and baby makes 6!

Predicament

It sat there, holding this fish in its mouth, and I imagine the needle fish was wondering “I got it!!!……..Now what?”

Quintessentially Bill

This hat is the bane of my existence. I have spent more money buying hats that could possibly replace this hideous thing, but in the end, it really isn’t about him loving the hat…….it is more about loving and relishing how excellently it pushes my buttons.

Tormenting me is his job, and he takes it seriously.

Recess

Can’t say I am sorry to see it go

We have a problem at our house. It is called the computer, and it has literally robbed my kids of their imaginations. All they think and talk about is the computer or saving to buy an Xbox.

They fight over whose turn it is.

They whine when I put it away to literally give myself a break from the arguing and such.

They recently spent a week at their grandparents house, and Bill and I made the decision to eliminate the conflict from the house.

Their computer “broke”.

Now, they know it isn’t really broken, but they get the concept…….the old laptop is no longer available for them to fuss and fight over.

As with any addiction, there is some clothes ripping and wailing. This morning, my youngest son came in and yelled at me, yes, YELLED at me, telling me how unfair and mean I am. Absolute and total disrespect and ugliness.

Tough.

I will not tolerate this crap any longer. The computer age is dead at our house. This laptop, the one I am writing this with, is the only gate to the WWW in our house, and it spends 3/4 of its day shut down now.

Life is being lived at our house, and my kids are going to have to buck it up and experience it with us.

We are their parents, and we know it is not healthy for them, so Bill and I are taking a stand.

I know that this is a different age that we live in, but I spent almost all of my free time riding my bike and exploring the creek near our home when I was young. I was a healthy kid, sweating and coming home filthy. T.V. had something like 5 channels, so there wasn’t something on to entertain us at all hours of the day. We did something called “playing”. Wow, what a concept.

I think parenting takes on a whole new challenge when you shut down the electronics. I am sure I will hear the word “bored” much more than usual. Fine. It is okay to be bored. Life doesn’t have to throw a juggling clown in front of you every second of the day.

There is a giant world outside, waiting for my kids to discover it.

Now, if we can all make it through the transition phase without caving……………….

Shrimpers never sleep in

Good morning God

Tilt

When the kids are away, the adults will play.

Wandering

We did some snooping around, and found an ideal place to cruise with the kids. The area is just gorgeous, and the kids have all kinds of places to roam and explore.

It won’t be such a bad place for the parents to cruise solo, either. I see a sunset, a margarita and some couple time in our future.

Lazy afternoon

Mom and Dad enjoyed a cold beer at the Tiki Bar, while the kids discovered hammocks. The recipe for a great afternoon.

Solo

When the kids and I were out of town many months ago, Bill took Calypso out for a spin on his own. Our dock neighbor was out as well, and they took some photos.

She’s a pretty boat, and he’s a mighty fine sailor.

**note that the jib (forward, small sail) is fuuunky with a capital F. It appears it is not an original, but until we suck it up and buy new sails, it’ll do.

Vaya con Dios

For Christmas we bought our son a ring to wear. Around it is inscribed Vaya con Dios, and he never takes it off.

It is our hope that, if this amazing young man walks away from us having only learned one everlasting thing, it will be to go with God throughout his days.

Anything else will be gravy.

She has a style all her own

It is somewhere between gypsy and surfer girl and it fits her perfectly.

It’s just me and Julio down by the schoolyard

This is what being DONE with fishing looks like.

The glow inside the cabin

A night shot on the boat….it just looks so warm and cozy.

Summer rain

I was driving down the road, the giant rolling hills of Texas all around me. It was spring, and the weather had just warmed up, and I was feeling fantastic. I had just recently come out of a year long pity party that I had started 2 weeks before my 2nd son was born. I had enjoyed a good, hard pout because my husband had moved his family to what was truly the middle of nowhere in my opinion. Our house was smack dab in the middle of a 20,000 acre ranch. We had rattle snakes and scorpions and I remember feeling like not soul on earth, aside from my immediate family, knew that I existed.

I spent the first year of Cody’s life being pissed off at everything and everyone.

The only way that I came out of it was through the grace of God.

When Jesus rescues you from yourself, there is cause for celebration, and I was in the mood to celebrate.

I looked out the window and saw that it had starting to rain. I pulled off the road and turned to Cory, then 4 1/2. I said “Let’s dance in the rain!”.

He shook his head and said “No way!!”, but Cody, then 18 months, squealed from his car seat in the back “I dance in da wain!”

We got out of the car and I held his fat little body in my arms and danced with him in the warm spring rain.

We danced, splashed laughed and got soaked to the bone while the angels sang. God smiled and said “Welcome back” with each clap of thunder.

I feel that thunder rolling inside of me again. It has been coming in waves…..a gently clap here, a distant, deep rumble there. It rolled in last August while I was on a walk, and among the the flashes of lightening God said “It doesn’t matter where you live, as long as you take me with you”…..then I promptly left Him with His bags packed by the door.

This past weekend, I went back and got Him. Do you want to know what was a miracle? He was still standing in the same place waiting for me, bags by His side.

We went to church this weekend. Not the one down the street where we have been trying to stick a square peg in a round hole, but at a Lutheran church. We sang “All Things Bright and Beautiful” and I cried while my children sat smiling in the pews…..pews that felt like home. I felt my heart swell when, instead of quickly walking to our car alone, I watched the people crowd around the kids and Bill, welcoming us after the service. That was on Sunday…..by Tuesday, that Pastor was in my living room praying with my husband and I. It was an unprompted visit from a man who wants to bring the love of God to everyone he meets.

This year has been wonderful, stressful, joyful and empty all at once. It has been reaffirming, and a welcome homecoming for my body and mind. We left behind so very much, but also gained so much as well.

Life here is so full and complete now. I don’t want to miss one moment of it. I will be taking communion at our new church this Sunday for the first time since we moved here. To me, it feels like a celebration as big as baptism.

It is time to seriously, and without compromise, limit my online time. I am not sure what that will eventually mean. I guess it will come to me in time, but for now I have bought a kitchen timer. When it goes off, so do I, no questions asked. I am also using it to cut out the fussing and fighting that goes on with the kids in their NEED to be on Runescape and Littlest Pet Shop. Ding, on to the next person.

It has been 9 years since that spring when I danced in the rain with my son. I have since had 2 more children and moved 3 times. I know that it is cliche to say, but my kids are growing up so very fast. When I look back on that year of anger so long ago, I could feel sadness of time missed. I do, but I am grateful for a deep hole to have fallen into, so that I had no other choice but to look up.

It’s time to dance in the rain with my children. We need a good, hard rain. It will probably be a summer rain this time, and a hint of sea water will be in it. I am watching the sky with a smile.

“So I will dance with Cinderella
While she is here in my arms
‘Cause I know something the prince never knew
Oh, I will dance with Cinderella
I don’t wanna miss even one song,
Cuz all too soon the clock will strike midnight
And she’ll be gone.” ~ Steven Curtis Chapman

p.s……..this picture makes me ovulate. I mean, is there nothing more scrumptious than watching a daddy dance with his daughter standing on his shoes?