“SUPER MOM to the POTTY RESCUE!”

when bonobo was 3 and potty training, i used to say (in my most hero-like voice (you know, all booming and drawn out like the guy who announces a boxing match?)

“SUPER MOM… to the POTTY RESCUE!!!” (arms held out as i ‘fly’ into the bathroom…)

and then proceed to interview him about his tush cleaning procedures…

“and how’s your bum feeling now?” (imagine me standing over my son with a pretend microphone held up for interviewing purposes)

(giggle giggle)

“is your bum clean now?”

(guffaws)

anyway… i had just about forgotten that little ritual.  and just the other day, he yelled from the bathroom..

“MOM, I GO POOP!” and as i headed in to help, he told me to do my SUPER MOM bit.

never did i picture this scenario in my “dreams” of being a mom.  i never imagined discussions about poop, being summoned at all times of the day to clean up poop, nor being excited about poop.

but, there you have it. 

and i wouldn’t trade it for all the perfect mom ideals i concocted long before i was a mom. 

and so starts my (not-so-weekly) list of gifts

214. being “SUPER MOM” to my children :)

215. my daughter’s first REAL letters… B and P written without prompting (or tears, or screaming, or antics…)

216.  four little faces watching from the window as i leave the house for work

217.  saying good-bye to caviar (tic tac’s beloved stuffed cat)  whenever i leave the house

218.  silly stories and cuddles on the couch laughing together

219.  peek-a-boo at naptime

220. laundry piles folded…and put away!!

221. cheerios

222. butt paste (yep…we got issues with diaper rash…again!)

223. “Journey to the Cross” by Helen Haidle.  this is our devotional as we focus on Jesus’ life, death and resurrection.  i am learning so much as we read through this as a family

224.  science experiments that are successful!

225. a sermon about being in worship 24-7, not just on sunday mornings

226. a chance to sit through the sermon uninterrupted by the moose, who went to the nursery and didn’t scream the *whole* time (just a little bit of it)

227. as always, a God who is bigger than everything, who is in control of everything, and who holds the world in His hand. 

228.  and even though He is so BIG, He cares about all of the little things, like the number of hairs on my head and the sworls on my fingertips.

join in with ann and the other members of the gratitude community as we count our way to 1000!

on time!!

can you believe it??  i am posting my list of gifts on the day it is “due” so to speak.  i have to type quick, though… who knows when the next meltdown will occur.

186.  elephant and piggie books

187.  do a dot markers

188. vanilla ice cream with chocolate syrup and peanuts

189. my crock pot

190.  new meal plans… complete with shopping lists

191. DST… it actually worked in my favor this year as i got off work an hour early :)

192. a husband who is working his tail off to get new clients so i can cut back at work sooner rather than later

193.  my KISA’s new job teaching accounting for a local university. 

194. completing 4 weeks of our new curriculum (yep, i changed mid year!)

195. the return of “booger brain”

196. bonobo drawing a picture for his sister

197. bonobo’s sheer delight in exclaiming “Satan has been defeated!  He can’t touch me!!” with a fist pump for emphasis

198.  finding bonobo’s Message bible under his pillow… he sleeps with it every night

199.  tic tac’s very intricate drawings.  he loves to make them as full of details as possible

200. tic tac’s love of all things bug

201. audiobooks with accompanying bound books.  tic tac is devouring these and increasing his reading skills immensely

202. stinkerbell’s love of dress up and all things girlie

203.  stinkerbell hanging out in the bathroom with me while i shower so she and i can have (in her words) girl time

204.  a little girl’s desires to be like mommy… a lot of her statements lately start with “when i’m a mommy like you” or “when i’m taller than you”

205. the moose’s love of walking instead of crawling

206. the diaper rash that is FINALLY gone!!

207. normal poop (ok, weird, i know, but if you read this post you will understand why i write this!)

208. a gracious, loving compassionate God.  He loves me despite me.

209. miraculous shirts that stop bullets from entering a young man’s abdomen and killing him (i’ll fill you in on that one later)

210.  newly budding trees

211. plans for a greenhouse in my backyard!!!

212. the thought of fresh veggies, straight from the ground and my own hard work!

213.  the teaching opportunities that will arise from having our own greenhouse garden: patience, diligence, commitment to name a few

how about you?  are you counting up your gifts?  it is never too late to start! head on over to Ann’s and check it out :)

another use for books…

the boys had a little extra time on their hands while daddy was working in his office and i was sleeping after a long shift. 

stinkerbell became a casualty when her forehead got hit by the flying stepstool.

don’t ask.

the plus side?

all the books were nicely arranged in the shelves afterwards.

could have been bad…

as i went to work on monday afternoon, the snow was falling.  it was coming down pretty good, too.  i saw a few cars slipping, and was pretty cautious driving. 

by 6 pm, the snow was sticking and the roads were starting to freeze.

i left at 3 am (my normal shift).  there were 3 or so inches of snow on the car, and a thick layer of ice on all the windows.  i had forgotten to bring my gloves, so i had to scrape without them. 

needless to say, my fingers were pretty numb by the time i was done.

i got in and drove home, going about 40 mph on the interstate.

as i pulled into the drive, i went to undo my seatbelt.

my heart flew up into my throat as i realized

i had never fastened it.

in all my years of driving, i have never, and i do mean never, driven without my seat belt fastened.

never.

i immediately said a prayer of thanks as i realized just how bad my drive home could have been. 

just one patch of ice, just one other driver hitting a bad patch, i could have been gone. 

just like that.

i am so grateful for the crew of angels that drove home with me.

a long february

it has been a rough go for us this winter. i knew we would probably be sicker than normal since we just moved here. i knew our immune systems wouldn’t be up to the task of keeping us healthy the whole season.

but, i did have hope that we might come through it with grace and patience.

ha.

february has seen us blow through two bottles of children’s motrin, two bottles of infant tylenol, a box of mucinex for kids, countless albuterol treatments, one visit to the ER, two visits to the pediatrician, two prescriptions for prelone, one bottle of zithromax, one bottle of amoxicillin, triple the normal amount of hot showers (most of them in the middle of the night) and the purchase of a new humidifier.

and a partridge in a pear tree…

i thought that after influenza paid us a visit, we were in the clear.

not so much.

now we are on to the diaper rash direct from the depths of, well, H-E-double hockey sticks. moose has had a rash since he finished up his antibiotics. it was, of course, yeast like, so we had to get monistat to put on his tush. now he has had diarrhea for the last several days. he went on clears sunday.

walgreen’s and i are on a first name basis.

in the midst of this, well, i know i am supposed to look for and (here is the real trick) find gifts to count.

it has been hard.

but i managed a few.

*a husband who works from home so that we can tag team the kiddos. esp the moose, who wouldn’t let us put him down for anything in the midst of 104 fevers.

*an understanding charge nurse who had her son bring some of her albuterol so that i could get stinkerbell her breathing treatments without the added expense of an office visit.

*that same nurse letting me leave my shift early so that i could head home and nurse my 4 sickies and not leave the KISA high and dry.

*an illness that swept through the house, but left dad alone. and only hit me hard for 24 hours.

*soup

*the lack of vomiting, despite the ever-present diarrhea of the moose.

*moments of cuddling with each child as i checked fevers with forehead kisses.

*the accuracy of those kisses!!

*prayers lifted on our behalf.

*daddy playing “teddy bear” with stinkerbell

*the peace of a cough-less night… after too many nights of croup running rampant and attacking each child.

*the joy of kissing foreheads in the middle of the night and finding them blissfully cool.

*the healing power of momma’s milk!

*kisses on my forehead from the KISA

*getting this posted, even though it is two days late!!

*the encouragement i get when i read other lists of gifts. even though i don’t post too often anymore, i so enjoy stealing a moment here and there to see how God is blessing other women in their daily lives.

this post has been several days in the draft cycle. i started it on sunday, fully intending it to be completed in time for monday’s Multitude Monday post over at A Holy Experience. *sigh*

trying out live writer

well.  i am trying out the live writer i have heard so much about.  i am hoping that it will make posting a tad bit easier.  we shall see :)

 

 

wonder...ponder

how come those don't rhyme?

anyway :)

we are still here after the Christmas season. actually, the Christmas season is still with us since the tree and decorations are still up.

*sigh*

i asked the KISA to take things down for me because, well, i really really dislike putting away Christmas ornaments. too depressing.

but i am finding that leaving them up until the 9th of january is just as depressing.

so, today.. they are coming down!!

i think.

it is my only day off in a long stretch, so it has to happen today or they will probably be there another week.

so what is the purpose of this post? surely not to whine about seasonal decorations.

nope. more like, to share some gifts!

when i count my gifts, i am reminded of the goodness of God. a reminder i need way more often in my crazy life.

* ducky tubs and splashing water

* the first "real" bath of the little moose

* grandpa, aka my dad

* playdoh and fighting playdoh monsters

* strange icicle formations and on the spot learning opportunities

* standing, letting go and falling... and

* seeing my Heavenly Father pick me up when i fall and cannot get up on my own

* wrapping paper mounds

* snow laden trees

* libraries within walking distance

* a husband that lets me sleep in on my first day of work

* whispers of a 5 year old at bedtime. "jo-jo, what was the best thing about your day?"

"you tucking me in."