Olympics, Praises, and Stinkin' Marshmallows...

So, tonight, once again I find myself watching the Olympics on the edge of my chair. Michael Phelps. His name is sort of a sentence all on it's own. It says strength, determination, faith. What struck me though, and I'm not sure if I'm totally alone in this thought, was what about his mom? There she was in the stands, you could see her beaming, her pride in her son just brimming over. I guess maybe because I'm a little too old and well, just not exactly constructed for Olympic competition that I wouldn't necessarily put myself in Michael's shoes. Maybe it's because I am the mother of three amazing kids who I think could do anything. That I could jump into hers.

Maybe I have an Emmy award winning actress, or, well, do they have Olympic medals for climbing? Maybe I have a Nobel peace prize winner or the inventor of something incredible. Maybe this is why I immediately identified with Michael's mother. Without her, would he be where he is? Without God would she be where she is? It is not just a work of coincidence or of nature. I can't for a minute believe it's a simple fluke. God sent this child to this mother and this mother saw his gift and gave him the tools and the love he needed to fulfill his gift. She had to have allowed God to work through him. She had to have faith to hand him over to the pool. I did a little Googling on Deborah Phelps and found this interesting article on what kind of kid Michael was. It wasn't what I expected. He was not a scholar, or a well behaved little child. He suffered from A.D.H.D. and he was not a favorite of his teachers. It wasn't till he was almost a tween till they discovered his gift. I guess what I'm slightly bummed about is that in my googling I could not find some wonderful interview in which Michael and/or Deborah Phelps give all the glory of Michel's amazing gifts to God, because in my mind, that is where they belong. I had to remind myself that he seems to be a pretty humble guy and it's really not my business to judge his faith based on results of Googling "Michael Phelps faith in God". That is between he and the big guy. Back to the mom thing..so here is my question, and maybe a bit my paranoia. What if each and everyone of our children has a gift like Phelps? What if each of our beautiful babies has the God given gift to do something of greatness? What if Deborah Phelps had listened to his teachers and just chalked him up to a kid with issues that would never be able to focus on anything? What if she'd never taken him to the pool?

What about my kids? How do I know what their gifts truly are? I know Dax and Lily have gifts with body art and sharpies. I know that Lily used to hoard all sorts of things I deemed garbage in order to create art with...what if deterring this hobby because it drove me nuts was derailing her gift? What if Dax's monkey like climbing and insane upper body strength are leading him to greatness? What if Finn's champion fine motor skills will create a fine surgeon. What if somewhere in Lily's incessant talking there is hidden the cure for cancer? Or if Dax's "secret" Bean Car is the answer to the alternative fuel quest? What if I'm squelching them? What if I'm annoyed by the very skills that could facilitate my kids 8 gold medals? Help!

I then found this quote from Debbie Phelps. "As I look back, one of the hardest things I had to do with raising my son and both my two daughters was to trust they would be okay without me always by their side as they grew older. Like all mothers, we just want our children to be happy, safe and to excel in what they enjoy most. And as a mom, we do everything we can to make that possible."

And I thought...ok, I'm right there with her. And, I'm open. I'm struggling hard to listen to God's voice, to open my eyes to his plan for not just me, but for them as well. I'm praying fervently and now I will add to that prayer not just for him to use them for his perfect works but to open my eyes to the great gifts he has instilled in them. I will continue to pray for the resources to help them to grow those gifts and his grace in not allowing my mistakes to derail his plans for them. I will mostly remind myself daily that his love for them is bigger than mine could ever be, than I could ever even fathom. They are not mine, they are his. He put them in my care because that was part of the master plan. these children are perfect for me. Michael was perfect for her. Even our failures will teach them, will be part of His great plan.

I would be so incredibly proud to be Michael's mother. Honestly though, I am more proud to be Lily, Dax, and Finn's mother, because they were formed by His hands to be pieces of my heart, and for that I give God all the glory!


Praises...

Another beautiful summer day.

A very handsome, healthy new life!

A baby with the best hugs ever and one new tooth!

A husband who will take two kids to the store and make dinner

God's way of keeping me here instead of driving all the way to Indiana just to get a horrible cold and not be able to hold that beautiful little boy!

Everyone in my house having pretty good attitudes even with all the sneezing a nose blowing going on here (sorry if that was too much info)

The delight kids get out of $10 inflatable swimming pools

Chatting with mom and her having such a pleasant night last night with my brother and sister in law

Getting my hands on the DVDs for our new Bible Study. I'm only partway into the first one, but I'm already amazed by how in depth it is! I've not done Beth Moore before...this ought to be a new world for me!

Making the time this summer to dive into His word and listen better. I pray i can keep going as school starts

Lily's incredible excitement about going back to school (even thought the discussion of it is endless!)

Being able to sit and watch the Olympics and enjoy the time with my husband (at least between interruptions from half sleeping children!)

Life. How it just keeps going and how it's filled with such beauty if you choose to open your eyes to it!

Dax quote of the day....

"I NEED ONE MORE STINKIN' MAR SH MEL LOW!!!

Please! Please! justonemorestinkingmarshmallow!

I just need another marshmallow, just one, please

snif snif, mumble in a whiny meek voice... "I just wanted one more marshmallow, just one stinking marshmallow"

Praises...

Wow, did you see the Olympics tonight? Isn't it amazing to live somewhere that we are free to choose to watch these amazing games? Isn't it a great thing to feel such pride in your athletes who are not doing it for the billions, but for the love of the sport. I love seeing people using the gifts God gave them and being able to say to my kids, "look at that! You can do anything you set your mind to as long as you have God with you!"

Healthy children with no broken bones. We had a bit of a scare this week with a possible broken arm and a trip to urgent care. Turned out Dax's arm was not broken. This was a good outcome for his sister, since she was just in a tad bit of trouble for grabbing his arm so hard during a wrestling match.

A little boy with the pain tolerance of a rock. My guy came to me and just said "I hurt, I hurt, I hurt". I picked him up, put an ice pack under his elbow and he sat on my lap and giggled until I tried to move his fingers which brought forth a bit of a shriek.

Doctors and nurses who are quick, efficient, and have a good bedside manor.

Xray techs who can pop a "nursemaid's elbow" also known as Radial head subluxation back into place without even trying, causing a 3 year old boy to feel oh so much better!

Seeing my guy bounce back and forgive the big sister who caused the injury. He knew I wasn't happy with Lily and after we returned home from the Doctors and a run through McDonald's (I know, healthy...) he followed me into his bedroom and said "mommy, when we were at McDonald's Lily said she was sorry and I told her it was ok."

A daughter who apologizes behind my back. I can think of worse things she could be doing behind my back.

Phone calls. the last few days I have enjoyed catching up with a few people I love I haven't talked to for a bit...there are still a few out there I need to track down!

The anticipation of new life. My friend Amy is having a baby tomorrow. She has posted a couple of posts that have made me a bit weepy remembering those feelings. I am blessed for knowing her family and even though they are far away my thoughts and prayers are with them even if I can't be!

Beautiful, not horribly hot and sticky August days. I love these sweet warm sunny days before school starts as the summer counts down.

Lots of journal writing, someday maybe I'll get as far as putting some of it into a blog, but for the moment I'm grateful for the time and hands to get it out!

My brother and sister in law for always being there to take care of things faraway.

Remembering my Dad. This week his golf league took time to remember him with a lilac bush and squirt bottles for everyone. They all took a turn spraying his tree and each other in remembrance of hot summer days when my dad would provide the bucket of squirt bottles and the beginnings of water fights and laughter. I only wish I could have witnessed one of these events!

Those boys, they are at it again...

They look innocent, don't they?

Last night Finn started shrieking while we were fixing dinner. I found him sitting in the bathroom sink holding all of our tooth brushes, "brushing his teeth".

I'm not sure what the shrieking was about. He didn't want out and he fought me tooth and nail for the toothbrushes. Man that boy is strong, just like another one I know...

He could be the reason the always closed bathroom door was open. He was put in time out in his room this morning, only for me to go three minutes later to release him to see him standing in his open doorway. We've been doing time out on his bed, but there have been a few moments like this morning where I was in the middle of something and he needed a time out so I set him on his bed and closed the door. His door is equiped with one of those handy dandy child proof door knob covers on the inside of it. This is supposed to keep him in, right? So if I can't stand beside him and restart the timer every time he climbs out of bed, he at least can't leave the room. Right... So he looks up at me with those big blue eyes and says "I not like that thing on my door, Mama. I take it off, it's under my bed, wanna see it?" He then climbs under and produces child proof handle which he has dismantled. I guess the praise would be that I'm blessed with a very intelligent problem solver who did not leave his room, but waited till his time was over to share his exciting stroke of genius with his mama.

We had some sweet moments as I was supposed to be cleaning up the living room. There were a set of white sheets I was taking downstairs when I noticed the amazing sunlight streaming in the living room window. So, instead of finishing with my chores (and I must tell you this is where the "cleaning the house" part of the week took a sharp turn down a deep slope) I spread out a sheet on the floor/rocker and offered to take the boys pictures while they played in the sheets.

They added the ducks...

They looked so cute and pleased with each other...

and then it took a turn for the worse. Notice the faces...

It's not often a mom can get this kind of escalation on film to share with the blog world!




Caught in the act! This may be my favorite picture of the day. I think Sophie would like to warn you that no matter how sweet and innocent these boys look it can change in an intant! Before you know it they will be poking your eye, pulling your ears, or shoving something in your nose, maybe even climbing on you or dressing you up in a silly costume, so run fast, or duck and cover!

Taking Pictures in the Park...

Are you tired of this pose yet?

Let me show you what comes after...

It's sweet and sour all at the same time, isn't it, Allie?


This was one of my favorites of the morning...

Someone should tell a wanna be photographer that the place to start is not with five young children! If you could only see all 70 some pictures I took out at the park after church, you too would laugh. I did manage to capture a bit of personality...

Was almost perfect, till I noticed the stroller in the back round!!

Then I made the mistake of saying that out loud. Everyone took notes. Finn thought he'd go move it. Mike got to make a cameo...

Then the boys staged a revolt. Or should I say Dax did and took Finn along for the ride. If you don't have boys, you are really missing out...

So, we may not have managed 5 sparkling smiles all facing the camera, but we have lots of shots of those moments in time that will make us giggle for years to come!

There is a lotta love going on here!

My sister in law and nieces braved the long journey to our house to spend a fun filled weekend of bonding. So far Finn's little cousin, Allie, who is just 2 1/2 months younger, has tolerated his hugs and loving brutness fairly well. She does occasionally cry when he looks at her but I'm sure I would too if I saw him coming brimming over with his overzealous form of affection. They have shared toys, shared sippy cups, and shared puffs. She has taught him to say "bite" instead of shriek for more food and he has taught her that being mobile is cool, well, and how to duck when boys come at you looking all lovey...she'll use that lesson in life! And Sophie... she's loving the love too!

Working at the "Car Wash"

Today if you drove past my house, you probably thought we were having a yard sale... Nope, just a car wash! Or should I say a "stuff wash"

Which became a "kid wash"!

They needed baths, but I think I would have chosen something other than Dawn to bath them in!

Of course there were a few water fights and a few spider freak outs. You know, when you kick the spiders out of their summer home they tend to protest. But over all it ended with a sleeping baby, a worn out toddler, a pretty content tween, and a wet mama!



It was one of those rare almost perfect summer moments you want to tuck away in your memory for safe keeping filled with warm sun, baby giggles, and love.

Good Intentions

Today during the morning "quiet" time I decided today would be a day about intentions. At the end of this day, I'm tired! We spent close to two hours throughout the day in Dax's room for time out. Lily had about 3 grade A meltdowns and we never once set foot out of the house even though leaving home was part of plan A, B, and C. I didn't raise my voice once and everything I asked my kids to do today is done. I wanna leave the house tomorrow! Can I do this and go out?

Plan D, although crazy, involved some sweet moments. Dax, while picking up his bedroom floor which must have taken 3 hours by the time it was all said and done (should have taken about 3 minutes) pulled his Bible out from under the crib and shrieked with joy "My Bible!!". He then felt he needed quiet Bible time...
Finn decided this was something he'd enjoy too, so he put down his gobble gobble turkey book he also pulled from under the bed and joined Dax... Dax let him! And talked to him about the stories!
He pointed out Noah's Ark and David and Goliath.
Then Daddy came home and found us in the boys room. Lily joined with her mp3 player and they all shared the headphones and danced a bit. So, it wasn't my plan A, but somehow I think it was God's.
I am grateful for His words, and the flexibility to listen today.

I am grateful for kids that bring me joy and a husband who supports all of us in that everyday.

I am grateful for the moments I found today to intentionally begin to post photos taken in my home town...

Once upon a time I started this blog for me, for my family to share in our days and our praises. I opened it to the world because I felt like I was supposed to and there would be no way I could keep up two blogs. A few weeks ago I started another blog because I felt like I was supposed to. I left it there, suspended in the cyber world with nothing in it because I didn't really know what it was for. Today I began to post. Why today? Because it felt like the right day. For those of you who need a more logical answer, I don't know! =) There you will find pictures that will tell a story when the time is right. It may just be a place I put some of my pictures not related to my babies! Whatever it is, whatever it becomes or doesn't become you are welcome to stop in for a visit at Echoes of Grace.

They were just babies and then I blinked...

Who is this boy? He isn't all that small. He is bigger than last I looked! Where is that little guy I snuggled with as his first snow fell? Could it be that I've been too busy being amused by the inner workings of this guy...
with his thoughts of extreme shopping cart sliding?


or maybe just his extreme cuteness and the simple fact that he seems to be growing at warp speed.Have I forgotten to take note of this one's inner workings? Or have they just scared me a little?
Please little boy, don't ride off too soon. I'm enjoying the show way too much.
Praises...

a beautiful day for playing outside

church, we've missed it with all the traveling!

Communion Sundays, the faces, the music, the spirit

My husband who is willing to spend a little nursery time with the boys so I can soak in the spirit

Children's laughter

Sunday naps

A little girl (or I should say big girl) who spends quality time with her brothers after naps so mom and dad can just soak up the peace a little longer

Calls from mom with updates on those I love

Knowing no matter what anyone may see that God planted us just where we are and trusting in his plans

Why too much to blog is a bad thing...

So, I have an overwhelming amount of pictures and memories to blog from the past weeks of travel and visiting. You would think this would be a wonderful thing, it is! But...it has caused me to have major blogging issues. The organized part of my brain says I should blog behind before blogging ahead. The problem is I'm skipping out on daily blogs cause I'm the queen of procrastination. So I'm going to maybe post one back blog tonight...maybe, if I get that far, no pressure!

I just feel that I've skipped too many praise days and I need to get back on the horse!

Praises...

Safe journeys

time with people I love

coming home and letting my kids run free!

being able to walk around in pajamas all day is we wanna!

catching up on summer show recordings (before husband's threats to delete all dvr recordings comes to pass)

Funny little boys

baby hugs and a 15 month old who hugs with all his might and pats your back, gets me every time!

Great friends

limited Thursday night revival

daughters who try so hard to help (at least sometimes!)

days without high humidity

phone calls from California

a husband who will take two kids to two stores for two hours without nary a complaint

God's grace and ignition of passions
Hearing His voice

God's patience when we drag our feet and his forgiveness when get it wrong

Quiet time to read, write and pray (even if it involves a quiet 3 year old sitting over your shoulder and a quiet 15 month old climbing on your lap.)

Summer days which are all of the sudden flying by too soon!

American Idol Season Finale

No, I don't mean the one on TV, I mean the live concert...I can finally put this season to bed! My mom (who has got to be the coolest Nana) treated my sister in law, Lily, and I to a night on the town while we were in Ohio. The four of us got dolled up and headed for the rockin city of Columbus, Ohio. We had a 5 star meal at Applebees (ok, so maybe 2.5 stars) and then on to Schottenstein Center for a fun filled night of music and girl time at the American Idol concert.

I must confess, this was not the first for us. The four of us plus a 14 month old Dax attended the 2006 version. I know what you're thinking, what kind of crazy people take a 14 month old to a concert? Well that, and then there are my friends shaking their head at the thought of the horrible parenting move that involves keeping a toddler out till all hours of the night like that. So on one hand you're right, the seats we had last time were not appropriate for a baby. I think I experienced some sort of panic attack at the thought of dropping him during the show. As far as him being out that late, here is my theory... kids should, on a regular basis, go to bed at an appropriate time. Here it is 8 pm until napping ceases, then it may be earlier. Sometimes though, you gotta live a little! So next time you see a little person at Target at midnight on a Friday, don't assume that is their usual bedtime, breathe a little and think, "hey maybe they just came from a special trip to Chuck E Cheese and mama needed some Advil!". Ok, getting down from my podium and back to the story at hand.

Ok, so this time 4 girls, 10 singers, great seats (well, the best we were willing to buy), and one really bad camera. Seems that I have this hang up about carrying things to concerts or other places I may be walking a long distance or could easily drop something. I took no purse. I left my big, good camera at moms. I made this same mistake when I went to the Casting Crowns concert, you'd think I would have learned. I take that back, I did learn, at least a little. I knew we should take a camera, just not my big one. My mom's would be fine, but her card was full. I love my mama, but her theory on why empty a camera card when you can just buy a new one cracks me up! So she remembered she had her classroom camera and my memory card would fit in that one. Perfect. I put my card in and we went on our merry way.

Here we are sitting in the seats watching the pop tart guy dance around getting people all worked up. We buy some cotton candy, go to the bathroom again, racing back as not to miss any more of pop tart guy, and snuggle into our seats for the concert. I ask for the camera. I go to take the first picture and realize... there is no zoom. No Zoom. Who makes a camera with no zoom? Ok, Kodak, but that is not the point. Our seats are good, but um, yea, not that good! So I still take a few pictures, but they are really not blog worthy....

I bet you can totally tell that is a picture of David Cook on stage singing "Hello".

Here is a picture of Lily from the back, because I don't have any good ones from the front of this outfit... I think I owned it once, maybe my Freshman year. Long top, footless tights with lace at the ankles and Sam & Libby's (or knock off in her case. Are Sam and Libby still out there somewhere?)

Ok, so I kicked myself about the camera, until I saw that this one had video! yeah!! Then I got home and realized that the video has no audio. These are exciting videos! So then the question...what shall I blog?

I could tell you about the fun cast of characters we encountered while at the concert. I believe the church ladies from Saturday Night Live were sitting behind me. I heard comments all night long that made me giggle "well, she sure hasn't gotten any better, she's still just bad." "what is she wearing? that is horrible." "I wish they'd sing more of the old songs, I wouldn't want to sit and listen to this for very long" "those girls, those screams! They are going to pay for it in the morning! I hope they all wake up with sore throats and no voice, that'll teach them!" My favorite was, "Now, do you mind if I leave here a little early? you know, a lot of people will leave when the finale comes on. I think I'll scoot out right after David Cook sings his first song. That's all I need, just one and then I'll beat the crowd." I can't help it, I was seriously worried about this little lady walking around the parking lot on her own in the dark the whole time my boy was on stage. Who comes to a concert to leave early? This is a pet peeve of mine. But then, we stay in a theater till the credits are about done, we are one of the last ones to leave church each week, we don't like to miss anything. So for me, leaving a concert before the finale is like going to the fireworks and leaving before the finale, why bother going at all.

Wow, I was long winded there. I could tell you about the little girl with the glow stick, or light saber, or whatever the flickering object was that she kept randomly holding over her head and almost impaling my poor sister in law with. She would sort of drift off and the light would fall, but then she'd start waving it like a mad woman again and giggles would ensue from those behind her. There was the high five couple in front of me that were probably about my age but were just so stinking excited they just kept exchanging high fives. Or the 16 year old shuttle bus driver that just about turned the standing room only bus into a bowling lane on the drive back to the parking lot after the show. I'm still not sure he had a licence, maybe he stole the bus...who knows, there was more giggling and bonding at the prospect of mortal injuries by shuttle bus.

During the show I actually, consciously thought "what am I going to blog about this?" I had a whole plan. Wow, sad. Does this mean blogging is an addiction when you think about situations in in terms of how you might blog them? So, I thought I'd do a top ten list of my own. Let me tell you, it was a great idea. That was like weeks ago and with all the blogs floating in my mind I've forgotten the whole concept.

I can tell you I did not like the way this concert was set up as much as the 2006 version. I love when they sing together and this had very very little of that. Basically it was 10 mini concerts. Each finalist sang 3 songs, the last two had a few more. It was kind of a preview of what going to each of their concerts might be like. I can tell you, never ever go to a concert by Chikezie or Ramiele. He is still ok but boring, and she still is basically just bad. Michael Johns was voted out way too soon, he put on a great show. Believe it or not, Kristi Lee probably has a future in country music. Her singing is ok, but she had a great stage presence. Carly's would be a concert I'd go to. I love listening to her talk too! Brooke totally wins the award for the concert that made me smile the most. I think hers is the album I'd probably be most likely to buy. She just makes me happy. Jason was, well, Jason. He'd be the perfect guy to bring you a fruity frozen cocktail with an umbrella in it while you rested in a hammock beside the ocean in some remote place. He'd then plop down with his ukulele in the sand and give you a little concert...ahhh. Oh, sorry, I floated away there for a moment. Syesha and David Archuleta were both really, really good onstage, better than I thought. David A. totally wins the award for triggering the most obnoxious preteen screaming I've ever heard (well besides Finn of course). David Cook, what can I say. He apologized for being "awkward",, it was cute. He is amazing, but he still seems to not feel totally secure on stage. I loved hearing them, getting the chance to do songs that were much more individual to who they are.

And then...she has a grand idea! YouTube! I bet some others who where in the thousands at the concert with me had audio and video on their cameras!!!!

This is Michale Johns, taken from somewhere very close to where we were sitting...


Brooke, making me happy...


A little Jason...


A lot of Carly...


A Little of Syesha's Umbrella...


If you need to scream...


Brooke making me happy again...


Did you think I forgot him??


And the finale, for my girls...



Thank you for joining me for my rambling long winded blog entry. I am now officially putting American Idol to bed for the season! If you made it this far and you are really bored, while doing the research for this entry (haha) I was trying to find a link to an old church lady clip and I found this rather interesting article.