Wednesday, June 25, 2008

FOURTEEN FUN YEARS


MARK AND I CELEBRATE 14 YEARS OF MARRIAGE TODAY. I COULDN'T IMAGINE MY LIFE WITHOUT HIM. HE IS SO FUN, QUICK WITTED, HARD WORKING, AND RESOLUTE, NOT TO MENTION, A SWEETHEART! HE HAD A PRESENT FOR ME IN THE KITCHEN THIS MORNING WHEN I WOKE UP. IT WAS A BEAUTIFUL PICTURE FRAME WITH A TOUCHING CARD. IT WAS SUCH A NICE WAY TO START THE DAY. I HAD TO BE IN TYLER ALL DAY TODAY SO I DID NOT MAKE IT TO MY OFFICE. THE GIRLS I WORK WITH LEFT ME A MESSAGE TO STOP BY THE OFFICE BEFORE I HEADED HOME. WELL, THEY WANTED TO MAKE SURE I SAW THE DOZEN YELLOW ROSES THAT MY HUBBY SENT ME ON OUR SPECIAL DAY.
YELLOW ROSES ARE MY FAVORITE! I JUST THINK THEY LOOK SO BRIGHT AND CHEERFUL AND NOT WHAT YOU USUALLY SEE. YELLOW ROSES SIGNIFY FRIENDSHIP AND THAT IS SOMETHING I REALLY VALUE IN OUR RELATIONSHIP. MARK AND I WERE CLOSE FRIENDS BEFORE WE EVER WENT ON OUR FIRST "DATE". I THINK THAT HAS BEEN A TRUE BLESSING IN OUR MARRIAGE. WE GENUINELY ENJOY EACH OTHER. NOW, WE HAVE OUR DAYS WHERE... WELL, WE DON'T ENJOY EACH OTHER. I MEAN REALLY, SOMETIMES EVEN MOTHER TERESA WOULD GET ON MY NERVES...I CAN BE MOODY THAT WAY. I KNOW, THAT IS SO HARD TO BELIEVE ;-). I CAN'T IMAGINE WHY, BUT MY SLIGHTLY OBSESSIVE COMPULSIVE NATURE CAN CRAWL ALL OVER MARK'S EXTREMELY PRACTICAL & LAID BACK NATURE. WE REALLY BALANCE EACH OTHER WELL AND I THANK GOD FOR GUIDING US TO ONE ANOTHER. I AM LEARNING THAT MARRIAGE IS TRULY A GIFT AND THE MORE YOU REALIZE IT IS NOT ABOUT YOUR HAPPINESS BUT HOLINESS...THE HAPPIER YOU REALLY BECOME. AS USUAL, THE MORE YOU LET GO OF YOURSELF AND FOCUS ON YOUR RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD, THE BETTER EVERY RELATIONSHIP IN YOUR LIFE BECOMES AND THE MORE YOUR APPRECIATE THE GIFT OF LOVE AND FRIENDSHIP FOLDED UP IN THE EVERYDAY MOMENTS.

Wednesday, June 18, 2008

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME!


TODAY IS MY BIRTHDAY AND IT HAS BEEN FUN. MY SISTER, TERESA STARTED MY CELEBRATION EARLY BY TREATING ME TO DINNER AT THE OLIVE GARDEN. IT WAS SUCH A SPECIAL TREAT TO HAVE THAT TIME WITH JUST THE TWO OF US. THE BOYS LEFT ME A SINGING MESSAGE ON MY CELL PHONE THIS MORNING WHICH I SAVED, OF COURSE. THE GIRLS AT WORK SURPRISED ME WITH A CHOCOLATE EMERGENCY KIT, SALAD LUNCH AND SOPAPILLA CHEESECAKE. THEY EACH MADE A WONDERFUL SALAD AND WE ALL ENJOYED it ALL AFTERNOON. I AM REALLY BLESSED TO WORK WITH SUCH GREAT PEOPLE. WHEN I GOT HOME THE BOYS TOOK ME OUT FOR DINNER AT MY FAVORITE CHINESE RESTAURANT. THEY EVEN SLIPPED ME A CUPCAKE WITH A CANDLE AND SANG HAPPY BIRTHDAY. I AM THANKFUL TO BE ONE YEAR OLDER. EVERY YEAR OLDER IS ANOTHER YEAR OF PRECIOUS MEMORIES AND HARD EARNED WISDOM. THOSE THINGS MAKE EACH YEAR SWEETER...ALTHOUGH, I COULD PROBABLY DO WITHOUT THE WRINKLES THAT COME WITH THEM!

Sunday, June 15, 2008

FATHERS

WE HAD A GREAT TIME CELEBRATING WITH OUR FATHERS IN TENNESSEE. MY DAD REALLY ENJOYS SIMPLE GIFTS AND MY SISTER, TERESA AND I TOOK HIM HIS FAVORITE CANDIES. WE SPENT THE AFTERNOON WATCHING A CUBS GAME WITH HIM AND LAUGHING AT OLD STORIES WITH 3 OF MY OTHER SIBLINGS. MARK'S DAD IS SO SWEET. THEY SPENT THE WEEKEND WORKING ON HOME IMPROVEMENT PROJECTS TOGETHER.

KIDS CRAVE TIME WITH THEIR FATHERS. DADS ARE SO BUSY PROVIDING THAT THOSE MOMENTS CAN PASS BY BEFORE THEY GRAB THEM. MARK WORKS HARD TO TRY TO BALANCE THAT. HE MAY HAVE TO MISS SOME THINGS THAT I WISH HE DIDN'T BUT HE HAS A GREAT ABILITY TO MAKE ORDINARY MOMENTS SO FUN AND SPECIAL FOR OUR KIDS. WHEN MASON WAS ABOUT 3, HE AND MARK HAD A SATURDAY MORNING RITUAL. THEY WOULD VISIT THE DAIRY BAR TO GET SAUSAGE BISCUITS AND THEN GO TO THE "HARDWORK" AKA HARDWARE STORE TO LOOK AROUND. HE LOOKED FORWARD TO IT EACH WEEK. ANDREW NOW HAS A GOOD TIME JOINING IN THE TRIPS TO THE HARDWARE STORE AND GETTING DONUTS FOR BREAKFAST WITH DAD ON SATURDAY MORNINGS. IT LOOKS LIKE THOSE SATURDAYS CONTINUE AS THEY NOW WORK TOGETHER. LITTLE BOYS WANT TO BE LIKE THEIR DADDY. I AM SO THANKFUL THAT THEY HAVE A DADDY LIKE MARK. HE TRIES SO HARD TO WATCH HIS STEPS... LITTLE FEET ARE FOLLOWING BEHIND.
WE LOVE YOU, DAD!

Thursday, June 12, 2008

WE ARE OFF TO TENNESSEE...


WE ARE PACKING AND GETTING READY LEAVE TONIGHT. I USE THE TERM WE VERY LOOSELY. MARK IS CARRYING MUCH OF THAT LOAD SO I CAN MAKE SOME PROGRESS ON SOME TIME SENSITIVE PROJECTS AT WORK. I NEED TO FINISH PACKING MY STUFF AND CLEANING UP THE HOUSE SO WE CAN BE READY TO LEAVE TONIGHT. I ADMIT...I AM A LITTLE OBSESSIVE ABOUT THE HOUSE BEING SPOTLESS BEFORE WE GO ON A TRIP, EVEN A DAY TRIP. I HATE TO COME BACK TO A MESSY HOUSE. IT JUST TAKES ALL THE FUN OUT OF THE TRIP! WE WILL STOP BY THE ER TO HAVE ANDREW'S STAPLES REMOVED BEFORE WE HIT THE ROAD. I HOPE IT IS NOT TOO UPSETTING FOR HIM. I HAVE HEARD IT IS MORE PAINFUL TO HAVE THEM REMOVED THAN WHEN THEY ARE PUT IN INITIALLY. YUCK...BUT WE WILL GET IT OVER WITH.


MARK'S NIECE KAYLA IS GETTING MARRIED AND ANDREW WILL BE HER RING BEARER...OH THIS SHOULD BE FUN TO WATCH! HE LOOKS SO CUTE IN HIS LITTLE SUIT. I WILL POST PICTURES OF COURSE! I WILL ALSO BE SEEING MY PARENTS AND MOB OF SIBLINGS. IT WILL BE FUN TO SEE MY DAD ON FATHER'S DAY. HE WILL ENJOY HAVING THE BOYS VISIT ON HIS SPECIAL DAY. I CAN'T WAIT TO SEE TERESA AND HER EVER GROWING BELLY! I WILL MAKE HER WANT TO KILL ME WHEN I POST THOSE PICTURES AS WELL. :-O
WE'RE OFF!

Friday, June 6, 2008

A ROUGH WEEK FOR MY SWEET BABY BOY...

My Little Mr. Roo has had quite a week. He came down with a little stomach bug and had to "go poo poo" too much and then Thursday on our way to my office he had to throw up. I was quite the sight in my little kitten heals and black skirt standing on the side of the road holding a child over the curb to throw up! I know the construction workers really had to hold themselves back! There is just something so attractive about a girl with vomit in her hair. Needless to say, I turned the car around and came home. I called and cancelled my meetings and was mommy all day. Andrew so badly wanted to stop being sick and to make his tummy better. I raised his shirt to rub his belly and found this:
He told me he put a smiley face on his belly so it would feel better. By noon he was holding down crackers and took a long nap. Maybe his idea had merit! SO STINKING CUTE!!!

My baby was much better today so I was back to work. I had a 4:00 meeting so I met Mark at his office with the boys so they could go home early and spend the afternoon with him. I tried to call them around 6:00 when my meeting ended to see if the wanted to meet for dinner or if they already headed home for the night. I couldn't get Mark on his cell or at home. I did not think much of it, just thought they must be outside or at the "Yucky House". I got home and did not find them. I was changing out of my dress attire when I read this text message from Mark:

"CALL ME WHEN YOU GET OUT WE HAD AN ACCIDENT EVERYONE OK"

I called his phone again but could not get him. I wasn't sure if a car accident happened in the town he works in (15 miles away), on the way home, or in town. My mind was racing...I called him again. This time he answered. His reception was horrible. I could only hear every other word it seemed. I kept asking, "Where are you?"...again, every other word. I repeated my question and heard, "We_____the_______gency room."

I prayed...I didn't use a single word...I knew He knew my heart...I just wanted his comfort, peace, wisdom, strength...the unknown is hard for me even in the little things... this didn't feel little. My heart just hurt...Ok, this means someone is hurt, but OK. I kept telling myself to stay calm. I could feel my body trying to contain the shaking. I asked what emergency room but could not get enough reception for an answer. Finally I started texting him and confirmed they were at the emergency room in our home town. In the 2-3 minutes it took for me to drive to the ER, I continued to text Mark to get information to prepare myself..."Who's hurt"...Andrew. I put the phone down and drove as fast as I could while I wondered if it was a car accident or some other accident...my mind was racing. I held on to Mark's first message...EVERYONE OK!

I pulled up by the emergency room door and jumped out of the car and ran inside. The sweet woman behind the sliding window looked at me and gave me a reassuring smile and said, "You must be mom". Her smile made me relax and helped me gain the composure I needed to help my baby boy. I walked into the room and saw my baby alert and talking to daddy. He looked at me and said, "Mommy, I'm sorry I got in the dumpster." I bent down and hugged and kissed my baby and said, "You aren't in any trouble." It was then that I saw the 2-3 inch gash on the top of his head. I looked over at Mark to see his white t-shirt splattered all over with heavy drops of blood, the big circle of blood the size of a saucer on his shoulder where he scooped up our baby and held his head on his shoulder to run with him. Now my heart ached for Mark. What a terrible moment for him.

Mason came to me and whispered, "I know Andrew is going to be OK. Do you know why?" I said, "Why?". "Because I was praying for him while dad drove us here" he said in full confidence. Mason is such a little comforting soul. A little prayer warrior. I am so thankful for him...he is just great!

While we waited for the doctor to close the wound Mark proceeded to tell me what happened. They were cleaning up demolition at the new house while they waited for me to get home and have movie night at home. Andrew had been playing inside the house while Mark loaded large boards in the newly delivered dumpster. Mark had been walking in and out of the door on the back of the dumpster to place large pieces inside. He walked around to pick up some smaller boards and throw them over the top inside. What he did not know was Andrew ran outside and went inside the dumpster to find Mark. When Mark threw the first board over the side. He heard Andrew cry out from inside the dumpster and said his blood ran cold. They always say you cannot turn your back for a second. That is not true, you can. You just never know which seconds you are going to wish you hadn't. Mark ran inside the dumpster and found Andrew crying and holding his bleeding head. He jumped in his truck and drove home to wash the area and quickly saw the bleeding was bad and the gash was large. Mason grabbed a towel and wet it with cold water to place on his head. Mark drove to the ER holding Andrew across his lap and sent me the message when he knew things were under control.

The doctor irrigated the area really well and put 3 staples in to close it. My big boy did really well and was so brave. I think the forceful irrigation hurt worse than anything. Once the staples were in he was raring to go again. That is a boy for you. His body moves faster than his memory sometimes. We have told the boys that the dumpster is off limits, but it has been a while since we had an empty one to fill. That is why Andrew asked if he was in trouble... he remembered our rule... just a little too late.

Mark was just sick about the accident. I could tell he was shaken but as usual he was keeping Andrew laughing with fun conversation and promises of ice cream when the doctor was done. The doctor asked Mark again to confirm that Andrew never lost consciousness. Mark confirmed that Andrew was alert the entire time. The doctor looked at Mark and said, "I know you are just sick about this. Don't be too hard on yourself, he's gonna be fine. These things happen sometimes." I thought for a moment Mark was going to break down. I was so appreciative of this doctor and his compassion for a father in such a tough moment. God is so faithful to provide people in our path to comfort us in tough times.

As a parent you want to protect our kids from absolutely everything but the reality is...we can't. We want to do all we can to keep them from the dangerous stuff. We give them rules to follow that act as guardrails that keep them in the safe zone. We would lay ourselves in front of danger to protect them. Hmmm...does any of this sound familiar. This turned out to be another one of those moments God has shown me his nature through the gift of parenthood. He wants to protect us and gives us his word to live by...our guardrails. Jesus laid himself upon the cross to save us. The love that I can hardly contain in my little heart for my family is just minuscule compared to our Heavenly Father's love for us. It is too big for us to even understand. I just sit in awe of it...and found comfort in it as I waited with the unknown.

Thursday, June 5, 2008

Tuesday, June 3, 2008

MORE LITTLE BOY LINGO

Mason and Andrew have been extremely funny this week. I can't even remember all the reasons they made me laugh. I am so easily amused by these kids and I love it. I used to say they were cheap entertainment but that is not so true anymore. They get more expensive as they get older. Let's just say I get a lot of bang for my buck! Here are two funnies that stand out this week.

Any time Andrew sneezes he tells me he is allergic to something. He was helping me fold clothes and match socks and sneezed. He said, "I think I'm allergic to socks" and walked away. Later that day he sneezed while eating and said he was allergic to pizza. I think that worried him...he loves pizza. Socks on the other hand, he would be OK giving up and letting me sort them.

Mason is just too big for himself. He knows so much about so many things that it really makes me laugh when he mixes things up now. We were at the restaurant of daddy's choosing, Taco Bell, eating dinner. As I have said before, I am no stranger to fast food and have the cholesterol levels to prove it, but Taco Bell is even low for my standards. The meat smells like canned dog food...YUCK. I was somehow telling the boys that I could not take eating that stuff and did not know if I could hang with daddy eating like this. Mason then asked me if I was "forfeiting daddy". I said, "What do you mean?" and he said, "you know, when you break up, you forfeit". I CRACKED up laughing and Mark looked at me with a confused look on his face. Mason was frustrated because he knew he had the word wrong. He finally cracked a smile and asked me what the word was. I said, "do you mean divorce?" He said yes. For all of you that are wondering if I am calling it quits with Mark because of his eating habits, the answer is no. And more importantly, Mason was not serious when he said that, he was being funny. I'm glad he is not familiar enough with divorce to know how to use the word. I guess that really was a good use of the word forfeit...divorce is a form of giving up. I may forfeit the Taco Bell though!

For more funny stuff, go check out Mary's blog. She and her friends always post some cute stuff. ENJOY!

Sunday, June 1, 2008

KID OBSESSIONS

THIS IS WHAT I FOUND WHEN I OPENED THE BATHROOM CABINET...

IS IT JUST ME OR DO ALL KIDS LOVE BAND-AIDS?

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