Warning you may be grossed out, but the ending is Good!

At 4am, I woke to a little groggy voice saying, "aht ohhhhh, look what I did." The "did" was she peed in my bed (something that has only happened a few times in her 2 1/2 years). After getting everything arranged we went back to bed. In the bath this morning a familiar but disgusting noise comes from Braylon, if you are a mom you probably have guessed it, he pooped in the tub and yes there were 15 toys in the water. A quick manuever and I have two rinsed and clean, kids out of the tub and sitting in towels while Mommy drains the water. Another noise coming from Braylon, one clean kid in a towel and another with poop on his fingers, and all over his bottom half. Time to re-wash Braylon. Okay, kids are clean and dressed...now to tackle the house, I have sheets/blankets to wash, a matress to steam clean, dishes to be done, a bathtub and toys to bleach, a load of pee and poop laundry to wash, a batch of cookies to mix up and bake (this has been promised to one excited little girl and can not be avoided), school work for the same little girl, and all the other stuff that was already planned for today. With my son crying in my ear because he wants to walk or crawl but cannot- I am some how Excited about today. There is a feeling of anticipation, a sense of "waiting" is almost over, a Joy that passes all understanding. I am so thankful that my hope is not in the things of this world but in God. Even on this rainy, poopy day I can be glad, "Because my GOD reigns!"

I am missing this.....

Swing on by....

There is a new blogger, please swing by to check her out!

This is how I feel.....

Wanna Paint With US??

Never should have answered the phone.....

Running behind

I think by Friday I need to wrap up everything I did not get done during the rest of the week. With track meets and practices I am trying to shove the same stuff in less amount of time, leaving me with a longer list of unfinished tasks at the end of the week.

With all of my unfinished work, my mind is whirling again this Friday:
1. School with Audrey has been a success this week :)
2. My front room is a MESS!
3. I need to contact Mindy about PC.
4. I need to get with KitchenAide
5. My daughter keeps telling me she wants to be a "sneaky girl" (this cannot be good).
6. It is so nice outside!
7. Braylon is so unhappy, if only he could turn his rocking into crawling or his standing into walking.
8. CSI is very nosey! :)
9. I am losing my babysitter on Tuesday, anyone have a recommendation?
10. My brother will be moving in soon :)
11. Wow, if he is moving in soon, I better get all the junk out of "his room."
12. HUGE garage sale coming soon, after the junk has been sorted!
13. Time to leave blog land again and face reality :)

Tired

I am tired! My mind is tired and my body is tired (thank you Carla for the workout). I really really really want to take a nap, both kids are sleeping right now (that never happens). But since that never happens I should take advantage of the time and get somethings accomplished. I could work on an application, keep going through junk to toss and organize, or fold laundry-none of which sound like fun. Here it goes, off to find some ambition in the form of cheesecake :)

April 14th 1982

Who would have known that April 14th 1982 would be such an important day in my life, the lives of my children and the many other people God had planned to cross paths with my loving husband. I suppose if you ask his parents they would have told you that without a doubt someone special was born on April 14th 1982. It is amazing to me how God's plans unfold (sometimes I wonder if it is good that I am still so amazed by God) God knew before my birth that he was going to put a man on this Earth that would be the leader of my family. More importantly than my family God planned events in this man's life that would make him a mighty warrior for the Kingdom. If you have not figured it out yet, today is Aaron's birthday! He is 27 years today and has accomplished alot in a few amount of years. I am so proud of him! So not to embarass him too much I will only make a short list of the reasons I am proud to be his wife and partner in life.
1. He is loving and playful father
2. He prays for his family
3. He considers God's plans when making his plans
4. He provides financially and emotionally for his family
5. He is a hard worker but makes time for fun and laughter!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY BABE!!
You can send him wishes here

Jamaican Kitchen

While in Jamaica we learned that the CSI kitchen could use a little stocking. The cupboards are not bare of food but are lacking in cooking supplies. Pinto does a WONDERFUL job of making many delicious meals and is always a crowd pleaser. I cannot imagine what kind of creations she could make if the kitchen housed cooking supplies made to manage the amount of food prepared on a daily bases. To help Pinto and the CSI staff a Pampered Chef Fundraiser party will be held in their honor. The party will be announced soon but in case you are on the edge of your seat and wondering how you can help, I will let you in on the secret.
1. Order product for your kitchen and the host points will be applied toward the CSI wishlist.
2. Purchase product off the CSI wishlist to be shipped to Jamaica. (wishlist will be posted soon)
3. Donate funds to help with costs not coverd by host points.

Eggs!!

Randomness

My mind is about a million places at once. I am trying to stay focused on the important areas of life (God, my family, friends) and let everything else fall into place but it is so hard! I am not worried about anything just excited and impatient. Here is a short list of the thoughts in my head this morning.....

1. We need to get more fish food before we have three floaters
2. I should take my wedding dress to the dry cleaners (it has only been 7 years)
3. What should I make for Easter lunch
4. Speaking of Easter today's weather is rather appropriate for Good Friday
5. I need to get working on the Jamaican Pampered Chef Fundraiser (more details to come)
6. Aaron's birthday is Tuesday (gift, gift I need a gift)
7. Should I get groceries this morning before the Easter rush hits?
8. My son is growing up fast, he just got his second haircut and really wants to be mobile
9. God, what are your plans for Jamaica???
10. I really want to start a short school routine with Audrey
11. God, what are YOUR plans for Jamaica???????
12. I am really proud of the track teams performance last night :)
13. Braylon is looking sleepy and Audrey is still sleeping maybe I can get my Bible time in.....I guess that is the cue to leave blogland!

Remember Christ died for us, today. Would you let your child take a beating, three huge nails, a crown of thorns, mockery and death for a bunch of ungrateful people? God must really love us!!

Mark 15

Frustration

My daughter attends preschool (name I will not disclose) one day a week. When I signed her up I was told she would learn concepts such as big/small, weather, holidays etc. I was disappointed that they were saving shapes, colors and numbers for the three year old class but thought that the concepts they were teaching would be sufficient for one day a week, plus I liked that they had a fenced in outdoor playground. I was also told if Audrey appeared bored then additional work/involvement would be given to her. For the first few months when was asked what she did at school, "nothing, we played" was her response. I thought she was doing the typical child thing so I let it go. At Christmas time I went in because the class was supposed to sing a song or two. The teacher decided not to have the class sing and on top of it all, she never taught the real reason for Christmas (this is a church preschool). After this I started randomly stopping in, generally the kids were just playing no matter the time of morning I popped in. They play play- dough every week but are not allowed to be creative, strictly use the play dough toys for their specific purpose, no exploring. The class is very rigid ( I agree with structure and schedule) but this is taken to extreme, making sure everything planned for the day is completed even if that means rushing the children through craft time. Another kicker was on Audrey's special day (replacement for her summer birthday) her father and I were invited to share snacks with the class. I have never felt so unwelcome, it was treated as if we were in the way. The kids were not told that it was Audrey's special day, we were not thanked for the snacks, and nothing special was done for "Audrey's birthday." (I could have just sent in snacks, I mean Aaron left work for this!) At this point I was ready to pull Audrey out of the school but she likes going and she is socializing with others. I had decided I would finish out the year and try something new next year. I was also going to sit down with the director to discuss my feelings, including that the director had lied about the class (they NEVER go outside, Audrey is not given additional work and they do not learn biblical songs). I am not even sure they discuss concepts at all! After today, I may be wasting my time with the director. When picking up Audrey, I was rudely told to move my car (as if I was not a parent getting MY child) and guess by who, the Director! Oh and guess what Audrey learned about Easter today, Humpty Dumpty sat on a Wall! I am not a big complainer and usually let things slide but this is frustrating! I don't know if I should just pull her out? Let her complete the year (she is not learning anything bad) and start over next year? Should I even waste my breathe discussing my concerns? Any thoughts?

New editions

Welcome Audrey's Fuzzy, Braylon's Fuzzy and Perry!
(I bet you cannot guess who named them?)

Yummmm!

Chicken marinaded and seasoned with Jamaican spice and pineapple, green beans, french fries, fresh grapes and pineapple.......what a wonderful meal! You know what makes this meal even better? I did not have to cook it or clean up after it! My wonderful husband made a delicious dinner tonight and I really appreciate it!

Amazed, In Awe, Loved

God is AMAZING! I hope if you are reading this you know how wonderful the God I serve is. He has a plan for everything, EVERYTHING! That is a hard concept to comprehend. The past week has been a whirl wind of feelings, emotions, questions, answers and fun. During all of this, God has put some wonderful people in Aaron and my life. Ronn and Yvette Oren have been a huge blessing and influence in our lives in just a short amount of time. Although we have known them since this past summer we did not really get to spend time with them until our trip to Jamaica. I now feel like we have two new great friends, people that could give us spiritual guidance and share our dreams and disappointments. Just by being around Ronn and Yvette you can tell they love God, they want to do what is best for God and his kingdom, and they listen for God's call on their life and in the lives of others. Their relationship with each other could serve as an example of how God wants husbands and wives to interact, you can see they support each other, lift each other up, and approach life "together." It is amazing to me that God has put these two wonderful people in Aaron and my life. Maybe I should not be so surprised as to how our meetings came about because God is Amazing and therefore amazing relationships in Christ will be formed. God's timing is perfect and gives us what we need! Thank you God for putting these fun, supportive, loving, wonderful people in our life! Thank you Ronn and Yvette for your friendship, support and following God's call in your lives!

We are Home!

The trip home was a breeze.....We were not ready to leave but had a great time. Braylon is having a rough day as he enjoyed being held CONSTANTLY (as you can see from the above pics). Audrey is ready to return to her friends. Below is a video of Dora and Lydia (missionary kids in Jamaica) singing a Jamaican folk song (Audrey tried to help).