Saturday, June 28, 2008

So many unexpected blessings (written on Saturday night)

Today I found myself sitting in Phillips Arena listening to Kay Arthur and later Beth Moore speak and teach and knock me on my tail with conviction.

And here is how I ended up there. One of my college bffs, Lindsay Krupicka, called me last night around 11 pm to see if I wanted a FREE ticket to hear Beth Moore speak. She and her mother were going, and they had an extra ticket. Well, I thought really quickly, made sure Scott was on board, and I ended up heading to downtown Atlanta at 8:30 this morning.

But let me go back even further. As you know from previous blogs, I have been in quite the funk lately, feeling lonely and just "down" in general. I am just ready for some real friendships here in McDonough, and then, this week, I had a lunch date with a girl from church and a double date plus Ada with a couple from church on Friday night. Best of all, I really, truly enjoyed each "outing." I think that the Lord was showing me that he loves me, and that he cares about my loneliness and general struggles with being a stay at home mom before he so blatantly took me to today's conference and showed me some hard truths about my attitude of late.

Kay Arthur was the speaker this morning. She is 74 years old and oozing with wisdom. She taught from Jeremiah, and said some pretty hard stuff. Stuff about the lies that are running so rampant in our country and how essential it is for us to be eating and breathing and living God's word so that we are not fooled into believing the lies. She then specifically talked about how important it is for parents to be teaching truth to their children. And this is when I felt so convicted. I just get so caught up and blinded by the mundane, everyday stuff, that I lose sight of the bigger picture. The bigger matter at hand. Ada's little heart. I so want her to know and understand and desire truth from such a young age, and that is why I am at home. Not to cook and clean and "keep house," though those things have to be done, of course, but they aren't the primary focus. Training Ada's heart is the primary focus. Walking and talking and telling her constantly about the gospel, and living the gospel before her (and any other children the Lord chooses to give us). And oh how overwhelming that is. Because most days I fail miserably at living out the gospel, you know? The practical thing I walked away with is that I must, must, must be in the word of God. I must realize the absolute truth that, "man does not live by bread alone, but by the very words that proceed from the mouth of the Lord," (Deut. 8:3). Now, I believe whole heartedly that God cares about my loneliness and exhaustion and need for purpose, but I also believe that I will find contentment despite those things when I am spending time in his word everyday. And that the only way that I can teach and train Ada is to always be learning and growing.

And it is easy for all of that to overwhelm me and worry me, and that is when I have to remember that just as I did not earn my salvation, I cannot earn my children's salvation. I must be obedient, of course, to teach and train and speak of the gospel, but ultimately, God is sovereign. Ada's salvation is up to him. And my sin, my daily "mess-ups" cannot stop his sovereign plan.

Isn't it cool how God truly worked out all the details for me to hear that message this morning? I think so.

Thursday, June 26, 2008

Summertime in the Rhodes' house

As I have mentioned before, I find it fascinating to look back on childhood memories and see them from a completely different perspective now that I am a mom. For so long, summer was my favorite season by far, well except for the part of winter that was taken over by Christmas and all the festivities that go with that season, but, for the most part, summer was the best. I mean, what child didn't think that? School was out, pools were open, and the icee truck was making his rounds through the neighborhood. I realize most people had an ice cream truck, but Scottsboro, in all of its originality, had an icee truck. And we went crazy over it. And I do mean crazy. As soon as we heard the jingle of the truck, my sisters and I would start to panic in fear that we would not get our money in time. We would practically tackle my mother, almost in tears, begging her to hurry. At least that is how I remember it. My sisters may not have been as panicked as me. My emotions have always been fairly strong:) Looking back now, I can only imagine how my mother felt about summer time.

I had two childhood homes. The first I lived in from birth to sixth grade. Then, the summer after sixth grade, having long ago outgrown the first home, we moved a few streets over to the house where my parents' still live. It's crazy how my life was so neatly divided between those two homes. All of my memories at the first house were very childlike. Playing with my sisters, the icee truck, riding bikes, barbies, etc. etc. Then I began Jr. High in the new home, and, well, the drama began. But that's a post for another day. Just know that when I speak of summer in the Rhodes' home, I speak of the first house.

Anyway, here I sit, 25 (almost 26), and now I am the mom, and it is summer, and I wonder what memories I will make for my own children. Now, summer to me means hot, sticky weather, and mostly being cooped up inside with Ada because the neighborhood pool has yet to open. And it no longer feels magical because it's not that different from, well, spring. And I think back to my own mother, and I wonder what those summers were like for her. Her four girls home from school, filling up the rooms in her house, and I am sure she and dad where on a budget. And I am sure they were wishing for some time away. And I am sure she wasn't that excited about the icee truck or the community pool, which was probably dirty. I only remember the water as blue and sparkling. In reality, I am sure it looked quite different. And, looking back, life didn't feel daily to me. And I didn't understand the reality of everything. And I just hope that despite the reality of life, those feelings don't trickle down to Ada's world too much. I hope she just feels all of the magical feelings of summer time. The ice cream and the bathing suits and the grilled hot dogs. And of course, catching lightning bugs at dusk. Because what defines childhood summers better than lightning bugs at dusk?

Wednesday, June 25, 2008

A protein emergency and other Wednesday happenings

I have a slight blood sugar problem. I have had it for as long as I can remember. If I have too many carbs and not enough protein, I get very shakey, my energy hits rock bottom, I begin to sweat, I become nauseous, and I feel as if I am going to pass out, at which point I have to eat lots and lots of more carbs to get things under control. This doesn't happen too often because I know that my body needs protein, but today was one of those days when I wasn't paying attention, and around 6:30 pm, I realized my energy was getting VERY low, and I needed protein. This resulted in my eating a large chili from Wendy's on a very hot summer day. I couldn't think of any other very quick options to balance the situation out before I hit the shaky, feeling as if I was going to pass out point. So here is my question. Does anyone have any good breakfast and lunch ideas that involve a nice balance of carbs and protein? I don't really like sandwiches. This is the lunch problem. Today, I had a fiber one bar for breakfast and pasta salad for lunch, which all tasted great, but provided no protein. I try to eat eggs for breakfast, but it is so much easier to eat a fiber one bar. Cleaning my kitchen is not very easy with Ada underfoot, and opening a bar takes a lot less clean up than scrambling an egg. So there I was, 100 degrees outside, eating piping hot chili.

On to other news, though. Ada news. She slept all night the past two nights!! I am so excited, and today was the first day in a long time that I did not nap when she napped. Yea. I have no idea why she is sleeping through the night because technically we have only had to let her cry it out twice since we first resolved to let her cry it out. Still, I don't trust it yet, and I plan to go to bed tonight prepared for her to wake up and cry for a while. She has also taken two naps the past two days. I can not figure her out. Her first five months of sleeping were fairly predictable, but since then there is no rhyme or reason to why she sleeps the way she does. For this mom who likes to be in control, it is quite the test. I don't like it when I don't have an answer for things. And most things have been a guessing game since the day I saw the positive sign on the pregnancy test:)

As for other fun facts about Ada, she has become quite the little monkey. She climbs on everything. She can't walk yet, but she sure can climb. Today we had been playing in the family room, and she crawled into the dining room, and I didn't follow her immediately. After a few seconds passed, I realized it was quiet, and I went to check on her. I found her sitting snugly in her walker "walking" around the dining room. I am not sure of the logistics of the situation, but Ada somehow got herself inside of her walker with no help from me. And with no noise for that matter. I just hope she doesn't figure out how to climb out of her bed. She keeps me on my toes, that's for sure.

I wish so much that I could post pictures. I have taken so many good ones of her lately, but that stupid, stupid virus on our computer is keeping me from posting. I am so scared that we will lose all of our pictures in the process of getting it fixed.

So that's our Wednesday. We are rested, finally, and Ada is fun and unpredictable as always.

Monday, June 23, 2008

More Motherhood Stuff...always questioning what I'm doing.

Well, last night was a doozy. Ada was awake and crying from 2-4 am. We tried a new tactic--NOT giving her a bottle, but going in every thirty minutes or so to comfort her. We thought it might help to calm her down more quickly. Didn't work, obviously. So, new plan. We are going back to taking turns, but to insure that each of us gets a full night's sleep every other night (especially with the crying it out keeping us up for two hours at a time) we are going to be sleeping in separate rooms for a week or so. Now, obviously, if this lasts past two weeks, we will return to sharing a room, but right now the best thing for our marriage seems to be that we each get sleep!! So...tonight I have Ada duty all by my lonesome, and Scott will be sleeping downstairs in the guest room. Last night Scott technically had Ada duty, but I lay awake beside him listening to her cry. We are hoping the new plan will prevent the off duty spouse from waking up. We'll see. We have both been walking around in a fog from lack of sleep for the past few weeks, and we are hoping the new plan will somewhat remedy that. Our main resolve--Ada no longer, no matter what, gets a bottle in the middle of the night. Oh please, please let us get to the other side of this little phase.

I have a slight suspicion that some of this has to do with teething because she has only two teeth and she is almost 11 months. Surely a few more will break through soon.

On another note--nap time. I just don't know what to do. Again, feedback is greatly appreciated. We are trying one nap for now because that seems to produce a more quality nap overall, but it leaves her very sleepy by 6 pm, which seems way too early for bed. We typically put her in bed at 7:30, but she is already in bed and asleep, and it is only 6:12. She took a midday nap from 11-1 pm today, and I tried putting her down again at 3pm, but she was having none of it. Suggestions, anyone? I just don't want her waking up for the day at like 4:30 am. This whole mother thing is such a guessing game, and I have a feeling our next baby will be nothing like Ada, so we will have to relearn everything. One more way we have to be dependent on God every second, right? I have found my prayers have become very daily since becoming a mother. Sometimes they seem insignificant, but God created me to do this, right? So they must not be insignificant to him. Oh that I might bring him glory in the day to day.

Finally, thanks for all the running feedback. It really helps. I think I am going to combine Milla and Adam's suggestions--give myself a break and set small goals. I have been feeling all of this panic to be ready for the half-marathon instead of just running because I like to run. Maybe I should get back into the swing of things with running, and then find a half-marathon (or 10k, for that matter) to run. We'll see. Before I even saw those suggestions, I went out last night with the intention of running for as long as I could, and then walking, and it was so much more enjoyable. Granted, I only ran for 15 minutes, but I enjoyed it. And it had been a very long time since I had enjoyed a run.

Wish us luck tonight...I am crossing my fingers that we will have another fluke night, and Ada will sleep until morning!!

Sunday, June 22, 2008

Sunday Night, Running, and a few other things to record

Tonight our church went from a missionary church to a particular church. This means that our tiny church, which has been in the planting phase for four years now, can now stand on its own with no monetary support from the Presbytery. And Scott and I got to be a part of the celebration, as members.

As I sat in the celebration service tonight, I felt very taken care of by God. And very aware of how much I do not know about what I need. I remember the first time with visited South Point, and, in pride, we expressed to each other that we weren't sure if it was what we were looking for. Because, of course, we were looking for Intown, which was not to be found in South Atlanta. What I have found since then, is that Southpoint seems like the perfect fit for our family. We have grown to love the people and the church, and no matter where life takes us, this small church will always be so special to me because it is the first church Scott and I joined as a married couple, and it will be the church where Ada is baptized (more on that later because that has been a decision I have wrestled with). Tonight let me see even more into the hearts of the people who first started Southpoint, and it was very encouraging to hear how much they desire for everyone to know the gospel. Simple as that. It all comes back to the gospel. God continues to provide in such specific and unpredictable ways.

On a completely opposite note, I am just having the hardest time with the half-marathon training, and I am quickly losing steam. I just keep hitting brick wall after brick wall. The running is not getting easier, and I am getting more and more behind in my training. I can't even run three miles, and it's not for lack of effort. It feels physically impossible. Any advice, anyone? My motivation is hitting rock bottom, and I feel like throwing in the towel. I thought it would get easier. I am having a hard time remembering why I wanted to do this in the first place. I burn more calories doing tae bo boot camp, and it isn't nearly as hard for me to do. I don't know. Maybe I am just not a runner.

And the last random thing to share, our desk top computer is so very sick with a virus, and I don't know when I will be able to download any pictures. I am so scared that I am going to lose all of my pictures because of this. I have a few printed of Ada after she was born, and I have a few saved with Kodak Gallery, but not nearly as many as I have saved on the desktop. Any computer geniuses out there have any advice for getting rid of a virus?

P.S. tonight marks night three in letting Ada cry-it-out. She slept all night last night, but I think it was just a fluke. So with renewed determination, we will see what happens tonight. Stay posted.

Saturday, June 21, 2008

Not a successful night!!

so last night was our second night in the letting her cry it out experiment. It was a disaster. Around 12:30 am, Ada woke up, and we of course, let her cry. And she cried and cried and cried. So much so that I was beginning to cry a little myself. It was just the worst feeling to hear her cry so hard and not go in there and comfort her. I hated it. And this time she was crying much harder and louder. Plus, she cried for almost an hour and a half. At this point, the crying was not letting up, so I finally went in there. She took some of her bottle but not much. I put her back down, and she woke up twice more. Finally, after rocking her a little bit, we all went to bed for the night at 2:30 am. Not a good night!! Scott and I are both very tired today, and I am unsure about what to do. I need some feedback. Is there a time limit on the crying it out, or should I not have gone in there when I did? I was just so exhausted--and heartbroken--after an hour and a half.

On a happier note, Scott and I were inspired by the Slagley blog, to gather up all of our loose change and take it to the coin machine at Publix. We thought it would only be like 5-10 dollars total, but hey, that would pay for several happy hour diet cokes. It turned out that all of those pennies added up to 30.00, so we are going out for an unexpected Mexican dinner. Yea!! And thanks for the suggestion, Slagleys!!

Friday, June 20, 2008

A few things to say...

1. Last night we let Ada "cry-it-out" at 2 am. IT WAS AWFUL. I hated it so much. But I did it. I didn't go in there, and she actually didn't cry for all that long. 30 minutes maybe. And then she slept until 7:30 am. I am hoping tonight will be easier since we did it successfully last night.

2. I found the perfect paint color for my foyer/family room/kitchen (they all have connecting walls). I am so excited!! I have tried so many different paint colors. I am starting to have quite the collection of audition size paint cans from Lowe's, but I have finally found the right one, and I cannot wait to get the walls painted. Right now I have portions of all of the walls painted. Pictures to come as soon as we get the computer fixed.

3. Ada is not wanting to take naps this week. Other moms out there, when did your children stop taking two naps a day? I am wondering if she is ready to go to one nap a day. Today, I put her in her bed at 3 pm, and at 5 pm, I finally got her back up. During those two hours I tried rocking her, leaving her alone, getting her back up for a few minutes at a time--she never seemed tired. She just sat in her bed and played.

And that's all for tonight.

Thursday, June 19, 2008

Late Father's Day Posts

Here I go again, two posts in one day, but I have been meaning to post this, and I am just now finding the time.

First a favorite poem in honor of Father's Day. If you are reading this and are not around other people, I suggest that you read the poem out loud. I love the sounds and the rhythm of this poem. You obviously can't appreciate it as well if you don't read it out loud. Just a little teacher suggestion.

"Those Winter Sundays"
Robert Hayden

Sundays too my father got up early
and put his clothes on in the blueblack cold,
then with cracked hands that ached
from labor in the weekday weather made
banked fires blaze. No one ever thanked him.

I'd wake and hear the cold splintering, breaking.
When the rooms were warm, he'd call,
and slowly I would rise and dress,
fearing the chronic angers of that house,

Speaking indifferently to him,
who had driven out the cold
and polished my good shoes as well.
What did I know, what did I know
of love's austere and lonely offices?

I have loved this poem since college, but I love it even more now that I am a parent. Only now do I even slightly understand all of the things that my parents did for me, while I "spoke indifferently to them." I guess each stage of parenting will allow me to gain a little more understanding, though I suppose I will never fully understand. And I echo this poem, "what did I know of love's austere and lonely offices?" I am starting to get a glimpse of those lonely, austere offices.

I also love the picture of the father getting up in the blueblack cold (can't you just feel the cold in the hardness of those sounds?). My dad always started our cars before school on cold mornings. And made sure we had gasoline. And that our oil was changed. So much behind the scene stuff. So much that I just expected him to do. And he prayed with us on the way to school--the whole way, ha, ha. Sometimes, I would open my eyes because I wanted to be able to see a little bit of the scenery. But I am so thankful that he thought it important to pray with us before school. So, daddy, if you are reading this, thanks for all the little details.

And, mom, you know that I know you did a million things too--I will have to do a late mother's day post:)

Recent Ada Antics

Well, Ada is just becoming more and more of her own person, and it is so much fun to watch. It amazes me that one short year ago, she was not even born yet. This first year is such a whirlwind of development!! I was with Amy Speakman Hendrix yesterday, and she is due with her first daughter in September. We were talking about how crazy it is that this time next year, her daughter will be crawling around and starting to say a few words. I feel like the first five months are sort of a slow process, and starting with the sixth month, Ada just took off with developments, starting with sitting up and then of course crawling, and she is now able to stand on her own for short periods of time. She doesn't do it on her own, though. Scott and I get her to stand up and then we let go of her hands. It takes her second to realize she is standing on her own, then she slowly lowers herself. She is very steady, though, even in the lowering, so I feel like she could take off walking if she really wanted to. I don't know why I am encouraging the walking--ha, ha. I am already chasing her all over the place because of crawling. I can only imagine the things she will be into when she starts walking. I feel like the world is one big danger zone for a baby on the move. She is just so unaware that things can burn her, topple over on her, cut her, and I have to so be on top of things to make sure she doesn't get hurt. Just the other day she was pulling up on a kitchen chair, and she started to topple over, chair and all. Luckily, I was quick enough to catch the chair before it fell on her, but she did fall backwards and cried so, so hard. I am such a worrier, anyway, and I am bracing myself for the first big accident. Before Ada was even in existence, I used to dread the day that I was the mother and I had to be in control in emergency situations. I don't do well with emergencies or blood or anything like that, so I am counting on some mother thing kicking in when it really has to. I know it can't be avoided. I for one had two different accidents as a child that involved emergency trips to the dentist, so I know something of that sort will happen. It is inevitable, I suppose.

Anyway, I am just rambling on, trying to record all of these things that I want to remember. To make this less stream-of-consciousness, I will list a few things about Ada at ten months.

1. She is so incredibly smiley. She attracts so much attention wherever we go, because she smiles so hard at everybody. Hmmm...maybe she didn't get her mom's melancholy personality:)

2. She is still waking up at night, and I think I am ready to try letting her cry it out. We let her cry it out at nap time and bedtime, but we never have in the middle of the night. Honestly, it is just easier to get up and give her a bottle. But I think Scott and I would feel much better if we weren't having to wake up at night. We have tried taking turns, but even on Scott's night, I wake up. I just don't think there is any way a mother can sleep through a crying baby. So anyone who has done the crying-it-out in the middle of the night, advice? I am not good at it because I question everything--is she cold, hungry, hurting, wet? And I convince myself that I have to go in there. But we are looking at 11 months, and it is time for us all to get more sleep!!

3. As Scott mentioned on his blog, I have found a new plan for our long summer afternoons--the sprinkler. After the church pool day, which she loved, I realized that the sprinkler may be a better option than the baby pool. I knew that she loved the faucet in the bathtub, as well, and I thought the sprinkler was sort of the same concept. And I was right. She did love it. At first, she was pretty timid, clinging to my neck and stuff. But we slowly eased her into it, and after about fifteen minutes, she thought she was big stuff with that sprinkler, picking it up and slinging it around. I took lots of pictures, but unfortunately, our desktop has a virus, so I can't post them.

Her love for the church pool day makes me very frustrated that our neighborhood pool is not open. When we bought they house, we were told that we would have a pool, playground, and tennis courts by summer. Well, it's almost July, and there is a LONG way to go with the pool. Oh well, I guess we will enjoy it next summer.

4. I bought Ada her first bows yesterday when I was in Auburn (I will blog about that unexpected trip later), however, I can't decide if they are cute or tacky. I got fairly large ones, not the really tiny ones, in an effort to make it less tacky, but I am still not sure. Again, it's so frustrating that I can't post pictures because then I could do a blog vote--cute or tacky. I gathered up some hair, and gave her a little pebbles style ponytail. It was sort of cute, I guess. She kept pulling the bow out, though, so I don't think it's going to work anyway. We'll see. And hopefully the computer will be fixed soon, and we can do a vote.

5. What else, what else? She is now waving when she says bye-bye, and I think she connects the sign for more with the word more. I am not sure if she knows what it means, though. I have started teaching her all done, as well, but she hasn't caught on yet. She says uh-oh all the time. It's a little game that she plays--she drops things intentionally, and then she says uh-oh until we pick them up. Every time I put her down for a nap, I will hear a slight thud on the monitor, then her saying uh-oh over and over, meaning she dropped her pacie. I am trying to teach her that the game won't fly--she can't keep dropping stuff and expect us to pick it up.

6. I am still not sure about the whole discipline situation at 10 months. For example, she has figured out how to turn on the tv, so she likes to stand in front of the tv and turn it on and off, on and off, over and over. Today it occurred to me, that we should probably just make all of the buttons on the television a no-no, but I don't really know how to teach her that. She clearly doesn't get the concept. Again, any and all suggestions are welcome. And that is just one example. I feel like there a million things that she needs to learn are "no-no," but I don't know how to communicate that concept to her.

well, I guess that's all of the Random Ada facts for now. Hopefully the computer will be fixed before too long, and I can post pictures to go with the facts. Happy Friday tomorrow, everyone!!

Tuesday, June 17, 2008

Those pesky lies nipping at my heels

Ever since this past weekend, I have been in such an unsettled mood. I wouldn't necessarily say bad mood, just unsettled maybe.

It's strange because I thought that this past weekend would leave me feeling refreshed and renewed and ready to be back at home in my normal routine, but it seemed to have the opposite effect. I haven't been able to figure out all of the reasons why.

I think that being in Atlanta this weekend, at a fun wedding where I was alone with Scott all dressed up and having fun with friends, surfaced some bitterness I might have about having to leave that life behind so quickly into marriage. It is confusing for me to explore these feelings because I love Ada so, so much, and I am so thankful that I get to be her mother. It makes it hard for me to deal with my feelings about the situation.

Sunday night at community group, a couple announced that they were pregnant, and it prompted the usual comments like, "oh my gosh, your life is about to change, and take any trips you want to take now, etc. etc," and that is when I began to feel the bitterness creep up. There is this voice in the back of my head that says, "it's not fair. I want more time with Scott, more time to do the things we wanted to do." And, obviously, I want Ada. I wouldn't change it even if I had a choice, so it's is this weird paradox where I somehow want both lives--the fun life we were living in midtown and this harder (but much, much richer) life we are living in our little suburb. And I think I get angry about the fact that I can't have them both. And it is way past time for me to deal with this. To give it to God. To acknowledge that this life is not about me and about how much fun I might have on any given day. It is about bringing him glory. I mean, let's face it, all I deserve anyway is death, and Christ died that I might have life, so obviously, this life is his. Whatever he wants to make of it. And how rich, how fortunate, how blessed I am that this life includes Ada and Scott.

And it's funny the way God works because I was reading the teenage-esque Robin Jones Gunn book this weekend, and the main character talked about how these lies chase us constantly, nipping at our heels, and the only way to deal with these lies is to stay so close to God, so immersed in his word and prayer, that the lies cannot get to us. And she talked about how if we let up at all, not immersing ourselves in what is true, then the lies creep in without us even realizing it. And the lies are creeping in this week. In fact, at times they have threatened to take over. But all it took was reading a little reminder of truth over at Ashley'sblog, and I feel so much better already. Truth is so, well, True. And just like God promises, it sets me free. Absolutely free. And that is the most settled feeling in the world.

Saturday, June 14, 2008

Live Blogging from the Double Tree Guest Suites

I have a little time all to myself this afternoon, as Scott is at the church getting ready to be a groomsman in Sheffer's wedding, and mom, Mary Ann(my aunt/mom's sister), and Sarah, are in McDonough with Ada, so I decided to blog a little bit.

I have to leave for the church in a little over an hour, but I am soaking in all of this quiet rest. So wonderful. So refreshing.

I just finished reading the first in Robin Jones Gunn's new series about Katie Welden--Christy Miller's best friend. I felt like I was hanging out with old familiar friends. Loved it. Loved it. And I so hope Ada will read them all one day. I am sure she will say, no way, mom, they are so old fashioned, or whatever term she might use, but they have so much truth hidden in the middle of good escape type story telling.

In the middle of all of that reading, I also found time to have lunch with my hubby. We headed over to Atlantic Station around noon, and lo and behold, H & M is officially open as of yesterday. And it is glorious in all it's inexpensive fashionable perfection. But as inexpensive as it may be, we have no room in the budget this month. Sad. So very sad. I was practically drooling over all of the adorable clothes...including the ones in Ada's size, but not this month. The sewing machine may have to wait until I have had a chance to spend a few dollars at H & M. How can I not? It was two floors filled to the brim with cuteness just waiting to be tried on by me.

So, there's a quick update on what's going on with us this weekend. We are sleeping in, enjoying a fun wedding with Scott's friends from G-ville, and as always when we are away from her, missing Ada.

Thursday, June 12, 2008

Beach Pictures

I know, I know...two posts in one day, but I've been meaning to post these, so I wanted to go ahead or I would never get around to it, and I want all of these life events to be well documented in my "blog book."
our view--nice, right?

walking to lunch on Saturday--our condo in the background. We walked everywhere. It was great.

Lindsay and me at dinner on Saturday night. So burned despite wearing sunscreen. (And I usually don't even wear sunscreen).

One last lunch before going home on Sunday. This is all of us except for Kasey, who had to leave on Saturday.

Monday, June 9, 2008

Beach Weekend Recap

I will post pictures later, but I wanted to go ahead and recap the beach weekend while it is fresh on my mind.

First of all--the place where we stayed was amazing. All bedrooms had a view of the water, and from the living area both the ocean and the bay were visible--breathtaking!! Plus, the condo was huge and brand new and completely FREE because it belongs to Shannon's aunt. Thanks again, Shannon!!! Also, it was completely uncrowded. We spent a lot of time by the pool because it was rather hot and there were lots of jellyfish in the ocean. The pool was never crowded at all. So nice!! And the weather was perfect. The sky was so blue with perfect white clouds. Perfect beach weather.

So...that was the setting.

The company consisted of TEN of us. That never happens. There are always conflicts, and we can't ever find a time when all of us can get together. Of course, there were still a few people missing, but we were still amazed that so many of us made it. Of course it was so much fun to see everyone and catch up. We laughed at how different our conversations are these days. Friday night, we all sat around talking about politics (which I know nothing about), then we went to bed fairly early, and were all awake by 7 am Saturday morning. Not quite the same as past beach trips.

I will admit that I experienced a lot of Ada homesickness. I didn't think I would because I was okay the other two times I left her, but I think being so far away made it worse. The farthest away I had been was Auburn, so she had been less than two hours away, and I always had the option of hopping in the car and being where she was fairly quickly. When I thought about the fact that I was seven hours away, I became pretty overwhelmed. I tried not to think about it because I wanted to soak up the time away with friends. Friday night as I was going to bed is when I felt it the worst, but I just prayed until I fell asleep, and I was okay.

Another strange emotion I felt was feeling somewhat disconnected to everyone else's lives. Most of my friends are living, what seem to me, exciting lives. They are all working successful jobs or planning mission trips to "far away" lands. I had to spend some time praying for contentment where God has me--in a rather mundane place. Now, I am well aware that each life situation has postive and negatives, but you know how it is so easy to only see the positive when you are on the outside looking in. Because, honestly, I have all I ever wanted--a Godly husband, a daughter, and a "career" as a stay-at-home-mom, so I am sure that if I was in any other situation, the mom thing might seem a lot different than the reality that it is. It's all in perspective, right? But in an effort to make this blog as transparent as possible, I wanted to share some of the struggles I had this past weekend.

Don't get me wrong--overall it was a fabulous weekend, and it was so sad to leave. Those girls are my best, best friends. I think that they always will be, but I did feel slightly out of place at times. Like the "dorky" mom if that makes sense. I mean, let's face it, my tight budget and dreams of a mini-van don't paint the most glamorous picture, and it's easy to find myself envious of other life situations. But...I prayed my little heart out each time I felt those feelings creeping up, and God was faithful to take those lies away and allow me to relax and simply enjoy the company of my closest college friends. It was a great weekend despite my sinful nature trying to rear it's ugly head.

Friday, June 6, 2008

Two goals for the summer

One--I must, must, must get my house painted. The quest for the perfect colors continues, but I do now have in my possession a benjamin moore paint fan, so things are looking up. Instead of watching television at night, I now pour over all the color possibilites. Stay tuned for house improvement updates.
Two--Ada must, must, must start wearing her bathing suit for the purpose it was intended--playing in the pool. Surely by the end of summer I will have figured out the secret to her enjoying the baby pool. We'll see. Until then, she can play in her suit inside.



Wednesday, June 4, 2008

it's summertime at the Moore house

I have a slight addiction to sunshine and being tan. I am trying to overcome this addiction due to the reality of skin cancer. However, I naturally associate summer with pools, lying out, and, let's face it, a great tan. Last summer I was so very pregnant. So pregnant, in fact, that at least weekly, complete strangers asked me if I was having twins. Because I was five feet tall, there was no where for my stomach to go but out, and by June, I was fairly miserable. The one place that I could find relief was in our apartment swimming pool. The pool was empty during the day, and I could get in the water and feel weightless and stay cool. It was the perfect solution, and it allowed me to get a tan despite the pregnancy. Plus, if I was going to be that huge, it helped to be tan--you know?

Well June has arrived out of nowhere, and here it is summer time again. Now, as little as I take care of my own skin, I am, if anything, over protective of Ada's white, white red headed skin. I do, however, think that all children need to spend some time outside everyday. So, I bought spf 55 baby sunscreen, a baby pool with a little shade type thing, and Ada and I headed outside today for my first afternoon of lying out in the sun. It did not go so well. Ada loves to sit in the bathtub and splash and play, so, naturally, I thought she would love the baby pool. Not so. She wanted to crawl in and out of the pool instead. She did love it when the hose was on, filling up the pool, and she even stuck her head under the hose at one point. Once the pool was full, and I turned off the water, she did not want to sit and play. The pool was on our concrete back patio, so, obviously, I couldn't let her climb in and out on her own. I did let her crawl around on the patio, though, and we stayed out there for a little while, but I certainly wouldn't call it a successful first day of lying out. Oh well, we will try again tomorrow, and I will try to record the event with photos.

On a happier summer note, I am headed to the beach this weekend with all of my best college friends. I am so excited. Scott's parents are coming to stay with Scott and Ada, so I won't even have to worry about Scott being here all alone. I am so thankful that Ada has two sets of grandparents that love her so much and are always willing to help out. Last time I was at the beach I was 9 months pregnant, and it rained the whole time, so I am so looking forward to this weekend. Best friends and a weekend in the beach--it doesn't get any better.