Saran Wrap and Memories

I walked upstairs this morning to see Saran Wrap and tape strewn all over the hallway. Wondering what in the world happened after I went to bed last night, I started looking for the only two culprits that could have created this mess...Connor or Colby.

Being that it is a holiday, I knew where Connor was -- still in bed! Colby was up; so, I asked him what this mess was. Apparently, after Colby went to bed, Connor Saran-wrapped his door. Colby said, "He did an awful job Mom."

About 28 years ago (yikes!!), my church youth group used to have lock-ins. For some reason, the girls decided it would be fun to play a prank on the boys. One of the girls -- I know it WASN'T me -- baked brownies with Ex-lax in them! We fed them to the boys after we had saran-wrapped all the men's bathroom toilets!! (I DID help Saran-wrap the toilets!) We obviously had not thought this whole thing through because as the brownies were eaten and the night wore on the guys just went and used the women's bathrooms!! UGH!

I will say that we did get into a lot of trouble. But it has provided a lot of laughs in my family as we remember my attempt at being "bad"!!

I guess when Connor gets up, I will let him off the hook for this stunt! :)

Attempted Zoo Escape

Over the past few months, Colby has been turning his room into a zoo.

In May, his beloved goldfish died and we promised him that we would get him a bigger tank and lots more fish if we could wait until September...of course, come September, he remembered! After months of trying to figure out the correct Ph balance, alkalinity, and which fish will survive, I think we have finally perfected the 10-gallon tank. For three straight weeks, not one fish has died and we are somehow reproducing snails. However, this tank is loud and sounds somewhat like a waterfall in his room!

Also in September, the 5th grade had a Fall Social at school. It is an after-school event with tons of games, food and fun. Students buy tickets to use on these activities -- Colby had 80. Before he left for school that day he asked me if he could put a ticket in for the Hamster Raffle. Knowing that we never win anything, I said "Sure." When I picked him up after the Social, he informed me that he had put 40 tickets in the Hamster Raffle -- but that he wouldn't win because another guy put in 150.

Monday morning the phone rang and guess who won the hamster???

Yep!

Hammie came home that afternoon with his pink nose twitching. Thankfully he has no tail or I might not have let him in the house. Colby is so good about cleaning his cage and playing with him. Probably because he knows if I had to do it, Hammie may end up in the Great Outdoors! ;)

Hammie likes to sleep all day and is ready to party all night. Colby recorded him for us yesterday and I really don't know how Colby gets any sleep! When Hammie chews on his cage and drinks his water, it sounds like a pack of well...rats!

This morning as I was vacuuming, I heard Colby screaming. I ran into his room and he said Hammie jumped out of his hands and was behind his nightstand. This nightstand has about 100 books in it so we screamed for Connor to come use his muscles to move it out of the way. Thankfully, after about 15 minutes, Colby enticed Hammie out and got him back in his cage.

There couldn't have been a better scenario because grandma will be here in 30 hours and she may have not slept very well knowing a rat...I mean, a hamster...was running loose through the house!

The Dreaded Day

Life is full of people coming and going. These people bring laughs, tears, memories to your life. And, sometimes, after 20+ years of spending every morning with them, they don't even know your name! However, as most everyone knows, I have a special place in my heart for Regis and this morning he said goodbye to me -- (and to a lot of other people as well!!)

I have referred to Regis as "my morning cup of coffee". I have gone to New York City and sat in his audience. I have watched Regis as a new wife, a new mother, when I have been sick, when I have been tired, when I have been super busy. Regis has made my mornings. I will truly miss him!

When Are You Going To Blog Again??

Sadly, my blog has taken a "blog for a few days and then disappear for a few months" kind of style. It's pretty bad when in a weeks time, my son and a great friend of mine ask me when I am going to blog again AND I hear through the grapevine that my niece reads it and informed my sister that I haven't blogged since August...

Besides making me feel lazy, it really made me feel good and reminded me that a blog truly is a great way to keep up with each other during our busy lives.

So, since August, our lives have revolved around: baseball (shocker, I know!), school, Connor learning to drive, Colby converting his room to a zoo, and finishing up lots of projects around the house. All fun stuff that I wouldn't change, but WOW...how did it become almost December!!??!!

Today I had Bible Study. I am changing things up and began BSF this year. I normally do whatever Beth Moore study our church offers but was invited to try BSF and I love it. It gives a very thorough look at the Bible. This year we are studying the book of Acts with Hebrews, Jude and the Corinthians thrown in.

The crowd of women was extremely light today and our leader began our lecture by warning us of getting wrapped up in "this time of year". It's so easy to get pulled into the sales and shopping and decorating and cooking that we forget to even come to Bible Study, let alone DO our Bible Study homework the rest of the week.

Our lecture was on Hebrews 2. Pretty perfect for "this time of year".

Hebrews 2:1-3

We must pay more careful attention, therefore, to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away. For if the message spoken by angels was binding, and every violation and disobedience received its punishment, how shall we escape if we ignore such a great salvation? This salvation, which was first announced by the Lord, was confirmed to us by those who heard him.

Our teacher went on to emphasize these verses:

*When we don't spend time in the Word, our hope and joy go away and temptations become strong.

*Neglecting God and His Word results in us drifting away from Him.

How do we know when we are drifting?

1. God isn't as big of a priority as He once was. Church attendance, studying His Word, even our own salvation are "no big deal".

2. Bible Study and reading His Word becomes a chore.

3. We become more occupied with worldly things.

4. We become absorbed with ourselves. We ask "how does this affect me?" before we agree to anything.

5. We feel a distance and lack of concern for things.

The good thing is that once we are believers, we do not need to ever doubt our salvation; but, we still can drift. We must stay close to Him -- even through the busyness of the holidays. A holiday that should be all about Him anyway!

It seems that many people are "religious" -- especially "this time of year". But not many have entered that relationship with Christ. Lots of people have no problem using the nativity scene in their decorations or reading the Christmas Story on Christmas Eve or teaching their kids about Baby Jesus; but, what do they do the "rest of the year"?? We can't let Christianity be a religion. It is a relationship. It requires nurturing just like any other relationship we have. So, my challenge to myself and to my readers (!) is to know Christ and do whatever is possible to not drift away from Him. Then we will have true joy this holiday season!

P.S. Connor just walked by and exclaimed, "Yeah! You're FINALLY blogging!" :O)

Recreating Perfection

I have to brag about my sweet husband...

Last night, he ran to the store for dinner...he came back with a loaf of nice bread, olives from the olive bar and a bouquet of flowers. He then proceeded to make our favorite appetizer in Italy -- Caprese -- tomatoes and mozzarella drizzled in Extra Virgin Olive Oil and an Italian Balsamic Vinegar. With the bread and the olives, I could almost imagine sitting at a table in a piazza surrounded by perfection.

...I am blessed!

Falling Off a Mountain Top

Today I feel like I am falling...

It's the first day that I have had NOTHING to do and although it has been nice, it has left me feeling a bit sad.

This summer was a whirlwind. Both boys had me going everyday--99% of the activities were baseball related. I had a great tan spending most days outside in the 90 degree + heat! By the end of July, however, we all were needing a break. Luckily, one was coming!

From May 2010 to September 2011, three major milestones had/will occur. Chris turned 40, we celebrated our 20th anniversary and I will turn 40. We decided last year that the two of us would take a trip somewhere to celebrate. All grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins were on board to watch the boys so that we could spend 11 glorious days in Italy (where baseball is not a favorite past time!!).

I can honestly say that our trip to Italy was the most amazing trip Chris and I have ever taken. We have traveled to Hawaii, England and around the US and have had amazing times at each of those spots...but Italy was the MOST amazing! Maybe it is because we SO needed a break from our "real lives", maybe it was because we LOVE spending alone time together and we hadn't had that in a long while, maybe it was the romance of Italy itself. Whatever the reason, Italy will always hold a special place in our hearts.

Chris took over 1,800 pictures. I couldn't figure out how to blog and not end up with a ton of pictures posted! So, I have decided to give a quick overview of what I will think of when I hear "Rome", "Florence" and "Venice". Maybe one day I will expound on each of these beautiful cities!

We began in Rome. We spent four nights and four and a half days pounding the pavement to see as much as we could. From the moment we stepped out on the black cobble-stoned streets, I could feel the magic of the city. We heard that there is a word to sum up Rome -- "historical". Historical it was! I love history so I was walking with guide book in my hand reading everything I could about each sight! Poor Chris!

The Pantheon, Largo di Torre Argentina, the Vatican, Trevi Fountain, Spanish Steps,

the Colosseum, Ancient Rome -- WOW!!! Some of these buildings were over 1,800 years old!! It just boggled the mind! I think one of our favorite spots was the Pantheon. We spent every night eating gelato in front of that beautiful place. (Of course, we spent EVERY night in Italy eating gelato in front of beautiful places!!)

In my mind, when I think of Rome, these images are what I will think of:

Ancient Rome

The Colosseum

Leaving Rome was bittersweet. A third of our trip was already over! But, we had two more cities to conquer! Florence was an hour train-ride away.

Florence is supposed to be about art. The statue of David is in Florence, the Uffizi Art Gallery is in Florence. We took these in like a tourist would; however, Chris and I are really not art experts. I would get really excited when I saw something from Michelanglo because he was the only artist I was really familiar with!! We did find that you didn't have to be an "art snob" to appreciate the works. They really are amazing -- paintings, tapestries, mosaics -- all breathtaking!

My word for Florence would be "shopping"! This is where all the "big" designers -- Prada, Chanel, Gucci, Louis Vuitton, etc. have street after street of stores. And, the smell of Italian leather just pours out into the streets...Mmmmm!

Chris and I happened upon a place that we have named "Our Spot". After having the best food of our trip (all of our food was great -- this place went above and beyond. In fact we ate at this family-owned restaurant two nights in a row!), we were told to watch the sunset from Ponte Vecchio. This is a bridge that was built in 1345. It is the only bridge that was not destroyed in World War II. There happened to be a two man band playing. (Another magical thing about summer in Italy -- every night, there was always some sort of street performer to sit and watch). We ended up standing there for three hours watching the sunset, listening to great music...and...eating gelato!!

This is a picture of Ponte Vecchio.
Sunset at "Our Spot"
After three days, it was time to head to our final destination...Venice!

Venice is truly just romantic! I can't think of another city in the world that is like Venice. No cars; no bikes; winding, narrow streets; bridges and water. Venice is for those who are happy to stroll and get lost. Venice is for those who want to sit at the water's edge (!) and watch the boats and seagulls. Venice is for lovers.

Well...OK...Venice is ALSO for shoppers -- lots of fancy stores here too. And, the shops full of masks and glass are everywhere!

St. Mark's Basilica is absolutely the most beautiful church -- inside and outside -- that I have ever seen! It is literally completely decorated with these teeny bits of tile making up mosaics that look like paintings.

And, then, there are the day trips to Murano and Burano. Murano is the island that makes all of the Italian glass. Burano is an island that is known for making intricate lace. The houses are teeny and painted every bright color you can think of! It was a true gem!

Murano, Italy
Burano, Italy

I think Chris and I would have continued on our Italian holiday if it weren't for the fact that we missed our boys and that Chris's boss might have terminated him and when we went to the ATM to withdraw more money, it would tell us that it had run dry!

We flew home for a few hours, hopped a flight to Albuquerque to pick up our boys and to see our niece marry the man of her dreams and then made it back home at 5pm Sunday night. School started Monday morning! We definitely eeked out every last bit of summer that we could!

The boys are loving their schools/classes/teachers. I finally got "back to normal" and knew that today would come...

...that sad, depressed feeling of being back to reality; that the next vacation is a long way away; that we were back in Houston for 24 hours and baseball was in full swing again. Then I realized that I am spoiled and I need to be so thankful for the time we had and the life I have and that has helped my fall from the mountain...

Well...that AND knowing I get to climb to the top of THIS mountain with my iron!! Ahhh! At least the landing will be soft!

"I Do"

Nineteen and twenty-one...

We were just babies in reality. However, we thought we had it all together and knew it all too. We really only knew one thing...we HAD to be with each other 24/7 for the rest of our lives...

So, on July 13, 1991, we said "I do" to each other and promised to "hold each other from this day forward, for better or worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, from this day forward until death do us part."

Did we really understand those vows?? Did I really think about where we would be 20 years from that moment and what it would take to get there??? No.

Weddings are an exciting time of planning and prepping and spending. People tell you not to concentrate on the wedding; but, instead to concentrate on the marriage. Twenty years later I can agree with that -- but as a 19-year-old -- that was VERY hard! I was more worried about whether my bridesmaids would wear their hair up or down; if we should put toile bows around the candelabras; what to pack for our honeymoon...

The wedding came and went; the honeymoon came and went; the real world began and we were married College Students, then in the working world, then parents...

If someone had told me at 7pm on July 13, 1991 that in the next twenty years we would move nine times and never live close to family; that we would live in a mouse-infested, ceiling-falling-down-house while in college; that we would have an extremely strong-willed firstborn that would test me beyond what I thought I could handle; that we would be through family illnesses and deaths and marriages and births; that I would spend the past four or five anniversaries eating hot dogs at a baseball park cheering our boys on to victory...would I have still said "I do"?

This makes me realize why God does not let us get a sneak peak at the future. At 19, if I knew I wasn't going to be able to go shopping with my mom every Saturday like we had for about 19 years, I might have thought a little harder. That would have been the wrong decision. God knew I did not need to shop every Saturday with my mom -- in fact, when we do get those several Saturdays a year to shop together, they are much more precious to me.

God is pretty smart. And there is nothing on that list that I would change now. I can look back and see how it has shaped our lives. And our life is blessed beyond measure. I am married to my best friend.

Makes me wonder what the next 20 years hold...

...I really only know one thing...I HAVE to be with Chris 24/7 for the rest of our lives!