Otter/Golden Retriever

Yesterday I went to a mom's group hosted by our church.  We had this wonderful speaker come to talk about personalities.   It was sightful and a great reminder of how we are all so different yet so beautifully created by God.   I classified myself as an otter and a Golden Retriever.  Most of my personality falls under the otter category.  I like to have fun.  I enjoy people.  I'm ready for a party.   I think this is great and all Otters are wonderful.  However, there are also qualities of an otter that need a little bit of help.  Like staying organized.  Yes, this is a weakness of mine and I am trying my best to get better.  But maybe I will never be as organized as I would like to be.

I also have a little bit of Golden Retriever in me.  I'm easy going.  I'm patient.  It reminds me a little of my 2nd child.  These are great qualities but it can also mean that I let others be in charge when I really want to be.  Or that I am lazy and won't get things accomplished.

All I know is that I am not perfect, but I do need a lot of prayer.  

  

Memorable First Date

Describe a Memorable First Date  (Mama Kat's Writing Workshop)


Back in 2000, I traveled to Australia and ended up staying for almost six months.  I met a lot of wonderful people and had a memorable time.   In an effort to keep me in the great land down under I had many people trying to set me up with an Australian man.

My second of my three blind dates, down under, was a memorable first date.   He picked me up at the house I was staying in.   He was very tall and also very polite.   He began to ask me the general get to know you questions.   We were less than 10 minutes into our date when he asked what I had done in Sydney.  I told him I climbed the Sydney Harbor Bridge.   He asked me what I thought of it and I gave him my honest answer.  It was fun, but not worth the money.  That is when he told me that we were climbing the Bridge as part of our date.  Oops...I spoke too soon. 



Despite my blunder it was a very fun date.   But I am no longer in Australia because we never went on a second one.  

Soccer Junkie

I've grown up playing soccer and met my husband playing soccer but I have never considered myself a "soccer junkie".  I'm admitting to it now.  Today the Women's U.S. team played their first game in this year's World Cup.    It was on earlier today but I had plans to meet a friend with her boy.  I considered canceling so I could stay home and watch the game.  I'm serious.  However, I discovered that the game was going to be rebroadcast this evening. 

I went to the park and shielded myself from any type of news feed so that I would not learn the outcome of the game.  In fact I didn't even call my parents because I thought they might just leak the score to me.   So I was able to watch the game tonight with few distractions.  I admit I'm a soccer junkie. 

First Kiss

My four year old had his first kiss.  A real face to face, lip to lip kind of kiss.  At least this is the first one I was able to witness so I can't completely verify that it was his first. 

It caught me off guard a little.  He is great friends with this girl so it wasn't a stranger, but still I wasn't expecting it.  

It made me a little sad at first.  My boy is growing up and he will have many more most of which I won't be able to witness.

Then it made me wonder.  How do these kids learn these things?  They are obviously watching us (my husband and I) and others and know that kissing is socially acceptable and is a way to show affection to someone.  Is this what he is thinking?   Does he even think about why he should kiss her?  

And to think he is only four.  There are many other adventures and experiences I will have as a mother. 

You Make Beautiful Things

One of my challenges is trying to decide what to write about.  I think about things all day long but when I sit down to write I forget.   Today I told myself I would write about the song I heard in church.  

Every time I hear it and try to sing, I cry.

A little over eight years ago I met a guy named Tyler.  He played soccer on my co-ed team.   Not only was he a fun person to play soccer with but he was a very sweet guy.  He was one of the people I always looked forward to seeing on Friday night simply because he was so enjoyable to be around.   Tyler met Mandy.  She also played on our soccer team.   Just like Tyler she was a good soccer player and had a heart of gold.   They fell in love and were married a little over four years ago.  

One week before they were married they learned that Tyler had cancer. 

Last December Tyler lost his (almost) 4 year battle.  He was a fierce and courageous fighter.  It was very difficult for all of us.   And I can't begin to imagine what Mandy has been through and what she continues to go through.

A few days later I went to church and heard this song.


You Make Beautiful Things  by Gungor

all this pain

I wonder if i'll ever find my way?

I wonder if my life could really change at all?

All this earth

Could all that is lost ever be found?

Could a garden come up from this ground at all?

You make beautiful things

You make beautiful things out of the dust

You make beautiful things

You make beautiful things out of us

All around

Hope is springing up from this old ground

Out of chaos life is being found in you

You make beautiful things

You make beautiful things out of the dust

You make beautiful things

You make beautiful things out of us

For some reason the words really spoke to my heart.  I will never understand why people have pain or why they leave this earth so early.  These lyrics did not answer those questions.

However, this song reminded me that God makes beautiful things.  Tyler was a beautiful person and I am so thankful I was able to know one of God's beautiful creations.   

You are missed Tyler!

Shopping Carts

There are certain things that bother me and one of them is shopping carts.  It really gets under my skn when I see a shopping cart sitting in the middle of a parking lot.  Usually they are positioned in a parking stall which makes it difficult to get a mini-van in the spot.  Stores have made a great effort in providing places to return the cart without having to walk all the way back to the store.  Because it is usually quite a long walk back to the store.  

Now as a parent I understand a bigger issue with shopping carts.  What do you do when you have a kid and you strap them into their car seat only to realize that you still need to return your shopping cart.  I have been in this situation and I have actually unbuckled my son just so I could return the shopping cart.  I have since learned to park near the shopping cart return area.   So, for mothers I understand the need to leave the shopping cart right by your car.  However, for others I just don't understand why people can't simply return the shopping carts to their correct place.

Unfinished projects

My sister challenged me the other day.  "I thought you said you were going to have something on your blog every day."  Yep, she was right.  That is what I said, or in this case wrote.   I have failed.  I have yet another unfinished project that is not being completed.  It is frustrating for me sometimes because I feel like I have a never ending list of projects and none of them ever get finished.   Although that is a little different with this blog because hopefully it will not be finished soon.  Instead I hope to be more consistent, to write more so that I can improve on my writing skills. 

So what makes it so hard for me to write one simple thought every night before I go to bed.   I really could list a lot of reasons, but I don't want to make excuses.  Instead I want to do something about it and I want to try again.  I'm going to keep trying, keep writing and keep praying.  (that is kind of like my grandma's motto).  

But for now it's time for me to get some sleep.  

Faces & voices

What is something you could stand to learn from your significant other? (Mama Kat's Writing Workshop)


My husband is confident, outgoing, sensitive, and has an ability to make anyone laugh.  I could learn a lot from him, but I most want to learn how he makes all those silly voices and characters come to life.  

He makes the gurgling sound as if he is talking while under water.  I try to make the sound and it sounds like I'm passing gas.  This is when my boys just look at me kind of funny.

He can imitate a robot complete with movement and sound.  And he can be a robot for as long as his boys need him to be. 

When it comes to accents, he can imitate any and I should just not try. 

He makes faces and impressions that can make our boys laugh until they cry.  While I would really love to learn how to do these things I am thankful that he can be the entertainer in our family. 

Happy Hour

Girls Night Out! Describe the last time you got to hang out with your friends? What stops you from doing this more often?  (Mama Kat's Writing Workshop)

Recently, I was invited to join a group of high school friends for happy hour.   It used to be just four women but I was invited and it now makes five.   We meet at the same restaurant which is just about in the middle for all of us.  My relationship with each of these other women is different from the other.   I love how we all have different backgrounds, yet are in a similar stage of life.  And still we all have our problems, our joys, our struggles, our dreams and we can laugh and cry all at the same time.

While they are not my closest and dearest friends, they are such an encouragement and such a breath of fresh air. After a few glasses of wine we always walk away with more love and appreciation for each other than we had before.   I'm hoping we can continue our Happy Hours well into our Happy Years of life.  

We would have this more often, but we are all mothers and wives and women.   We love our families dearly and treasure the time we have with them but also always look forward to our Happy Hour. 

Life without kids

Describe what you think your life would be like if you had never had kids.  (part of Mama Kat's writing workshop) 

I think about this often.  We (my husband and I) talk about it and wonder what we would be doing and where we would be.  We would probably be eating out three or four times a week and I would rarely get to practice my fine cooking skills.  Playing in soccer games or pursuing other sporting activities would be high on our list of activities, possibly playing every night.  I would probably still be in the classroom trying to inspire, motivate and encourage the youth of tomorrow.  We would have plenty of money to go on fancy vacations wherever we wanted.  We would be well rested, healthier, and there would be a lot less stress in our household.  But I would not be truly happy.

Life without kids is not part of who I am.   I have always wanted kids and always wanted to be a mother.  I am so thankful for where I am in life and know I am more than blessed with my three wonderful boys and husband.   

Summer & Sandwiches

Comfort food at its finest. Share a family favorite recipe you loved as a child.

Summer & sandwiches.  These two things will always go together as one of my favorite childhood memories.  This wasn't just any sandwich but a sandwich made by my mom and passed down from her childhood memory. 

Peanut Butter, Mayonnaise and Pickle Sandwich.

To make this sandwich perfect you must first toast the bread.  Once this is done you put a light layer of mayonnaise on one slice, peanut butter on the other and finish it off with pickle slices in between.  

It goes best with a glass of lemonade and is always finished off with a fudgesicle.

I can eat one of those today and I'm instantly reminded of summer days of swimming and playing without any cares in the world.   Oh, to be young again....