lesson as well as some big fancy words to my daughter. In Poet Extraordinaire it teaches also about different types of poems and poetry. What a fun way to teach the subject to young girls!

Well those are just a few of the books on my bookshelf. Maybe another time I will share some more! I just never seem to get enough of good books. I love to have not only a range of titles, but also books in a wide range of subjects that interest me, from books about running bed and breakfasts, to ancient Egypt, to healing after sexual abuse, to the classic novels from years before, each is a wonderful treasure to me.

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Crayon Therapy

2010-07-26T08:00:00.000+10:00

Once upon a time I worked in childcare at our church on the East coast. I loved every minute of it! It was mostly nights, a few weekends if there was something extra special happening. I loved my coworkers and I loved the children. We did crafts, read books and colored with the kids. Before this if you had asked me to color, I would've stuck up my very mature adult nose at you and said, "Coloring is for children, I am an adult. I just don't color!" And if by chance I ever did, it wasn't with crayons, after all I am much more refined then that, I would use color pencils or markers. Of course this was all before Natalie hit the age when coloring became an art form. Now its one of her favorite pastimes. And sometimes I even join her.
Do you ever wish you could go back to being a kid again? Life seemed so much simpler, no stress and responsibilities to get in the way. I, being not a therapist but a regular patient to this form of therapy, propose that as adult when we are stressed out to the point of hair loss, deeply longing for something simple to soothe us, that we color. And not just color with anything! Oh for this therapy to truly work we must use the most essential medium available to children, the crayon. Let the crayon flow as an extension of yourself, as you concentrate on staying within the lines of any random picture in a book full of colorless pages. Use the repetitive and constant movement of your hand as a way to erase all the tension from your body and mind. Remember an easier life, filled with coloring pages, juice boxes, and cookies waiting patiently for you when you return home from school. Then be bold, post your newest masterpiece on display for all to see. The best of your work should go in a place of honor, right alongside the greatest artists of our time, our children, on the refrigerator. And as you stand back to admire your work, consider what your next project may be!
Need more therapy...give finger painting a try next!

Six Word Saturday

2010-07-24T10:00:00.002+10:00

PLAYED CLEAN-UP CATCH-UP, THAN MESS-UP AGAIN! OR I CLEANED UP, THEY DESTROYED AGAIN!

Okay, so I had to add some hyphens to make it under 6 words, but it has a nice ring to it! I think its pretty self explanatory too. I basically spent most of my week cleaning up after last week's tornado passed through my home. I cleaned so much I felt like I was neglecting my blog because I barely had time to do a 'Wordless Wednesday' post! Though now things are a little calmer and I am ready to sit down and relax and write again, but alas once more a storm, though definitely smaller then the previous, has blown through my home! Ah, the joys of a homemaker! The chores never do have an end, do they?! You just have to wait until your kids are older and learn to delegate to the responsibilities out amongst them as you sit back and sip an ice tea! (Now there is something to dream about!)

So You Think You're Starving?

2010-07-24T08:00:00.000+10:00

Any given day, I may be sitting on the couch reading a good book, or preparing dinner in the kitchen, when Natalie will walk over to me and announce, "I'm starving!" This is a phrase my husband has gotten into the habit of using, and since passed it on to our daughter. I don't ever remember feeling the irritation towards him for the use of that word, but now as my daughter uses it unsparingly, I find it to be quite disturbing.
It is not an uncommon part of our day to day lives to hear someone, or find ourselves, saying "I'm starving," to indicate our 'level' of hunger. We aren't simply craving a snack, we want something truly filling and hardy because we feel empty. Even in the dictionary the term 'starve' has been defined as 'to be extremely hungry' as its secondary meaning. But lets not neglect the primary meaning of the word. Starve: to weaken, waste, or die from lack of food.
In our country there are few who truly fall into that category. Most of us, certainly those with access to a computer and the internet who are able to read this, do not suffer from starvation in its truest meaning. We are not likely to die from lack of food, and in fact we probably have very little idea of how weakened we can become from no food for more then a day. I have gone a full day without one meal or even a snack. It wasn't on purpose, it was simply because other things happening that day kept me from getting to eating. Even then I was not starving. I had no lack of food, in fact it was abundantly available to me when I was ready for it. And even if my own kitchen were not conveinent, I had a number of fast food establishments and grocery stores accessible to me. So even then when I may have been slightly weakened from not eating, I could still not claim an actual lack of food.
In our own household we have made the word 'starving' a bad word. Occasionally my husband will slip up from habit, but we are making it a point to remind ourselves and our children what true starvation is. There really are many people, children and babies, who are literally starving in other countries. Starvation is a real and tragic sadness in our world today, so lets not become numb to the true meaning of starvation. Remember you are blessed to live in a country where it would indeed be difficult to find nothing to eat. As you sit down to your overly large second helping of dinner tonight, say a prayer for those who are dying somewhere in the world right now, from a lack of any food at all. And the next time you feel the pains of hunger, think twice before uttering the phrase "I'm starving!", and realize you have no idea how starvation actually feels.

Are You Happy?

2010-07-23T10:00:00.000+10:00

Are you happy? We place so much weight on this simple little question. And everyone seems to have a different idea of what happiness means and how to get it. Many in our materialistic world define it as a big house, filled with plenty of 'toys', and then of course the bank account to buy more. Some may think happiness comes from having the job that pays the most. I don't know how many times I have seen articles highlighted on Yahoo about what jobs pay the most, or pay the worst so you can avoid those career paths.
I certainly haven't met everyone or done the proper research to give you statistics on this subject, but I have little doubt in my own mind that none of the things I listed bring much if any happiness. How can you be happy constantly trying to keep up with the newest and latest gadget, or working longer hours to get more money to buy all those 'things' that you believe will bring you happiness.
Usually at Christmas my husband and I spend just enough on each other for a few DVDs or books or shirts. Nothing too expensive is in our budget. But this past year we had a little extra, so since our anniversary is also during the holiday season, we spent a few hundred each on one another. I bought Jon a few items, one being quite a nice watch, he collects nice watches. That was my splurge as well as a very nice watch case- like a jewelry box but for up to 10 watches. He loved both and wears the watch often at church. Would he have been just as happy without it, yes. Now when shopping for me, I have a hard time giving Jon a 'frivolous' list of items I want just for me. Not something for the house, or for the kids or for Jon, just something for me to have a little fun with. I had a few Disney figurines on my wish list that I had been pining for, but Jon wanted something I could use and have fun with, not something that would sit somewhere collecting dust. He bought me a Nintendo DS. For the first few weeks, I played it and enjoyed it quite a lot. I was 'happy' with this gift, or so I thought. It wasn't long before I lost interest in it between taking care of the household as well as the children, I just had better things to do with my time. So this gift has ended up collecting dust just as a figurine would have.
Temporarily, the gift made me smile, it was fun and I enjoyed it. Ultimately though, it faded away, it became outdated as a newer better version was released. I lost interest in it because it wasn't important enough to hold me. That is what so many of us place our happiness in. Happiness itself is not a lasting emotion. It comes and it goes. We may be thrilled to be able to buy the newest gadget at the store but shortly after we get home there is something bigger (or smaller now a days) and better out there, and our shiny new toy begins to dull in light of something even better.
Being happy is good. I want my children to be happy, I want my family to be a happy one, but more then happiness, I want them all to have joy. Happiness may come and go, it may fade away, but true joy is everlasting. True joy is a gift only God can give.
My joy in Him never fades. While I may set aside a Christmas gift and find better things to do, there is nothing greater then the gift God has given me. Nothing can be more important then Him. No other gift in this entire world is greater. There is no newer better version to go out and get, God is unchanging, as is His love for me. He will never take away His gift, it can't be stolen or broken. What more could I want? Even when I am not happy, things are just not going my way, I will still have my eternal gift from God that brings me joy always.
In answer to my own question, I am very happy at the moment. My life is good, God has blessed us with a good home, a wonderful church and amazing friends. How could I not be happy?! But I know something may happen at any moment to steal my happiness away, Satan is always looking for his chance to drag me down. But I am not worried about it, because he can take my happiness, but he can never steal my joy.

For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. ~Romans 6:23

Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow shifting. ~James 1:17

"My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me; and I give eternal life to them, and they will never persih; and no one will snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father's hand." ~ Jesus, John 10:27-29

So here is my question for you, are you happy or are you joyful? Do you want a gift that will fade away or the one that is eternal?

Thankful Thursday: Time Together

2010-07-22T14:28:00.003+10:00

This week I am thankful for any time I get to spend with my husband. It has been a very difficult week in terms of the hours he has had to put in at work. The Navy is definitely not the standard 40 hour work week job, and we both were aware of that at his reenlistment almost 6 years ago. Despite my frustrations with his lack of time off, it reminds me to be more grateful when the times do come along and savour those moments to their fullest. Our lives are blessed in many ways, and one is that after serving nearly 10 years in the Navy my husband has only been on one long deployment. Our time apart in our almost 7 years of marriage has only been a total of close to 8 months. That is nearly unheard of among the Navy wives I have encountered and I know most wish they could say the same. I am truly grateful for all our time together. Time is such a precious gift, but we never know how much we are allotted until it is too late.
Yesterday was one of those wonderful days, due to a local holiday and parade, my husband was not working. We didn't do anything special, other then an errand I needed to run, we stayed home with the kids most of the day, just relaxing. During their nap we sat on the couch together and watched a movie as my sweet Jon rubbed my feet, though his were certainly in more need of it.
I don't know how much time we will have together this weekend as his work can come on so suddenly at times if some testing fails, or another urgent job comes in at 3pm Friday afternoon. But I am truly thankful for any and all time God blesses us with to be together as a family and as a couple.

Mommyhood Memos: Boogies, anyone?

2010-07-22T11:56:00.003+10:00

You know life has changed when...

...you find yourself desperately picking at and digging in your baby's nose to get all those boogies out and never once think how gross even the thought of picking another's nose once was!!

Check out Adriel's blog, The Mommyhood Memos, and add your own!!

Don't Throw the Scissors!

2010-07-22T10:00:00.000+10:00

We lived in a small apartment after that 2nd big blue house, after my mother had officially decided my stepfather had used up all his 'chances'. I vaguely remember this apartment, because before long we moved from a 2 bedroom to a 3 bedroom within the same year and within the same complex. I have just a few memories of the smaller one.
I remember it being stocked full of girl scout cookie boxes the year my mom was the 'cookie mom'. And I don't mean the little boxes we all buy from the cute little girls outside the grocery store, I mean the big brown cardboard cases of them piled high as our living room decor for the 'cookie month'.
I also have vague memories of my mom bringing home one of the small handful of guys she began dating. In fact it was the first and last for a long time that she introduced to my sisters and I. I think his name was Mike, he was tall, and I didn't like him! I didn't want my mom going out with anyone! I don't remember specifically doing anything, but I was awfully rude to him I am sure. In fact I believe at another time later, at least one of my sisters was able to spend time with him and my mom while I was at a friend's house because I think it was only me who had the issues with my mom dating. I don't even remember why.
But the most vivid memory I have from this age has to do with scissors. We have all heard our parents shout at us as kids "Don't run with the scissors!" Apparently what my mom should've been saying was "Don't throw the scissors!" I know my sister will not be thrilled I am sharing this, but maybe it will help you better understand our relationship, especially growing up, and it is a part of my childhood. I wouldn't be recording it if I wanted to skip the hard stuff and only write about the 'fluff'.
We shared one of the 2 rooms in our tiny apartment with our new gerbil named Mickey (though he had the same markings as Ashes, my mom said I shouldn't use that name again, it was still a very sensitive subject to me). I don't remember much about how this day ended up where it did, I don't remember what our petty argument was about that day, but my sister Carolyn, who has a temper, and I were going at it head to head. Somehow my grandma had calmed us down a little and we weren't yelling anymore. I was standing near the hallway when Carolyn walked by with a pair of scissors. Not just any scissors though, these were heavy duty ones. I believe my mom used these to cut fabric for sewing and our hair, since they were the sharpest we had. They were heavy too, all metal and thick, not like the lightweight, plastic handled ones I have in my kitchen drawer today. As Carolyn passed I did something, I think I might've stuck my foot out or nudged her somehow, still angry and irritated about our fight, determined to have that last 'word'. And as she reached the other end of the room, after I pushed that button, the one that set her off, she turned and threw these sharp heavy scissors directly at me. They were heavy so as they flew through the air they lost a little altitude and hit me pointy end first in my knee. I instantly dropped to the floor as my knee began to bleed, what I remember as, a gushing river of blood. I was screaming and my grandma instantly appeared over me with a towel to wrap around my knee as Carolyn just sat on the couch and stared. I remember thinking she seemed like she was in a trance when I looked over at her with a look I had hoped would kill through tearful eyes.
I never went to the doctor's office or ER, my grandma and my mom made a makeshift splint using towels and magazines to help me keep my knee from bending and opening the wound back up again. I stayed in bed the rest of that day. I don't know if my mom or grandma ever had a 'talk' with my sister about what she had done, but I do remember when I asked how she would be punished being told "Watching you bleed was punishment enough." Which I was of course appalled by! My sister had just tried to kill me and she wasn't being tarred and feathered for it??!! When did I get to throw scissors at her and get away with it?!
As you can see I was a drama queen from an early age! I still have the scar on my knee today. Its very small and I often forget its even there. I find myself wondering sometimes if the gushing of blood I remember may be my own mind tricking itself. I know it was more blood then I had ever seen at that age, so to a 10 year old it seemed like a 'gushing river', but the scar now is so small it's hard for me to believe that much came out of it! Though I know it hit near the cartilage because I used to be able to see it and it always looked so funny to me, like bones poking through. Just another battle scar from my childhood.

This was the 7th post in a 15 week series I am doing to record my youth with other women. Check it out at

No More Cutest Blog on The Block!

2010-07-21T16:54:00.005+10:00

Just a quick note, I don't recommend using "Cutest Blog on the Block". I was very unhappy today to log on to find a message at the bottom of my blog page, where it usually had their logo, saying that as of Friday my layout would disappear. Granted it is a free source, so I didn't pay for the layout, but I really liked it and was considering paying them to get a matching header and button at some point soon. I don't know if they only have space to have so many background codes so new ones are being added while older ones are deleted, or if there is just a set limit for how long you may use any given background for free. I didn't see any disclosure about it when I first grabbed the background, but either way I am seriously disappointed with them. I don't want to change my layout a whole lot. I would rather stick with one particular layout for good. I realize the 'easy' answer is to purchase a custom made one, but I just don't have the money laying around at the moment for that.
Maybe I will make it my goal, when I reach 100 followers I will buy one. So now I guess I just have to branch out and hope there are many more out there who may enjoy the things I have to say!

Which on that note, sorry I have been slacking a little this week! After this past crazy week, I have been cleaning and generally keeping very busy!! I am hoping tomorrow or Friday to get a little more opportunity to sit down and finish a few posts I was able to begin but not end! And this is the first week in a while I haven't even had my Mommy's Piggy Tales story ready to go, I have next week's done, but not this week's!

Wordless Wednesday: Playing with Dolls

2010-07-21T08:27:00.002+10:00

Top Ten Tuesday: Baby Names

2010-07-20T15:30:00.001+10:00

Well I said last week that I would share my current top 10 baby names, these are mine though not necessarily husband approved. So here goes...
1. Aubree Nicole
2. Andrew Kale
3. Naomi Paige
4. Jonathan Andrew Daniel
5. Olivia Paige
6. Jeremy Andrew
7. Valerie Nicole
8. Jeffrey Andrew
9. Nicole Paige
10. Matthew Jonathan Kale

If you can't tell, their is a good bet our next child will have Nicole or Andrew somewhere within their name! I like having a family connection in some part of the name. Nicole is my little sister who I am closest too. Andrew is the name of Jon's Uncle who was a godly man but died of cancer when Jon was around 10. I find it interesting though, that my two favorite names are Nicole and Andrew, and my sister Nicole is about to marry an Andrew! Our family is full of repetitive names, by birth and marriage!

This posted is linked to

The 4-year-old Trouble Maker Strikes Again!

2010-07-19T12:49:00.006+10:00

What a crazy week topped off by an exhausting weekend!! Most of last week I was actually making decorations for a children's party I was throwing for a friend who is moving very soon.

I think handmade ones look so much better and are much more affordable then the store bought kind, though we used a mix of the two.

I made 6 butterflies and ladybugs, 30 flowers, 40 leaves, plus a 'pin the petal on the flower' with 20 extra leaves for the game. As you can see I didn't quite need to use everything, but most of it went up.

I also baked, frosted and decorated 2 9-inch cakes for the birthday girls. I am by no means a professional as you can see, but it is a hobby I enjoy, more so though when I am not feeling rushed, but the outcome is always something that makes it all worth it to me.

By the actual party, my house was quite a mess as all my time and energy went into finishing the decorations and cake, while also taking care of the kids as my husband Jon happened to be working some pretty crazy late hours last week. Saturday and Sunday I took to just relax and put my feet up amongst the usual weekend activities, such as grocery shopping and going to church. But this morning reality sunk in as I looked around my disaster of an house and realized I need to do some serious housework today. As Zachary began his morning nap I set out to begin clearing away the clutter in my living room as Natalie kept herself entertained in her room. Due to recent problems with her getting into trouble behind the closed door of her bedroom, she can no longer have it shut when she is back there to deter anything going on that shouldn't be. Apparently that was not enough! Unfortunately her bedroom is tucked away towards a different part of our home then the living room, so I don't have full view of what is going on, and as I cleaned, some very naughty little finger snuck some markers back into her room. This is what I found....

And yes that is marker on her face as well, though since its purple, from a distance it looks more like a black eye! And that is actually after she attempted to clean herself up as evidence of my bathroom hand towel.

No damage to any furniture or walls, though there is a small spot on her comforter where she set the marker without a cap. When I asked her what had happened (okay so it was pretty obvious) her response was a very innocent sounding "Somebody colored on me!" She was right, somebody sure did, but the part she somehow thought she could hide from me was that she was that somebody! An unmistakable fact considering Zachary was sleeping and I was cleaning and no one else is home! In the end she did indeed get punished (while I tried not to laugh at how she looked!) and hopefully learned a lesson though sometimes it all seems futile.
Welcome to my crazy and sometimes seriously frustrating life with a 4 year old trouble maker.

Comparing Baby Pictures for Fun

2010-07-16T10:00:00.001+10:00

Just for fun, I thought I would post 2 pictures from my kids early days.
This is my daughter, Natalie...

This is my son, Zachary....

Don't they look like they could be twins?!