I learned something about myself yesterday.
I stand no chance when standing face to face with endless mashed potatoes.
A few other things I have learned in the last six weeks...
I can do just fine with a lot less sleep than I thought.
I could live in the mountains.
I am a fan of my husband and kids.
I am also a fan of Barnes and Noble.
Bob Ross is a genius.
I can develop and overcome addictions in a matter of weeks.
Midday court shows aren't so bad.
Doing what God wants is rewarding, even when it isn't.
This is my last post of the Colorado chapter of our travels. It makes me feel fuzzy inside thinking that I will be home in about 60 hours. I am excited to see my family and friends, to drive around without the aid of a gps, to know where the nursery is and know I can use it, and to be able to relax and be myself around people. For a glorious week I won't have to worry about what other people think. It is such a comfort to go home where you don't have to worry about what impression you are making on people. You can just be a jerk to everyone, and they love you anyway. :)
Right now, we are attending a missions conference at Penrose Baptist Church. It started on Wednesday and ends tomorrow night. It is a little exhausting being at church everynight until 10:30, but totally worth it. I told Tyler that if I could have chosen a church to end our time here with, it would have been this one. They are sweet people who care about people. There are two other missionary families here, and it has been great getting to know everyone. Yesterday, some church members took all the missionary kids to the zoo while the pastor and his wife took the adults to the mall. They bought all of the men a new suit, shirt and tie, and all the women a new outfit. If you know me, you know that my love language is gifts, so the thoughtfulness wasn't lost on me. One of the missionaries said he had been praying for a new suit for a while. It was a beautiful example of love, and I am honored that I was a recipient.
Which brings me to one last thing that I have learned.
When you allow God's love to show through you, people will notice. They can't help it.
Evelyn quote of the day:
Pastor: Can you give me a high five?
Evelyn: I can't. I'm too busy.
Evelyn: That was a train. It goes choo-choo.
Me: It does?
Evelyn: Yep. It's just a part of life.
Saturday, September 25, 2010
Saturday, September 18, 2010
Feeling sorry for myself...turns out I'm pretty good at it. Above average to be sure. I spent most of the past week honing my skills.
It started last weekend. On Friday, we drove to Denver to stay with a pastor and his wife for the weekend. First of all, it is really hard for me to stay at another person's house. I don't care how many times I hear, "Make yourself at home," I can't do it. It has taken me all of 7.5 years to feel comfortable staying at my in-laws. It's one of my many weirdnesses, but nevertheless... That started the stress. Harrison didn't sleep pretty much the entire weekend. That added to it. There were a multitude of other circumstances that elevated my stress level, some real and some imagined. By the time we left, I wanted to keep driving all the way back to Arkansas, kick the renters out, and hide under the covers of my bed in my room at my house.
Then a couple nights ago, I was laying in bed thinking about reading "Pride and Prejudice" again. Then I remembered reading it to Evelyn when she was an infant. Every time I would rock her, I would read out loud. I even did the British accents. It is one of my favorite memories of her early days. That started me thinking about what book to read to Harrison. That brought a whole deluge of poor me thoughts: I don't have a glider. Harrison doesn't have a room. I never got to decorate a nursery for him. I don't have a house. Blah, blah, blah. It upset me to the point of tears.
In the middle of my emotional distress, I had to start laughing at myself. (No, I am not losing my mind.) I realized (or perhaps the Lord reminded me) that I got myself into this whole mess by following a curly-headed boy into a concert all those years ago. Given the chance, would I do it again? Absolutely.
So, I am weaning myself off of feeling sorry for myself and starting to make a concentrated effort to encourage my husband (who maybe, just maybe doesn't love everything about this either). I am sure that I fail miserably everyday, but I am still working on it. And hopefully over the next year, I will be able to show him that I am behind him 100%.
Evelyn Quote of the Day:
In church the other night Tyler was preaching, and Evelyn was sitting on the floor in front of the pew playing with her toys.
Tyler: The disciples were legitimately scared. They weren't just throwing a fit.
Evelyn: (looking up) We don't throw fits.
The other day in the car...
Evelyn: I don't want to poop. It makes me tired.
It started last weekend. On Friday, we drove to Denver to stay with a pastor and his wife for the weekend. First of all, it is really hard for me to stay at another person's house. I don't care how many times I hear, "Make yourself at home," I can't do it. It has taken me all of 7.5 years to feel comfortable staying at my in-laws. It's one of my many weirdnesses, but nevertheless... That started the stress. Harrison didn't sleep pretty much the entire weekend. That added to it. There were a multitude of other circumstances that elevated my stress level, some real and some imagined. By the time we left, I wanted to keep driving all the way back to Arkansas, kick the renters out, and hide under the covers of my bed in my room at my house.
Then a couple nights ago, I was laying in bed thinking about reading "Pride and Prejudice" again. Then I remembered reading it to Evelyn when she was an infant. Every time I would rock her, I would read out loud. I even did the British accents. It is one of my favorite memories of her early days. That started me thinking about what book to read to Harrison. That brought a whole deluge of poor me thoughts: I don't have a glider. Harrison doesn't have a room. I never got to decorate a nursery for him. I don't have a house. Blah, blah, blah. It upset me to the point of tears.
In the middle of my emotional distress, I had to start laughing at myself. (No, I am not losing my mind.) I realized (or perhaps the Lord reminded me) that I got myself into this whole mess by following a curly-headed boy into a concert all those years ago. Given the chance, would I do it again? Absolutely.
So, I am weaning myself off of feeling sorry for myself and starting to make a concentrated effort to encourage my husband (who maybe, just maybe doesn't love everything about this either). I am sure that I fail miserably everyday, but I am still working on it. And hopefully over the next year, I will be able to show him that I am behind him 100%.
Evelyn Quote of the Day:
In church the other night Tyler was preaching, and Evelyn was sitting on the floor in front of the pew playing with her toys.
Tyler: The disciples were legitimately scared. They weren't just throwing a fit.
Evelyn: (looking up) We don't throw fits.
The other day in the car...
Evelyn: I don't want to poop. It makes me tired.
Saturday, September 11, 2010
Sorry for the 2 week lapse. I know that the 4 of you who follow my blog were really getting impatient.
Let's see, what have we done since August 27...
We have been to Taos, NM; Trinidad, CO; Denver, CO; Berthoud, CO; back to Fountain, CO; and are currently in Arvada, CO. And of course in between all of that, we were back home in Pueblo.
The kids are doing really well with all of the going. Evelyn is always excited to go to class in a new church. Unfortunately the majority of the churches we have been to don't have class. Only about 3 of the churches had kids that were anywhere close to Evelyn's age. She doesn't seem to mind as she believes that anyone and everyone wants to be her friend. It doesn't matter if they are 3 or 65. As a result, she has made alot of friends. More than I have. She only asks to go home about once a week. She doesn't quite understand that we have no home. I guess the minivan is like a home. :) She also has started talking like a baby. Isn't 2.5 years a little young to be doing that? I used to get in trouble when I did that as a kid, now I know why.
Harrison is doing well also. We weighed him yesterday for the first time, and he weighs 9 lbs 12 oz. He is getting really big! He has outgrown alot of his newborn clothes...time to go shopping! He slept the other night for 7 hours straight, and has not slept well since then. Last night he woke up at least once every hour from 1:30 on. He travels in the car really well, though! He and his carseat weren't getting along for a while, but they seem to have come to an agreement. It amazes me how different he and Evelyn are. She slept all the time, didn't eat very often, loved her swing and carseat, and didn't care at all for her bouncy seat. He is the EXACT opposite. The one thing they do have in common is their contentedness. Neither of them are criers. I guess if there is one thing I would want, it would be that. I can handle not sleeping. I don't think I could handle incessant crying.
In case you were wondering, Tyler is doing well also.
We got to have a family fun day in Colorado Springs on Wednesday. We went to Focus on the Family's headquarters where Evelyn fell in love for the first time...with the big screen playing Veggietales. We also went to Garden of the Gods, some thrift stores, and Cici's (Tyler's favorite part). Here are some pictures. The last picture is just to show how much hair Harrison has. :)
Let's see, what have we done since August 27...
We have been to Taos, NM; Trinidad, CO; Denver, CO; Berthoud, CO; back to Fountain, CO; and are currently in Arvada, CO. And of course in between all of that, we were back home in Pueblo.
The kids are doing really well with all of the going. Evelyn is always excited to go to class in a new church. Unfortunately the majority of the churches we have been to don't have class. Only about 3 of the churches had kids that were anywhere close to Evelyn's age. She doesn't seem to mind as she believes that anyone and everyone wants to be her friend. It doesn't matter if they are 3 or 65. As a result, she has made alot of friends. More than I have. She only asks to go home about once a week. She doesn't quite understand that we have no home. I guess the minivan is like a home. :) She also has started talking like a baby. Isn't 2.5 years a little young to be doing that? I used to get in trouble when I did that as a kid, now I know why.
Harrison is doing well also. We weighed him yesterday for the first time, and he weighs 9 lbs 12 oz. He is getting really big! He has outgrown alot of his newborn clothes...time to go shopping! He slept the other night for 7 hours straight, and has not slept well since then. Last night he woke up at least once every hour from 1:30 on. He travels in the car really well, though! He and his carseat weren't getting along for a while, but they seem to have come to an agreement. It amazes me how different he and Evelyn are. She slept all the time, didn't eat very often, loved her swing and carseat, and didn't care at all for her bouncy seat. He is the EXACT opposite. The one thing they do have in common is their contentedness. Neither of them are criers. I guess if there is one thing I would want, it would be that. I can handle not sleeping. I don't think I could handle incessant crying.
In case you were wondering, Tyler is doing well also.
We got to have a family fun day in Colorado Springs on Wednesday. We went to Focus on the Family's headquarters where Evelyn fell in love for the first time...with the big screen playing Veggietales. We also went to Garden of the Gods, some thrift stores, and Cici's (Tyler's favorite part). Here are some pictures. The last picture is just to show how much hair Harrison has. :)
Evelyn Quote of the Day:
We were at a Chinese restaurant, Evelyn pulled the paper out of her fortune cookie, held it up like she was reading it, and said, "You are very smart."
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