Heather's Hodgepodge

Desperate for Advice Here!

2009-12-04T10:01:00.009-05:00

For the past 5 months, I've been looking at pictures of kitchens. Lots. Of. Kitchens. I can't decide what I want to do with the kitchen cabinets, and it's driving me crazy. Currently, my kitchen cabinets look like this:
This is a perfectly fine color, but it's just not me (at some point in the future, we will replace the stove hood and back splash, but not right now). And currently, our countertops in the kitchen look like this:

Wilsonart Laminate Shale Moonstone #13045-60

I'm not crazy about them, but the countertops are staying for the time being. In a few years, we have plans for some light renovation to the kitchen which will involve changing the existing countertop layout. With that in mind, we don't want to replace something only to change it in a few years. I know that countertops can be painted, and I'm not against that idea. But if possible, I'd like to avoid that.
Some of the upper kitchen cabinets are going to have their doors removed, so that I can display some of my dishes. I also plan on displaying some of my dishes on some shelves by the kitchen table. I plan on mixing in some solid white dish pieces in with my Currier and Ives dishes, which look like this:
I want to install white beadboard along the bottom of the walls near the kitchen table, and in between the upper and lower kitchen cabinets. For the walls, I either want to do a very pale blue (Valspar's Laura Ashley Navy 1), or a light tan (Sherwin Williams Softer Tan).
My color choices for the kitchen cabinets are either a soft, distressed black (I LOVE Layla's kitchen!), white (like Traci's or Jennifer's), or a deep, chocolate brown (I have NO inspiration pics for this one, but it would go nicely with the existing countertops).
If I paint the cabinets white or black, would I have to paint the countertops as well? Here are some additional pictures of my kitchen. These cabinets are directly across from the previous picture of our kitchen:

When I do remove the doors, I am either going to remove the 3 doors pictured above, or the 2 doors that are on either side of the stove.
So - what do you think? Black, white, or brown for the cabinets? Thoughts on the countertop?

My Favorite Comic Ever

2009-11-30T20:27:00.001-05:00

Calvin and Hobbes is my all-time favorite comic strip. Of the entire series, this is my ultimate favorite:

Little did I know that I would one day be Calvin's mom ;p

Make Merry Swap

2009-11-30T19:39:00.004-05:00

For my swap, my person is receiving this set of Christmas pillar candles:

The candles measure 6", 4", and 2". While I didn't make the candles, I did decorate the outside. I hope my person enjoys them!

Thanksgiving

2009-11-26T10:03:00.003-05:00

As we finish the preparations which began days ago,

Take time today to do more than just enjoy the food.

Because we truly have been blessed.

When Geeks have Birthdays...

2009-11-24T20:59:00.007-05:00

... they appreciate the humor in this:
which, incidentally, is what I plan on doing to mine once I have this next one.
29 forever! ;p

Happy Birthday, DH!

2009-11-24T08:54:00.003-05:00

On this day in history...
Events:

380 – Theodosius I makes his adventus, or formal entry, into Constantinople.
1429 – Joan of Arc unsuccessfully besieges La Charité.
1859 – Charles Darwin publishes On the Origin of Species.
1863 – American Civil War: Battle of Lookout Mountain – Near Chattanooga, Tennessee, Union Ulysses S. Grant capture Lookout Mountain and begin to break the Confederate siege of the city led by General Braxton Bragg.
1906 – The Canton Bulldogs-Massillon Tigers Betting Scandal, the first major scandal in professional American football.
1922 – Author and Irish Republican Army member Robert Erskine Childers is executed by an Irish Free State firing squad for illegally carrying a revolver.
1932 – In Washington, D.C., the FBI Scientific Crime Detection Laboratory (better known as the FBI Crime Lab) officially opens.
1944 – World War II: Bombing of Tokyo – The first bombing raid against the Japanese capital from the east and by land is carried out by 88 American aircraft.
1963 – Lee Harvey Oswald is fatally shot by Jack Ruby in the basement of Dallas police department headquarters. The shooting is broadcast live on television.
1965 – Joseph Désiré Mobutu seizes power in the Congo and becomes President; he rules the country (which he renames Zaire in 1971) for over 30 years, until being overthrown by rebels in 1997.
1969 – Apollo program: The Apollo 12 command module splashes down safely in the Pacific Ocean, ending the second manned mission to the Moon.
1974 – Donald Johanson and Tom Gray discover the 40% complete Australopithecus afarensisLucy" after The Beatles song "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds", in the Awash Valley of Ethiopia's Afar Depression.
1632 – Baruch Spinoza, Dutch philosopher (d. 1677)
1690 – Charles Theodore Pachelbel, German composer (d. 1750)
1729 – Alexander Suvorov, Russian general (d. 1800)
1784 – Zachary Taylor, 12th President of the United States (d. 1850)
1853 – Bat Masterson, American gunfighter (d. 1921)
1859 – Cass Gilbert, American architect (d. 1934)
1864 – Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, French painter (d. 1901)
1868 – Scott Joplin, Ragtime Composer (d. 1917)
1884 – Itzhak Ben-Zvi, President of Israel (d. 1963)
1888 – Dale Carnegie, American writer (d. 1955)
1897 – Lucky Luciano, American gangster (d. 1962)
1911 – Kirby Grant, American actor (d. 1985)
1913 – Geraldine Fitzgerald, Irish-born actress (d. 2005)
1916 – Forrest J. Ackerman, American writer (d. 2008)
1921 – John Lindsay, American politician (d. 2000)
1925 – William F. Buckley Jr., American writer (d. 2008)
1940 – Eric Wilson, Canadian children's author.
1941 – Pete Best, British musician
1944 – Bev Bevan, English rock drummer (The Move, Electric Light Orchestra)
1947 – Dwight Schultz, American actor
1948 – Spider Robinson, science fiction author
1955 – Clem Burke, American drummer (Blondie)
1957 – Denise Crosby, American actress
1964 – Tony Rombola, American guitarist (Godsmack)
1968 – Todd Beamer, American, acclaimed hero of United Airlines Flight 93 (d. 2001)
1974 – Taro Yamamoto, Japanese actor
1977 – Colin Hanks, American actor
1978 – Katherine Heigl, American actress

DEATHS:

654 – Emperor Kōtoku of Japan (b. 596)
1572 – John Knox, Scottish reformer (b. 1510)
1781 – James Caldwell, American revolutionary (b. 1734)
1957 – Diego Rivera, Mexican painter (b. 1886)
1960 – Grand Duchess Olga Alexandrovna of Russia (b. 1882)
1963 – Lee Harvey Oswald, accused assassin of John F. Kennedy (b. 1939)
1987 – Jehane Benoît, French Canadian culinary author (b. 1904)
1991 – Freddie Mercury, Zanzibar-born singer (Queen) (b. 1946)
1991 – Eric Carr, American drummer (KISS) (b. 1950)
2005 – Pat Morita, American actor (b. 1932)

HOLIDAYS AND OBSERVANCES

Roman festivals – in the Byzantine empire the Brumalia (a wine festival) were celebrated from this day until the winter solstice

R.C. Saints – Saint Andrew Dung-Lac and other Vietnamese Martyrs, Saint Chrysogonus, Saint Colman of Cloyne – Cobh, Ireland, Flavian of Ricina

Teacher's Day in Turkey

Lachit Divas is observed on 24th November each year in Assam, India to commemorate the heroism of the Assamese General Lachit Borphukan and the victory of Assamese army over the Mughal army in the Battle of Saraighat in 1671.

Evolution Day

A Christmas Question

2009-11-21T13:33:00.002-05:00

Am I the only one having trouble waiting to "Christmas-ize" my blog this year? I keep telling myself to wait until the day after Thanksgiving, but I don't know if I'm going to be able to last that long.
I am also fighting the urge to decorate the house for Christmas. BEFORE Thanksgiving. Do you think it's because I finally have a real house to decorate and I can get ALL of my Christmas stuff out?

WFMW: Coupon Tips

2009-11-15T20:58:00.007-05:00

A couple of my real-life friends wanted me to write down my tips for using coupons. If anyone has any more tips, feel free to add to my list.
I'm not a coupon queen, and I don't have an expert system. I clip coupons from the Sunday paper, and I receive e-mails a few times a week from couponsurfer. With the e-mail coupons, I select the coupons that I'm interested in, and I print them out.
Coupons aren't for everyone. If you are trying to decide whether or not to use coupons, determine if the money you will save using coupons is worth the time it will take to clip and organize the coupons. I happen to have more time than money, so to me it is worth it to spend time going through coupons, cutting them out and then sorting. Since clipping and sorting coupons is pretty simple, I usually wait to do the coupons while I'm watching TV. That way, I still get something done but I'm enjoying myself.
All of the work into cutting out coupons is wasted, though, unless the coupons are sorted. If you cut out coupons and then fail to use them thanks to poor sorting, then all you've done is waste your time.
I've used a few systems for organizing coupons. Currently, I do the standard baseball-card sheets for my coupons, and I store the sheets in a 3-ring binder. Because I subscribe to a coupon service with my e-mail, I frequently get the same coupon with only a different expiration date. To conserve space, I keep all copies of the same coupon together, filed with the most recent to expire coupon on top. This method may not work for everyone, though. Some people prefer to sort their coupons based on the coupon's expiration date.
When I prepare to go shopping, I always cut out and file my coupons before I go through the sales papers and make my lists. That way, I've recently seen many of my coupons as I flipped through my binder. I've had many an "a-ha!" moment while going through the sales papers thanks to viewing my coupons before. When I see a sale on an item that I also have a coupon for, I move the coupon to the front of my binder. That way, when I am at the store, all of the coupons I know I will use are at hand and I don't have to spend time at the store flipping though my binder. In this front section, I also place coupons for items that I know we will need soon, so I can watch for unadvertised sales. I have also placed coupons that are especially good (more than $1 off) and coupons that are expiring soon in the front sheet.
In addition to coupons from the Sunday paper and e-mail, I also have coupons that are loaded onto my shopper's card for Kroger. I get coupons loaded onto my Kroger card through Shortcuts and Proctor & Gamble eSAVER (these sites can also load coupons onto shopper's cards for other stores, I just happen to prefer Kroger). After I select and load the coupons onto my shopper's card, I print out the list of the coupons on my card and I keep the list in my binder. When I am making my shopping list, I glance over the printed out sheets to check for any additional deals. The coupons on the shopper's card can be used in addition to a paper coupon, so the savings can really add up - especially if the item is on sale.
If you are interested in a one-place site for coupons and store deals, you might want to check out Coupon Mom and Southern Savers. Both of these sites are free, and operate on the premise of buying when an item is on sale in order to have it when you need it. This type of shopping can be initially difficult on a shopping budget, because you will buy items in a greater quantity than you would for regular shopping. However, in the long run, this will even out because you will have paid less for the item. You might only shop to stockpile one category at a time, or do a pantry clean-out (eat based on what you have on hand) while you are building up your supply.
Even though coupons are a great money saver, there is a catch. Just because you have a coupon for an item doesn't mean that the item is a good deal. There are many times that the generic brand is still cheaper than the name-brand with the coupon. Take your calculator with you when you shop and calculate if that "sale" is really a sale. There may be a generic or a different size that is a better deal than the sale or what the coupon is good for.
It is also helpful to understand how coupons work. Items typically go on sale in cycles. If you keep a price book, you can chart the sale cycles of items in your area. Frequently, an item will go on sale either the week a coupon is issued, or 4 weeks after a coupon for it is issued, which is typically the last week the coupon is still valid. Stores can issue coupons for merchandise they carry, as can the manufacturer's of the product. In some instances, such as with Walgreens and Target, you can use the store coupon in addition to the manufacturer's coupon.
There are many websites and blogs that detail how to use coupons more efficiently than what I've detailed here. But these are the things that have worked for me!
To read more great tips, check out We are THAT Family.

Master Bedroom

2009-10-28T13:30:00.001-04:00

At our old house, the master bedroom was a room that was never finished. Since most people never see the master bedroom (unless the owner blogs ;D), there wasn't a reason to spend money on it. Also, we had a lot of stuff in a small house, which led to our bedroom becoming a catch-all.
A lot of the things DH and I would like to do to this house are things that will have to wait. When we had our house inspected, the inspector mentioned that we would need to re-roof in the next few years, so we're trying to save up for that. Not to mention we now have a larger mortgage payment. With all this in mind, I wanted our bedroom to be fairly close to done. That way, I could at least go there at the end of the day and relax, without looking around and making a mental list of things to do.
There is one problem, though - the furniture. DH and I have never bought any furniture for our master bedroom. Instead, we use the French Provincial furniture that my parents bought for me when I was a little girl. I love the furniture and I can't bear to part with or paint the furniture. At some point, the furniture can be moved into the guest bedroom, but there are no funds to replace the furniture at this time. So I have to decorate with the furniture, which means that DH is stuck with a girly bedroom.
When we moved in, the light fixture below was in the master bedroom. I think it goes pretty well with my furniture, but it was a bit much for DH ;)

So we swapped it out for the light fixture below, which not only has a fan (a must for summer), but is also brighter. The best part is that it was clearance at Lowe's :)

The walls were painted Strawberry Malt by Valspar. At some point, we would like to paint the ceiling (a previous owner painted it a beige color) and add some crown molding.

A view from the doorway. The master bedroom has a 60"L x 35"H window. I was stumped as what to do with it initially, until I realized that our queen bed would fit perfectly under the window. While Z and I were at the Habitat for Humanity resale store, I spotted these shutters for $3/set. They just happen to fit the window. DH installed them using a track set designed for a closet bi-fold door. All in all, I think we spent around $30 on the window. In the future, I might put something else up to disguise the hardware mounted on the wall and the track along the bottom of the window. As always, I'm open to suggestions.

The closed door leads to the master bathroom. You won't see pictures of the mater bathroom until it is redone. Harvest gold and brown are all I'm going to say. That, and 30-year-old sink and toilet. Must save up for a roof. Must save up for a roof...

At some point, I'd like to fit a small but comfortable chair in this room. Perhaps by arranging some of the furniture, I will be able to fit it in this corner where the lamp is.

The door on the right leads to the closet. Our old house had the closet adjoining the bathroom, and it is so nice to have the two separate. To the left, out of the photo, is the bedroom doorway.
That's all the photos of the house for now. I hope to be able to show you our front room next week, but that all depends on how productive we are this weekend.

2009-11-11T15:03:00.003-05:00

Will I ever get to the point where another's pregnancy doesn't stop me in my tracks?
Will I ever hear of a miscarriage and not instantly be taken back?
Even days later, I find myself still paralyzed at someone else's news.
I am happy for the others when they are happy, but I grieve for myself.
I am sad for the others when they are sad, and I am sad for days.
And sometimes I find myself rejoicing over another's happiness while I mourn my own.
Why must it be this way?

If I hear another person hope that they aren't pregnant, I don't know what I'm going to do.
I know I've posted about this before, but honestly, it's what weighs on my mind the most.
I am blessed.
I am a mother to a son, which is more than some can say.
I should not be discontent.

WFMW: Moving Tips

2009-10-27T14:11:00.002-04:00

Inspired by our recent move, here are my moving tips.
1. Don't pay for boxes. Call stores to set aside boxes for you. Not all stores will do so, you might have to call around, but it will be well worth it. Boxes are expensive. You can also try internet sites such as Craigslist - just use common sense when collecting them. If you do need to buy boxes, get them from U-Haul. In addition to U-Haul buying back any boxes you don't need, their boxes are also extra sturdy. Their dish boxes and dish-packing kits are excellent.
2. Use linens to pack fragile things. Not only will you have fewer boxes to move, but you will also help reduce the amount of paper and bubble wrap that you have to buy. Used newspaper is also a great (and free!) wrapping source. Keep older blankets out of boxes to use to cushion furniture during the move.
3. CLEARLY LABEL boxes. Just writing "kitchen" isn't a good label. A box labeled "kitchen - cookie cutters, rolling pin" is much clearer. And while we're on the subject:
4. Color-code your boxes. Assign each room in the new house a color, and place that color on your box. U-Haul sells color-coded moving tape, but I just buy a multi-pack of plastic tape. As an added help, put the corresponding color in the room of the new house. For example, I assigned BB's things blue. The boxes for his room had blue on them. If I had actually remembered the day of the move, I would have placed a sheet of blue construction paper on the door to his room. As it was, I found my construction paper with my packing tape after the movers left. And speaking of movers:
5. Ask friends and family to help you move (when possible). Don't forget to reward them for their trouble. Throw in a few pizzas, sodas and such to keep your movers going. It might also be a good idea to ask your moving team to bring bungee cords, rope, tarp, old blankets and hand trucks. Better to have too many than not enough!
6. Triage your boxes before you move. Once the moving team has left, it can be hard to know just where to begin. Even if the boxes are sorted by room. My best tip for avoiding a mental meltdown is to label the boxes of necessities "OPEN FIRST." In these boxes, have 1 set of bedding for each bed, mandatory toiletries, TOILET PAPER, and anything else that you might need soon. A good way to find your necessities is to look at what you left out to pack up the last minute. Don't forget to label these boxes on more than just one side!
These moving tips worked for me, and I hope they will for you too. Don't forget to check out We Are THAT Family each Wednesday for a variety of helpful tips!

Take Note

2009-10-27T23:33:00.002-04:00

Those of you who read my blog by going to my blog site (as opposed to a reader) may have noticed the "Make Merry" picture on the left sidebar. I am participating in Kingdom Twindom +1's Make Merry Gift Swap. If you aren't already a regular reader of Kingdom Twindom +1, I encourage you to go over and check it out. Especially if you like cute kids, funny stories, and Biblical teaching about marriage.

BB's Room

2009-10-24T19:53:00.003-04:00

Moving day - the walls were painted River Mist by Valspar prior to moving in. We managed to paint all but 4 rooms before we moved in, thanks to the help of my dad and my friend Z.

BB when he first walked into his room. He loves having the extra floor space!

After we had unpacked a bit, DH put up wall stickers that match BB's bedding and curtains. The stickers are removable without causing any damage to the wall. In the space above, BB's train table is supposed to go there, but he tore the tracks off of the table and it is awaiting repairs.

Hopefully in the next few weeks, I'll have a project to post about concerning this bookshelf, but this is it for now.

Another view of the shelf. If anyone has any old license plates they want to send my way, I'd be more than happy to have them.

View of bedroom from doorway.

Another view. Within 5 minutes of my taking these pictures, the room resembled a tornado's after-math. I have found the best way to keep BB occupied is to clean his room. He will then spend hours in his room undoing my cleaning ;)

BB's Bathroom

2009-10-23T22:28:00.004-04:00

Now that we've been in our house for almost a month, I thought I'd show you what we've been up to. If a picture is worth a thousand words, then this post should make up for my recent lack of blogging (although it wasn't entirely my fault).

This is the vanity in BB's bathroom. The blue vanity and sink match the toilet and bathtub ;D Since this is a boy's bathroom, I have no problem with all of the blue. After all, given that the house was built in the late 70's, I could be trying to decorate around avocado green!
I am curious, however, why there is a 60" vanity and the sink is crammed over against the wall. What was the builder thinking? If (when?) we gut this bathroom, I'm centering the sink on the vanity and opting for a cabinet that doesn't have the awkward middle section. What is this hole for?
These are the mirrors that the previous owners had up in the bathroom. I think the retro style of the mirrors went well with the retro light fixture that is original to the house.

The original mirror for this bathroom was in the garage, so DH and his brother reinstalled the big mirror. There's some damage around the mirror edge that we're going to fix with MirrorMate. The lights are going to be replaced just as soon as I find a light that I like. I am open to suggestions! Most bathroom lights are wall-mounted, while these lights are ceiling-mounted. I don't want to have a patched ceiling if I can help it. Currently, the only light that I've given serious consideration to is a florescent light, such as this one.
For the bathroom wall, we selected Valspar's Grand Hotel Mackinac Blue. This color is not as green in real life as it appears to be in these pictures. I selected this color for the bath after seeing it used in the kitchen (by the previous owner) and then seeing it again on this plaque:

When I saw how this sign combined Mackinac blue with the blue of the bath fixtures, I knew I had my wall color and theme picked for this bath.

The shower hooks are from ebay, the shower curtain from KMart.

BB's bathroom has the same Snoopy accessories that were in his old bathroom. The pictures that you see on the shelf in the cabinet are going to be hung on the wall at some point. When we redo the master bathroom, this etagere will be moved to our bath.
Other than finding a light and hanging some pictures, this bathroom is pretty much done for now. We are getting a new sink for the bathroom (Christmas present from my parents), but for now we are holding off on replacing the other stuff in this bath.

Parenting Advice Needed

2009-10-19T09:29:00.003-04:00

BB has started a new thing that I'm not crazy about. Whenever I ask him a question, he repeats what I asked him instead of answering me. Anyone have any suggestions on how to get him to stop? He was previously answering questions, and he thinks that his new thing is hilarious. I do not. Help!

They Should Work in Government

2009-10-17T21:18:00.002-04:00

We moved into our new house October 3rd. We didn't get internet until October 17th. Why the long delay? Let me tell you about 3 internet provider companies. For the sake of the tale, we'll call them Company A, B, and C, respectively.
DH and I have had internet through Company A for the past 3 years at our old house. I called them 2 weeks before the move and set up the appointment for connecting internet at our new home. Bright and early Monday after the move, I get a call from Company A:
"This is _____ with Company A. I'm sitting in my truck here in your driveway, and according to my chart, your house is not in our providing area. You'll have to call Company B if you want internet here."
Am I the only one who finds it odd that he calls me from my own driveway? Why not walk to the front door? Better yet, when you get the address of a house that you're going to, why not check your chart before you get there?
So I call Company B. After giving our address to Company B, I am told that while they can provide me with a land line, they do not yet have internet for my area.
My area that is in an established neighborhood within the city limits. A neighborhood built in the 1970's and 1980's. I wonder exactly when they are going to go for that newfangled internet-y thing?
My only remaining option is Company C. I am told that they will come to my house to set up internet between the hours of 8AM-10AM, either Thursday, Friday, or Monday. So I wait. And wait.
Turns out, Company C sent me an e-mail giving instructions that I was supposed to go to their office and pay a down payment before they would come to my house. Because nothing is more logical than sending an e-mail to someone who does not currently have internet. Especially when the someone told the company "DO NOT CONTACT ME VIA E-MAIL AS I DO NOT HAVE INTERNET AT THIS TIME."
On Tuesday, when DH goes to pay, Company C says that they have several people ahead of us and that they might be able to fit us in on Saturday evening. Maybe. Never mind the fact that they did something dumb that delayed us getting internet. Good thing they don't provide anything life or death.
But now we have internet. And I have close to 600 unread blog posts to catch up on. So if I don't comment on your post, at least I have a good excuse!

Moving Update

2009-10-01T09:44:00.002-04:00

We hit a small snag with our closing yesterday, but we're closing today.

And it looks like we're all set for the big move Saturday!

Of Trains and TV

2009-09-21T16:53:00.004-04:00

BB hasn't been allowed to watch TV today. I was a bit hesitant to hand out the no TV sentence because I was afraid it would be more punishment for me than for him. I've been pleasantly surprised at his reaction. He has talked about the TV, and has shown me videos that he wants to watch, but has (so far) accepted my denial. He has quite willingly played with his toys, read books, and played with Play-Dough.

One of the toys that he got out to play with today is his train set. We had high hopes for this train set when we bought it for him, but he has rarely played with it. Part of it was probably because of his age, but I wonder how much of it was because he was occupied by the TV? He doesn't watch a lot of TV, but between watching programs and anticipating a program coming on, a lot of his attention during the day is spent on TV. Looking back on today, I wonder if he has missed out because he's watched TV this past year.

He made this train track set-up today, without assistance. Would he have made this if he had watched TV? Granted, it did take him most of the day to complete, as he has taken several breaks to do other things. But it's still impressive for a 3-year-old!
Could the anti-TV crowd be right?

Funny Boy

2009-09-18T09:58:00.004-04:00

"Wanna go outside."
"No, baby, it's raining."
BB brings me his jacket
"Put jacket on."
"But baby, it's summer. You'll get hot."
"Jacket on, Puuuhhh-leeezzzeee?"
How can I resist that?
"Okay, but you'll get hot."

"Look, Mommy! Wanna go outside."

"See?"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
BB loves Cheerios. Really loves Cheerios. He wanted a snack the other day, but I told him no because it was too close to dinner time. All is quiet for a few minutes but then I hear the pantry door open and a skittering sound. I enter the kitchen to find BB happily eating out of the container.

Let's zoom out a bit, shall we?
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Name the Movie

2009-09-15T08:58:00.001-04:00

that this scene is from?

On 9-11-01...

2009-09-11T09:41:00.001-04:00

This is a repost of the post I did last year.
I was newly engaged, student-teaching a class of first-graders. I was leaving school to go to my afternoon college class. I was going to celebrate my one-year anniversary with my fiance (now hubby). I heard the radio in the school office. I didn't understand.
I listened in my car on the way to my class, and had to pull over onto the side of the road. My aunts worked at the Twin Towers. My dad travels to the Pentagon as part of his job. I didn't understand.
Classes are canceled for the rest of the day as those around me burst into hysterics. I walk into my house and turn on Fox News; I sit for hours watching the clips replay over and over. I didn't understand.
I hold a stack of worksheets painstakingly done by six-year-olds. I find myself writing the sequence of events onto one of the papers. I sense what I am seeing and hearing is important. I didn't understand.
Eight years later, I know the sequence of events, I know what happened. I know the motivation, I know who was responsible. I know what we, as a country, have done to support each other in the aftermath. But I still don't understand.

Introducing....

2009-09-08T08:14:00.003-04:00

Our new house!

We're set to close on the house September 30th. Feel free to send up a prayer that all that needs fixing will be done by then. I have a lot more pictures of the house, but I'm saving those for all of the *fabulous* before-and-after projects we're going to do. I have big plans for this house, but it's going to take a while to get it all done as we're doing things as we can afford them.

Wood Man

2009-09-03T08:49:00.003-04:00

DH has a doll. Not a regular doll, mind you, but a wooden artist's doll. DH uses him for animation modeling for his computer game that he's making. It's not uncommon for me to come into the living room and see Wood Man in a fighting pose. A few days ago, I decided that Wood Man was tired of fighting. I initially tried to make him look like he was skipping through a field of daisies, but that's hard to do when there's no daisies. So I settled for this:

Open Wide and Say "AAAA"

2009-09-02T09:11:00.003-04:00

One day, BB decided to play doctor. So he needed a patient.

First he checked his blood pressure - notice the special wrist technique. Only the most advanced doctors know to check it there.

Next, he tested the patient's pain reflexes by pinching the patient's nose with tweezers. The patient passed this test.

He examined the ears.

Pounded on top of his head - we're still awaiting the results from that test.

And he listened to the highly important knee beat. Which as any real doctor will tell you, is more important than the heart beat.
We're pleased to report that the patient appears to be in good health and more importantly, survived the physical!

Choosing the Good

2009-08-31T09:55:00.002-04:00

A while back, I wrote about some upsetting news. On a whim, I decided to Google my birth dad's name, just to see what popped up. I didn't expect to find anything with his name, except for perhaps an obituary. No one has heard anything about him for a while, so I half expected him to be dead. I was greatly surprised when the first result for his name was the Florida list of sex offenders. I clicked on the link, which provided a picture, his date of birth, and his criminal record. After digging out my baby book and comparing the birth dates and the pictures that I have, I had no choice but to conclude that it was, indeed, my birth dad. Reading through his criminal record was a sad affair, full of substance abuse, repeated arrests, jail time, and two known victims of his abuse. Sexual abuse is part of my history as well, and I know how devastating it can be. When I realized that I shared DNA with someone who could do that, I didn't know what to think.
My personality is such that when I receive bad news, I retreat. I'm not the type to talk to a lot of people and seek people out. I prefer to be left alone. Nevertheless, I did talk to a couple of friends about what I was feeling. One friend in particular was helpful in her unexpected reaction to my news. While she was sympathetic to me, she also saw the good in the situation - this was my birth dad I was talking about, not my dad. God had removed me from that person's influence by arranging my adoption years ago. While I did experience sexual abuse, thankfully it was when I was older and it wasn't by a family member. I didn't have to deal with the double trauma of early abuse and incest.
When I left this friend's company, I was still sad over what I had learned, but I was also able to thank God for showing me so clearly how He had provided for me. My adoption has always been painful to me. I've struggled with feeling unwanted and abandoned for most of my life. I've asked "Why?" more times than I can count. I've known that my birth parents were deeply flawed. I've known that I was far better off with my adopted parents, and I'm grateful for them. But it wasn't until I learned just how flawed my birth dad is and then spoke to my friend that I was able to see God's providence.
How often does our perspective take our eyes off of our ability to see God's providence? What would happen if we purposefully chose to see the good in every situation?