seatbelts

the other day Matthew and I each drove to town. as I was following him a cop got in between us and pulled him over. laughing at him, I pulled over too so we'd stay together. the cop came to me first, unsure of why I was there at all. so he came over, checked out the boys in the back, asked for my registration, and then asked me to pull in front of Matthew.

he then goes to Matthew and writes him a ticket for no seatbelt. he never wears his seatbelt, so its due time he gets busted for it. in CO it is not law to wear a helmet while riding a motorcycle, which drives him crazy! "so if you can legally unprotect yourself that way, then who cares if I wear my seatbelt?!"

then the cop comes back to my car and starts talking to Sam. turns out Sam had the lap part of the belt on but not the chest strap. guess what? I got a ticket for that! whatever. so he EVENTUALLY comes back with my information, my lovely ticket and I sign away.

do you have any idea how much a seatbelt ticket is? I always thought it was $20ish, for a first offense. $86.50!! as a family, we got 2 of those in a matter of 5 seconds. whatever!

jinx

like I said, change is ineveitable. for me, it's one of those bittersweet things.

originally we moved to Divide to get out of suburbia; it was a compromise before we got REALLY out, or "off the grid" as Matthew likes to call it. we both wanted out so bad. there is something about the cookie-cutter maze which makes up suburbia, that just really gets under our skin. back in September we were down to 2 places; 1 being in the historical downtown area & also close to Samuel's school, but then there was this other house (the one we're in now) that offered a bit more space than we needed, but really spectacular and literally in the forest. since the cost was the same, we opted for beauty than convenience. it's so gorgeous here, but I think we're discovering that we made a mistake.

this house is in an HOA ... which basically means you are not free to do whatever. granted we're not going to have our front yard filled with cars that don't run, but they seriously have some crazy rules. for instance, you cannot collect storm water (like to water your plants or whatever), you cannot have chickens (most people wouldn't care, but I could've had up to 10 in the in city. you'd think in the mountains it would be more flexible!), you cannot water your landscape, which also means you can't have gardens (which would be difficult anyway due to all the deer, but that's not the point) ... and that's all I can think of right now.

the other downer to living here is the distance from what our priorities are becoming. we knew Samuel's school was 40 minutes away, that's not really the problem. our fellowship with other believers have increased; before we just didn't know people to really connect with. we are more or less done with superficial, surface-y relationships, and honestly, we as a couple (ok it's really my husband!) is a difficult person to take. you either love him or hate him ... and I mean that in the best way possible. by not having friends, makes it real easy to think of just ourselves, but since we do, we have a need to be near these people. we are entering a season of serving, and not just because there is a conviction, it's a whole new level for us.
While Jesus was still talking to the crowd, his mother and brothers stood outside, wanting to speak with him. Someone told him, "your mother and brother are standing outside, wanting to speak to you." he replied to him, "who is my mother, and who are my brothers?" pointing to his disciples, he said "here are my mother and my brothers. for whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother." Matthew 12:46-50

so basically, the grass was greener on the other side. I think most things would've appeared greener, considering we were living in his parents' basement!

I forsee another move in our future ... but we all knew that was coming, didn't we?

Backfire

A teenage boy had just passed his driving test and inquired of his father as to when they could discuss
his use of the car.
His father said he'd make a deal with his son: 'You bring your grades up from a C to a B average, study your Bible a little, and get your hair cut. Then we'll talk about the car.'

The boy thought about that for a moment, decided he'd settle for the offer, and they agreed on it.

After about six weeks his father said, 'Son, you've brought your grades up and I've
observed that you have been studying your Bible, but I'm disappointed you haven't had your hair cut.

The boy said, 'You know, Dad, I've been thinking about that, and I've noticed in my studies of the Bible that Samson had long hair, John the Baptist had long hair, Moses had long hair...and there's even strong evidence that Jesus had long hair.'

You're going to love the Dad's reply:

To this his father replied, 'Did you also notice they all walked everywhere they went?'

Keep Your INSANITY

Ways to maintain a healthy level of INSANITY

1. At lunch, sit in your parked car with sunglasses on and point a hair dryer at passing cars.
See if they don't slow down.

2. Page yourself over the intercom.
Don't disguise your voice.

3. Every time someone asks you to do something, ask if they want fries with that.

4. Put decaf in the coffee makes for 3 weeks.
Once everyone has gotten over their caffeine addictions, switch to espresso.

5. In the memo field of all your checks, write "for marijuana."

6. Skip down the hall rather than walk and see how many looks you get.

7. Order a diet water whenever you go out to eat, with a serious face.

8. Specify that your drive-through order is "to go."

9. Sing along at the opera.

10. 5 days in advance, tell your friends you can't attend their party because you have headache.

11. When the money comes out of the ATM, scream "I WON!"

12. When leaving the zoo, start running toward the parking lot yelling "RUN FOR YOUR LVES! THEY'RE LOOSE!"

13. Tell you children over dinner, "due to the economy, we are going to have to let one of you go."

14. Pick up a box of condoms at the pharmacy, go to the counter and ask where the fitting room is.

every hair is counted

yesterday while grocery shopping, Sam asked to get his haircut. I was about to take him because he REALLY needed one but Matthew said "no I'll just do it at home." I was reluctant because he's tried before, twice, and both times Sam's head ended up bald. Sam (and most kids) in my opinion do not look good bald. he's only 5, still in the cute kid stage. I know one day he'll be a gross kid who wants to do everything to the extreme, but he's just not there yet.

let me back up a bit, a couple weeks ago, Sam took the clippers and started to cut his own hair. he got a good chunk up in front, but with a clever comb-over you couldn't tell. seriously, a comb-over worked! so not only did his hair need fixing, it was long everywhere else, so it was totally time for a cut. all the more reason to pay someone else to do it, right?

So after Matthew has cut out "the bowl" with scissors and trimmers, it's time to fade it with the clippers that have the different guards for various lengths. I am not a fan of "the bowl cut." and of course, the clippers aren't working right. we plug them in to charge, and they're still not working right. ugh. so guess what ... Sam is bald. no, I'm not too happy about it.

as Sam runs upstairs away from Matthew, crying, I come up after him to talk with him and calm him down.

me: you want the good news? or the bad news?
Sam: good news
me: it's just hair and it will grow back. more good news, next time you need a hair cut, I will take you in to have it done. promise.
Sam: bad news?
me: you have a bald head, and it's winter, and you'll probably be cold.

to that he laughs and calms down a bit. he makes up with daddy, although he wouldn't let him rub his newly bald head. :) but it got me thinking about my own hair.

awhile back, I posted about my hair (read it here) and long story short, I am growing it out to donated to a charity that makes wigs for cancer patients. I think about my goal daily because I'm currently in the hair phase of deal with it's ugliness or chop it off. luckily I can put it in a ponytail now, so I just pull it back out of my face and try to ignore it the best I can.

after talking with Sam, I realize it's the same case for me -
1. it's just hair
2. it will grow back
so does this mean I should go bald when the time comes to donate? I certainly don't want to be bald, just like Sam didn't want to be bald. he ran upstairs and cried, and that's probably what I would/will do too.
and then I think about why I'm doing this anyway; I'm doing it for people who don't or can't grow hair, for people who actually need it & want it, for people with cancer who do enough fighting with having the disease, along with all those medications they have to take daily, for the aches & pains they feel, and of course the chemo process that makes them bald in the first place. can you imagine all that?! when I get to thinking about that, I care even less about my hair and what it looks like. maybe I should go totally bald so I can empathize even more.

I don't know if it's possible, but I would love it if I could meet the actual person who will be wearing my hair. like I said before, I don't know anyone first hand that has had to go through this. God has just put it on my heart, big time, to be proactive with the little things that I can do. after all, it's just hair. it will grow back.

who knows? maybe God is getting me ready for my own cancer battle. maybe someone close to me will get cancer and I will be their support. or maybe none of that, and I can be some kind of spokesperson or charity/events organizer for cancer patients. who knows? God knows.

life

what a roller coaster ride this life is. although for me, part of it is being married to the man that I am!! but God brought us together for a reason ... I find that out more each and every day.

thinking of who I was years ago, I could not of have had a clue where my life would end up. I never had anything planned. I always knew I'd get married, but never had a certain prince charming in mind. I thought for sure I'd be a working woman, but didn't know where. I knew I'd have kids one day, but didn't think about how many or if they'd be boys are girls. I just knew life would happen, and work itself out somehow.
reading that you'd probably think I'm a very go-with-the-flow type person. naturally, I'm really not. I'm definitely a creature of habit. Change usually rubs me the wrong way. When I/we go out, I like to know where I'm going a plan a bit instead of driving around aimlessly. I have my moments, but I am not usually spontaneous. I'm conservative. I dislike surprises. I'm much more of a by-the-book type. honestly, I would consider myself somewhat boring. so think of the exact opposite of all that, and you have my husband!

as life would have it, I married an extrovert while I am a stay-at-home mom with 2 boys. I would never have pictured myself in these shoes. funny how God works things out, isn't it?

I have married a man who would rather try and fail than to wonder "what if" the rest of his life. for the first half of our marriage I hated him for that; so willing to drag me along on another escapade no matter the outcome. now I applaud him for embracing change, for wanting a better life, a life that will really give him and his family purpose. he is not your 9 to 5 kind of guy; he is an entrepreneur and his mind is creative while always thinking outside the box.

I've struggled for many years on what my purpose is here in this life. still kind of do. but I'm realizing that because I haven't ever been REALLY passionate for something, that I could adapt to almost anything. and with the multiple moves we've made, along with the various job opportunities hubby has had, change has become apart of my life.
I always wished I knew what I wanted to be when I grew up. some people do, and I envy that. some people have beautiful, natural, God-given gifts and it's ridiculously apparent what they should do with their lives; that I envy even more. but this isn't me.

not totally sure where all this is coming from. just some self-discovery venting here, you don't mind, right? there must be change on the horizon ... or I'm jinxing myself. either way, change is inevitable. bring it.

Wii Fit

I got the Wii Fit for Christmas this last year and I must say, I love it. I asked for it before I even tried it; I somehow knew it would be awesome. Nintendo did an great job on the Wii! All the games are really fun, and I'm not even much of a gamer ... not compared to the boys in my house anyway.

The Wii Fit can be played like other games, for fun, but also used for daily exercise routines. It will give you a series of body tests, weigh you, measure you're BMI, and chart your progress along the way. When I started, my Wii Fit Age was 42! embarrassing!! Now it's down to 24; much better!

The majority of the "games" are based on your balance and how you shift your weight from left to right. When you become aware of your shifting, your posture should improve.

It's great for being here in the mountains during the winter time. We have some nice days, and instead of tons and tons of snow, it's just down right too cold to go outside. This Wii Fit is keeping us from going in permanent hibernation mode, which is definitely a good thing!

It keeps track of your best times/scores, and since all of us are doing it, it's now a competition who can get 1st place. Since there is just one base, only one person can go at a time. not having the pressure of competing side by side is what makes it fun, in my opinion. Even Elliott tries to do it, too cute!

I wish you could come over and try it ... I want to have a Wii Fit party!
Just wanted to post and say I fully endorse this product, 2 thumbs waaaay up!!

a cure for cancer


My webpage is finally up and running, so I need to spread the word!
Check it out here.

They have set my goal to be $1800, but I hope to surpass that. I have a little less than 5 months to go. If every reader could donate $1, that would help!


I believe 1 person can make a difference.
I believe $1 can make a difference.

Please Please Please help me spread the word. As you know cancer doesn't discriminate. It comes to anyone, at anytime. I don't doubt there is a cure out there, but unfortunately, it will take money to find it.

blog cuteness

why is it so difficult to choose a blog template?!
I'm sure it's just me
there are so many cute ones!

so how is it reading white text?

this is taking me over an hour to do.
seriously.
I may have a problem.

if you are under a rock
(like I was)
check this out for your blog!

and then let me know how much time it took you :)

the power of prayer

I rarely get sick, but usually when I do it gets nasty. it hit me last night; massive headache, chills, and a very sore throat. I thought the flu was coming in full force. and the icing on the cake was Aunt Flo came to visit ... tmi? sorry.

anyway I went to bed early, before the kids' bedtime. Samuel is so sweet and compassionate; I think I can see his spirit developing some days.
he came in to tuck me in and he wanted to pray for me, just the way I pray for him when I put him to bed every night.

"dear God, bless my mom. get her healthy and strong. I pray her cough stops. in Jesus name, Amen."

extra cute because I wasn't coughing at all :)

today I'm congested with a minor headache, so better.
the extra rest was good, but prayer from my son was priceless.
God hears every single one. thank you son.

it's laundry day!

I regret purchasing a white winter jacket living here. anywhere else it would probably be ok, but we're in the woods and I guess I didn't think I'd be getting so down and dirty with the kids. oh well. I have a Columbia jacket; I think technically it's a ski jacket. I do love it. keeps me toasty.

so I thought I'd try and wash it (brilliant, right?) but the tag is in 5 different languages and there are no washing instructions ... well there are instructions but they are in pictures. I guess they didn't want 5 more tags to explain it in all those languages. understandable.
pictographs, right? like the Egyptians?

anyway, I thought I'd post the pictures. I love google ... not only can you look anything and everything up, you can look it all up in pictures!
here's what I found -

I don't know much about laundry. wash whites on warm, darks on cool, spray stain remover if it has a stain ... that's about the extent of my laundry wisdom! it works, my clothes come out just fine ... of course it helps to have a neptune washer and dryer that is just AWESOME!

anyway, study the chart above to REALLY know what you're doing. happy laundry day!