bullet point babble

In the effort to get back into the swing of blogging, I've decided to spend the next 15 minutes babbling.
I only have 15 minutes because that is when I've got to leave to pick Ry up from baseball practice.
I'll bullet point babble so I can change subjects a million times without having to try to think of ways to connect the sentences :)

• One of my longest and dearest friends Holly has a daughter in law who is in labor today- Holly's son Wesley and her daughter in law Kelsi will give their baby girl Holly's middle name....Bond.  Precious Precious Precious!!
• I was able to be on a panel with 2 other parents today at Ryan's school.  He attends a small charter school that is funded mostly by Grants.  The 'monitors' of some of those grants flew in from North Carolina and Washington DC to interview parents and get a feel for if the grant money is being used appropriately.  I appreciate an honest conversation that is respectful with eyes wide open- when both the good and bad can be discussed in a way that is helpful to all involved....when solutions are sought and answers are raised....when what needs to be appreciated is and what needs to be changed gets addressed.  All that to say, it was a good meeting.
• 3 minutes
• Oklie turned 7 years old last week.  In dog years, I think she turned 49....my boys are ready to trade her in for a 'big' dog.  Sorry guys, no big dog for another 7 years...Shih-Tzu's are said to live to the ripe old age of 14.  
• Last one
• I shopped for a bit at Goodwill this afternoon...after shopping, I sent my friend Deb the following text "I just got you two things at Goodwill.  Remember that color is our friend AND promise not to judge until you try on :) :) to which she replied "Ha! Ha! I don't know whether to be excited or a little scared" .................ahahahahaaaaa.........both Deb...BOTH!!
• P.S. Julie- I got your message- It was so nice hearing your voice...Miss you and will call soon- Give Isaiah a hug from his Auntie Steph and tell the rest of the fam Hi.

Gotta Go- It's 5:34

Looking forward to this!!

Just a thought

I wonder if.....

• Instead of a $135,000 fine for refusing to make a wedding cake for a gay couple (the fine is for emotional, mental, and physical suffering)- the judge should have made a 'statement case' by ordering the folks complaining, to, accept the bakery owners for who they are...to walk away from the situation vowing to show the bakery owners kindness if there were to see them again- to do the very thing that they themselves were demanding....acceptance for the way another thinks.  Is the gay couple looking to take the easy way out and demand the bakery owners do the very thing they themselves are unwilling to do?
• To be fair to the couple asking for the cake and to put the refusing bakery owners under the same lens....As a Christian, our life is called to emulate Christ- that being said, we could ask ourselves the popular phrase...WWJD.  We know His focus would be how He could reach the heart- We know He never steered away from serving the sinner- We also know that He did not wait to show His love until we accepted Him but instead died for us 'while we were yet sinners' (Rom 5:8).  Is our calling to bake those cakes, all the while praying for the ones receiving- that they would come to know Christ's love....that the Lord would touch the heart of each person at the wedding....Is baking the cake an opportunity to show love or is it an opportunity to take the separating stand.  Does it make for a light on a hill or for unnecessary unloving static......
• Is the gay community being too demanding- Accept us or else.....fines, verbally lashed, shunned, etc
• Is the Christian community being too self righteous...too conditional- I won't serve you on the basis that your a sinner (and I'm not)....I have to agree with you to accept you.....

I heard my brother in law say that 'Life is a process'- It really is....we don't always get it right. probably most of the time we get it wrong.  we are always learning- everyone of us.  I wonder if it's during the learning process that showing each other love is most critical....most beneficial when it comes to real change, the change that starts in the heart and works it's way out...the kind of change that diminishes ignorance and promotes respect.
Will the fine change the bakery's owners hearts.....
Will not baking the cake change the gay couples heart.....
every person who reads this blog will unanimously answer the same
So was anything accomplished or was the band aid, yet again, put over the stitch required wound,
It seems that showing love, whatever that looks like in the situation, is a sure fire way to get it right-
I wonder if the reason Jesus focus is so much on Love in the Bible (over 550 times) is because He knew that would be one of our biggest struggles....To love one another

I don't know, it's all just a thought guys.....just a thought

p.s. If any arguments start under my facebook newsfeed I will delete them- Not because I do not respect your opinion but because this post is about showing love....not about being divisive.  You can send me any and all comments to my personal inbox or to this blogs comments (which I will not post).

next to his duck call and trail mix

I glanced down into his bag- the one sitting in it's usual spot when he is home (on the floor in front of the bar area in the living room) and my eye's stopped.  I bent down and picked up the entire bag to make sure that what I thought I was seeing, I was actually seeing....
There, next to my Eli's duck call, trail mix, and mask, in the bag he takes back and forth to the Fire Department on the nights he is on a 24 hour shift, is his Bible.
Never forget how much you need God's Word Eli Ben....
You'll never be sorry that you took it with you into your daily life
There's not a word written that won't do your heart good
There's never an answer to your life's ups or down's that you won't find in it's pages
Carry it always- both with you and in your heart

Well Done Son.

batting as a cougar

By school day, our Ry is a Logger...He attends school in a small mountain town 25 minutes away from our house.  The benefits of attending school in a small mountain town is that you go to a small school...like 15 kids or under in your class.  Everyone knows your name (cheers) and the teacher to student ratio is such, that falling through the cracks is virtually impossible.  One of the obstacles faced when attending a small school is the extra curricular activities that are a given at the bigger schools don't always pan out- it can come down to a simple case of not enough students go our for a certain sport to make a team possible.
This is what happened with baseball this year.
In an effort to be a good neighbor, another small mountain town about 40 or so minutes away from Ry's school offered to co-op and allow the kids that wanted to play ball to come practice (and play) on their team...Ry and Spencer signed up
From 4:00- 6:30 each day and at games, Ry is batting as a cougar
Tonight's double header proved two things.....
Them cougar's know how to play ball (awesome win guys 10/3)
and our Ry has the same talent in baseball my dad has- Ry never owned a glove, ball, or bat before the first practice in March....
BUT
boys a natural
he's got game
Awesome job Ry- Daddy and I are so proud of you!

Great game boys- Keep up the good work!

hawaiian hay and sunriver

Our family vacation was a bit chaotically planned this year

I was thinking 10 days on Maui over the boys spring break

Matt was thinking something closer to home and a bit less expensive because he wanted to buy hay equipment

before he knew I was thinking Maui and before I knew he was thinking hay equipment I booked a surprise trip to Maui

The delivery of the surprise definitely did not go as planned

we fought for days :) the hawaii trip was cancelled (or I would like to think rescheduled for a later date) and the hay equipment was bought

this all went down at the beginning of February

by the end of February Matt was asking if I would book our family a house in Sunriver (a small resort town about 3 hours away from our house) for the week of Spring Break.  

At first, I refused to book a house in Sunriver and told Matt if he wanted to take our family there it was a good time for he to teach himself how to search the web for a rental home- booking the trip to Hawaii had taken a great deal of time (and saving) and I was burnt out (and still a bit angry).  I also explained to him that we live in the woods on a daily basis and I didn't want to go spend a week in the woods 3 hours away.   

February made way to the beginning of March...I was home one Sunday afternoon and realizing that the reality was, with this short of notice, Sunriver would probably be the best choice for us. It also dawned on me that our family vacation did not need to be all my way- as my good friend and cousin Becca would say 'JUST YIELD'- so I yielded to the result of my anger (which was to make Matt book the trip)....
As I started searching what was available in Sunriver during the week of Spring Break I came across an add from Mountain Resort Properties- they were offering the 4th night free at their house on 6 Mulligan Way. 

We left Monday morning and got home this afternoon- 4 days, all 6 of us (we took Oklie)

From start to finish IT WAS SO MUCH FUN

p.s. told matt that I will think of the hawaiian vacation we about had when I see the hay he plants- I think he should market it as 'hawaiian hay'- he doesn't agree :P

p.s.s. make sure and watch the video at the end- ryan goes over the handle bars of his bike into the mud :)

perfected parenting....whatever

I was thinking about one of the biggest lessons going back to parenting a small child has taught me.
practice does not make perfect
just because Matt and I had over 15 years of parenting under our belt when our Elle's joined the fam it did not make us 'experts' or 'perfected'
it was my mistaken belief that it did
practicing parenting is not perfected.
it doesn't end with a verb and then a period and blanket the future of our parenting endeavors
that's not how God made it
just when we think we've perfected, the season changes
just when we think we've got it all figured out, we realize that what worked with the last 2 doesn't work on this one
we're all unique, needing to be seen for who we actually are- who God made us

Ellie is teaching me so much about not sweating the small stuff
about choosing to hold her heart instead of my discipline standard (yes, she is still disciplined but with her it always pays to try to understand why she is doing what she is doing.  An example of this would be me asking her to not get out of her bed- I check on her and see that she is sitting on the floor on the side of her bed covering up the stuffed hamster her biological brother Joshua gave her for Christmas- Instead of getting her in trouble for disobeying I calmly ask 'whatcha doing Elle's?' to which she explains that she was worried that her hamster was cold and needed to be covered up.  I helped her cover her hamster and then tucked her back in bed without any sort of reprimand.....now when I put her in bed we make sure that her animals are 'covered' or tucked in by her.  Her disobedience in this situation was not from a defiant or disobedient heart- it was her tender heart wanting the best for her stuffed animals- with my boys, I would have skipped the understanding and gone straight for the reprimand- the motto was obey first and then explain later.  In certain situations we hold to this with Ellie but there are lots of times we are understanding first and then disciplining if needed)
I could have won the battle in the instance above with keeping her disobedience as the focus- I could win the battle on a daily basis of the same type of similar circumstances faced with her...
but in winning these discipline battles I would loose the war
the war for my little girls heart that will grow up to be a big girl heart that will make decisions on her own someday.
the heart that Satan would like nothing more than to fill with the mistaken belief that mommy's aren't worth listening to
the heart that I still want to be able to encourage and reach no matter how old
the heart that I still want to find me a safe place to seek advise
the heart that I want her to know Jesus in
the same heart that will look for Jesus in me

maybe none of the above is what parenting books would recommend
maybe it's not even what the 'expert' parents would recommend
but God didn't give them our precious Ellie
He gave her to Matt and I to raise and promised us the wisdom to do it
and we are so so so SO thankful He did...

Thank you Lord Jesus for the precious gift of our Ellie Marie- She is an amazing blessing with a passion for life.  Thank you for her strong will and determined personality- please let her grow up to serve you in a mighty way.  Please also surround her little life with people who seek to reach her heart- who encourage her to be the person you created her to be....I love you Dear Lord.

quincy and the chocolate mouth

Randomly, at the grocery store yesterday, I hear 'SIS!'- I looked over and there was my sister Jodi.
We chatted it up as we both went through line...she with her 1 item of Aloe Vera that you can drink (a good way to become stricken with diarrhea if you ask me) and I with almost $300 worth of groceries.  Jod used to work at a grocery store and is pro at bagging groceries- When she suggested that we bag all of my cold items in one bag I was impressed....seriously, the thought has never crossed my mind in all the years of bagging my own groceries (Jodi is also the one who suggested separating one's wash colors- to this day, I still don't but think it is a brilliant idea). While we talked our way out of the store, in front of us was a gentleman eating an ice cream that he had bought at the stand alone ice cream deli that you walk by just before leaving this particular grocery chain...
Jodi and I made our way to her car first, talking the whole way, and then discussed we would meet again at my mom's in just a bit and parted ways- As I made my way over to my car, I saw that the ice cream eating gentleman and I were parked by each other.  He was standing outside his vehicle eating his ice cream while I was putting my groceries into the trunk.  For some reason, watching him eat his ice cream reminded me of, to date, one of my most embarrassing moments.
Rewind twenty years and put yourself at the same store in that same parking lot with an ice cream cone in your hand.  The cone is holding chocolate ice cream and you are trying to eat it fast because it is hot outside.

How did it never occur to me to wipe my mouth after taking each bite of ice cream

Quincy and her brother Tory had been childhood friends that we had lost contact with.  She was put together and beautiful- truth be told, the type of girl that you want to look your best around....really more for your own vanity and self esteem sake than anything :)

When I heard 'Stephanie?'- Like someone thought they knew who I was but was not sure, I turned around and saw that it was Quincy calling my name- she was sitting in her vehicle....a van that I could walk right up to and chat with her- face to face
In an effort to be able to chat with her for longer than a quick 'hi', I scarfed down the rest of the cone and began talking.

The image of what I saw in the rear view mirror when I was done talking to Quincy and had come back to my own car is still burned into my mind.

A 1/2 inch ring of dark brown chocolate surrounding the complete outside edge of my mouth- it was dry and crusty by the time I saw it but still blaringly there.  It was maybe a 1/4 of an inch from the bottom of my nose (so totally covering all that area between your lip and nose) and for some reason, it was really far out on both sides of my mouth towards my cheeks.  It was down on my chin forming a chocolate smile under my lip...imagine a toddler learning to feed themselves and this was the scene going on around my mouth.
I sat in shocked silence for a bit and then quickly wiped my mouth.  Several napkins and a clean mouth later, it struck me that I needed to go find Quincy and explain to her that it was not a habit to walk around with food all over my face..
She had already left
and I have never seen her again
:)

This post is dedicated to those of us who have ever experienced 'most embarrassing moments'
the moments, that in the time, you want to crawl in a hole and never come out
those same moments, that after time, you tell your kids and husband about and bust up laughing

thank you google images for this pic