Easter Carnival: Bad Saturday

There's a blog carnival going on this week over at BecomingMe. It's a chance to post your favorite Easter story, recipe, craft, tradition or whatever else you can think of relating to this holiday.

I have a funny Easter story, but first I have a really great idea I want to share.

We're one of those families that the Easter bunny visits. I have many friends who don't receive such a visit because they've chosen to keep this holiday focused on Christ. I get that. I've even toyed with that idea, but honestly John and I think the Easter bunny is fun. So here's how we handle it:

The Easter bunny visits our house on Friday night. My husband was a pastor for years and years and years. Sunday mornings were hard enough without throwing candy and toys into the mix. Someone at a MOPS meeting gave me the idea to bump the Easter Bunny's visit up a night and let the kids enjoy a leisurely Saturday digging through their baskets, eating their candy, and enjoying all their goodies. The result is that we're able to keep Easter morning focused on Jesus. 

The rule in our house is that you can eat all the candy you want on Saturday. My kids LOVE this rule. I'm the sugar sheriff most of the time so when they have license to eat candy...you better believe they go crazy. Which leads me to the funny Easter story I was going to share. 

It was written by my humorous husband a couple of years ago on Easter Sunday.

Bad Saturday

I left yesterday for work about 10:00. By that time, our kids had been eating jelly beans for about three hours. Mer had given them the "today, I don't care" green light to eat their Easter candy with abandon. I later learned that for lunch, and we'll focus in on Sarah here, she ate 10 chicken nuggets from Chik-Fil-A and french fries. You totaling all this up? After lunch, the kids dyed eggs. Meredith boiled 24 eggs and by the time I got home, there were three left on the counter. When I inquired about this, she said, "Well, Sarah ate 7 boiled eggs this afternoon. And then she blew." Yes, death and resurrection in the Lifeat7000Feet household on bad Saturday. I tried to step back into the flow of the house, but realized there was no flow to step into, but there was something else to step into; and there was more to come. One more upchuckin' two-step occurred about an hour after I got home. There was this cry, like a stuck Easter bunny, from the hall: "Bring the bowl." But Sarah managed to strategically hit the floor between the bowl and the toilet bowl. Bullseye! There ain't much on a Easter-eve evening, when you're trying to prepare yourself for the holy hallelujahs of Sunday morning, than to have to clean up the remains of the day. But that's life - cleaning out the muck of the stalls, literally and figuratively. Sarah finally fell asleep from a post-jelly-bean-chicken-nugget-boiled-egg intestinal roller coaster ride in the middle of Saturday Night Live. She was o.k. this morning and when asked in Sunday school if she wanted any jelly beans, she resolutely answered, "No thanks." You go to sleep some nights wondering just what in the world keeps your kids alive. Same stuff that always has - God's hands. 

Be sure to visit BecomingMe for more Easter stories. And it's not to late to join the carnival! (There's even a prize!) 

*Winner* (Glad someone will be enjoying Starbucks...)

Lemon Juice to Dawn:

Lemon tell you somethin'... people like you Dawn belong in here!!!

Alright...it was really hard to choose from all the funny comments, but my kids and I like Tiffani's quirky caption the best. Tiffani, if you'll send me your address, I'll send YOU a Starbucks gift card. I actually probably have your address around here somewhere, but you should probably resend it. I seem to be misplacing more than just my mind these days. *smile*

Couple of things...

It's Thursday night and I feel like I've survived the busiest week I've had in a long time. Whew!

The girls don't have school tomorrow (Will does though!) so it actually feels like Friday night to me and I am looking VERY forward to sleeping in tomorrow. (Except I usually wake up early on days I can actually sleep late--go figure.)

Several of you have asked how my dad is doing and I can tell you that he is rejoicing tonight because his first round of chemotherapy/radiation ends TOMORROW! He tolerated the first few weeks very well, but the last few weeks have been rough. He's hanging in there, but it has required every ounce of strength he has. He'll take a three week break then start his second round of chemo. His doctors are treating this very agressively and have given him a pretty good prognosis.

We went to Will's 6th grade band concert tonight, and it was really good! They've improved SO much since that first concert back in the fall. I can't believe I didn't take a single pic. My camera battery was dead and I didn't realize it in time to charge it. Will was fine with no pics, but it made my mama-heart sad. (Sorry, grandparents...I'll be more on the ball next time.) We were really proud of him tonight!

Okay, two funny things to share with you. 

1. If you haven't read the comments on this post, go read them. They are very funny, and very clever.

2. I saw this YouTube video on Lisa's blog today, and it's worth the 23 seconds it takes to watch it. I laughed SO stinkin' hard. So did John. So did my kids. And so did the other dozen people I sent the link to. Here's Lisa's warning: Do not attempt to drink anything while watching unless you like snorting liquids out your nose. And if you don't think this is funny then I don't know what's wrong with you. (I completely agree).

I'm unplugging tomorrow. Ya'll have a great weekend!

You could win a prize!

You know you're tired when you reach to grab the lemon juice and see the dish detergent in the fridge.

It's been a long, busy week, friends.

My brain was too tired to come up with a clever title for this photo-post, but feel free to give it a shot. I'll use a highly subjective method to choose a winner. That means I'll pick the commenter that makes me laugh the hardest and send that person a $5 Starbucks card. So have at it. You have until Saturday night. I'll choose on Sunday.

Ten

I have an idea and I wonder if I can persuade anyone to join me. It's not an original idea though. (Most of mine aren't).

I can't remember who told me about it, but after this post (a day in my life) someone told me that their friend did a similar post once a month and called it Eleven on the Eleventh or something like that.

Since I'm a list girl, I thought it would be fun to post Ten things on the 10th of each month. It would be even more fun if you join me!

Your 10 Things could be whatever you want them to be: 

• 10 photos
• 10 things you love
• 10 things you're praying for
• 10 things that happened to you that day
• 10 things you're thankful for
• 10 reasons to rejoice
• 10 pet peeves
• 10 of your favorite blogs
• 10 ways to save money
• 10 television shows you love
• 10 products you can't live without
• 10 of your favorite people
• 10 random thoughts  

 The possibilities are endless! 

So...anyone want to join me? Next Tuesday is the 10th. I think I might even try that Mr. Linky thing (if it's not too complicated). Could be really fun! 

Because it's nice to share...

Today is my busy day so I'm sharing some of my favorite links from last week with you.

New to blogging? Moriah put together a resource list just for you!

I love the way my husband blogs about everyday family life.

I'm on the lookout for a desk for the girls' room. I've been searching Craigslist for the last few weeks hoping to find something simple that I might transform into something fabulous like this. I stalk Beckie's blog because she is AMAZINGLY crafty. I think I want to copy this idea of hers also!

Lisa gets the prize for the post that made me laugh the hardest last week. FUNNY!

I watched this last night for the first time all season. Wish I could get those two hours back. What a waste. I think Susan summed up my feelings rather well here.

My Monday Morning Laugh

Laughter is always a good way to start Monday mornings, don't ya think?

My middle child came into the kitchen a little while ago and said this to me:

"Mom, I was going to give up sloth this week (for Lent) but since it took me 10 minutes to get out of bed, I think I'll give up unhealthy snacks instead."

She's a riot! (What 10-year-old do you know that uses words like "sloth"?)

There's never a dull moment around here. Never.

PS--She was totally serious about giving up sloth, and she came up with that one entirely on her own.

PPS--This same girl just responded to my "are you dressed" question by saying "No!" then bursting into the song from Annie, You're Never Fully Dressed Without a Smile. I love her so much.

Following Up

A friend told me once that I tend to leave people hanging on my blog. Evidently I mention things and don't come back and tell you the outcome. So, with that in mind here are some follow-up things I should tell you (in list form, of course).

1. I tried the baked oatmeal--it was delicious. I ended up using this recipe instead of this one. My friend made the second one and declared it a new family favorite. I made mine in a 9x13 dish (with 1/2 applesauce, 1/2 oil and WAY less sugar) and it lasted us all week. I think I'm going to make a batch every week so that I can have an instant, healthy breakfast option. *I think the recipes are basically the same now that I look at them!*

2. Lots of you asked which Vera Bradley bag I got, here is a picture. It makes me happy.
(The style is Betsy, the pattern is Frankly Scarlet. I love it!)

3. I don't hate Facebook. I actually really like it, I'm just not a fan of the status updates. It occurred to me that I don't have to check everyone's status every time I log on. Problem solved. (By the way, I still think FB is a huge time-suck).

4. I don't hate playdates either.  I just don't like having them on weekends, and if my kids didn't get home from school at 4pm (isn't that NUTS?) I'd probably have them more often. I do encourage them to play outside in the afternoons when it's nice and if their friends from the neighborhood are out there too it's even better!

5. I decided to give up Starbucks for Lent. I had an almost three week head start, so I imagine by the time Easter rolls around I'm going to be really ready for a tall venti non-fat chai!

6. Will is enjoying his cell phone. We laid down some pretty strict rules when we gave it to him, and it's been a learning experience for all of us. He's had it taken away once, and we've had some interesting discussions regarding some of the text messages he's sent and received. Do you guys read your kids' texts? We told him at the onset that we'd be scrolling through at the end of each day and reading them. It's been enlightening to say the least.

7. The Blessing Bowl. I haven't posted sooner because I didn't pick it up until this morning!It's basically just a bowl filled with ceramic "stones" and each stone has a meaning. As best I understand it, The Blessing Bowl is meant to be a way to share your faith stories with family and friends. The "stones" are conversation starters.  

Before I tell you the meaning of the stones I painted, let me tell you that I ended up with only a few of my original eight stones. There were three of us there that night with the same initials, and I think that all of ours got mixed up! I have more that I didn't paint than ones that I did! Gotta get them swapped this week!


The sun (top left) is meant to represent Beginnings. I might hand this stone to one of my children on their first day of school and ask them to tell me a faith story (ex. I was fearful, but I know that God was with me.) Other beginnings might be: new job, new home, new friend, etc. 

The eyelash/tear stone represents Loss. This stone might be used to share a story involving the loss of a loved one, divorce, loss of job, etc. 

The orange stone with a hand in the center represents Care. Stories might include missions, caring for the environment, prayer, etc. 

The green one with a compass on it (bottom left) is meant to represent Quests. Examples might include: running a marathon, hiking Pikes Peak!, learning to play the trumpet, or really anything new and adventurous.

The purple stone has a candle on it (can't even tell, can you?) and represents Remembering. When we remember what God has done in our lives and share it verbally with our children, we are solidifying their faith. Examples of remembering might range from bible stories and songs to birthdays and important anniversaries. 

The dark green stone is a picture of  mountains made to represent Mountain Highs. These would be huge moments in our lives. Like maybe an engagement or the birth of a child. This stone might be used to talk about how God was in the details.

The last one pictured above represents Gratitude. What are things we are thankful for? Friends, family, health, beauty, and the list goes on and on. You'd use this stone to talk about all the things you're thankful for!

I painted one (gotta find out who has it!) to represent Valley Lows. Those low places/times in our lives that God uses to bring us to a place of greater intimacy with Him. Depression. Failure. Broken relationships. Etc.

There was one more stone I didn't have time to paint that represented Sacred milestones. That might include things like baptism, weddings, communion...or anything you deem sacred.

Does this make sense to you? In simplest form, I think the Blessing Bowl is a way to initiate conversation about our faith journey with family and friends. Here's a link to the original blessing bowl that our church got the idea from. I think it is an amazing tool and I plan to keep ours on our kitchen table!

Our church staff created some unique stone symbols to use during Lent, but I chose to use the ones above instead so that it might be more functional year round. I hope I don't regret it!

8. This is extra. It's not a follow-up to anything. I'm cooking for the middle school youth group tonight. Will requested chili, so I have a double batch simmering right now. And about to make some cookies for dessert. I'm trying to wrap my mind around the fact that next fall I'll have TWO kids in middle school. I don't quite know how I feel about that.

Happy Sunday.

The Nice Mom

Ya'll, I'm just not a big fan of playdates. One of my daughters has a friend that calls her every. single. day. asking to play. My girls get home from school SO late in the day that it's just not possible to schedule a playdate on school days and still survive homework/dinner/showers. That leaves weekends, and I've told you before that we are STINGY with our weekends. We made the decision years ago that Sunday is Family Day and it's family only, so that really only leaves Saturdays to play.

Today, I gave in to the endless whining and begging said yes to a playdate for Abbey. 

I might as well have given her a hundred dollar bill and turned her loose in the toy store. She was thrilled. 

The girls are having a blast. They've been playing in the basement, in the girls' room, they've had a tea party and now they're outside in our teepee-tent (the snow we got yesterday melted and it's chilly, but gorgeous outside!)

John got some work done while they were playing and I took a nap and finished my library book! AMAZING. 

I only said no to making mud pies and the EZ-Bake oven. (Does anyone else cringe when their kids want to pull out the EZ-Bake???)

I'm pretty sure I'm going to get the Nicest Mom Ever award today. And I'm quite sure that my daughter will be wondering where her "really nice mom" went when she asks me for a playdate next weekend. 

How do you guys handle playdates? Are you a fan?

I don't know why...

...I feel compelled to tell you that I'm unplugging today.

I think Friday is going to be my day to do this for awhile. Why Fridays? Because Kellie is unplugging on Fridays during Lent and asked if anyone wanted to join her. 

So...I guess I'll see ya tomorrow. 

Status Update

I saw this idea on Elizabeth's blog the other day and decided to be a copy-cat!

Sitting... at my kitchen table finishing up some lunch and reading a few blogs.

Drinking... sweet tea with lemon. 

Listening... to nothing. I like silence.

Drawing a blank... about what to do for the next 1.5 hours until the afternoon madness begins. Clean? Rest? Read? Blog? (Clearly blogging won!)

Hoping... to feel better soon. I seem to have caught Abbey's cold from last week.

Refusing... to take medicine. I have a weird hang-up about putting meds in my body. 

Amazed... at the unseasonably warm temps we're having this week. SO ready for spring.

Eager... for the weekend.

Trying to decide... between chicken noodle soup and enchiladas for dinner. Hmmmmm... (either way the chicken is prepped and ready!)

Currently reading... NOTHING. I'm very open to suggestions though! FYI, I decided not to finish Breaking Dawn. My Bunco friend told me how it ended and I realized I'm not going to miss anything by not finishing it. 

Loving... the sunshine! the Vera Bradley bag that John's mom gave me for Christmas! the white chocolate coconut creamer I bought for my coffee! and my church! (we had an amazing Ash Wednesday service last night.

Not loving... my dog who can't decide if he wants to stay IN or OUT. 

Spending... the next forty days without Starbucks. 

Wondering... how Will did in his spelling bee today. I didn't get to go!!!

More than you probably want to know about ME...

I found this little treasure last weekend. It's My Book About Me, which was a gift I received from my cousin, Phillip, on my 4th birthday.How do I remember all of that? Because my mom wrote the date and occasion inside the cover. Have I ever told you that I'm a HUGE believer in writing names/dates on the inside cover of books given and received as gifts? Well, I am. Because I have concrete proof that my memory will not last forever.

Anyway, this is how I wrote my name when I was four. Abbey felt the need to tell me that my handwriting was rather sloppy.
And evidently at age four I was 70 feet tall. I've shrunk.
Check out my fabulous hair! My mom noted that it was auburn. Man, I wish I still had more of that natural color.
Ummm....can you say Pinocchio? Looks like someone's nose was growing.
Here's a little shout out to Jonesboro, AR--a terrific place to grow up.
My kids think it's funny that I loved okra--they're not big fans. And I LOVE squash now, but apparently I didn't love it so much when I was four.
Can you remember your first phone number? I don't know if I'll ever forget 935-1524!
And The Sunshine Family? Do you guys remember them? A huge blast from my past.
Our mail man lived a few houses down from us, so of course I had to get his autograph. I also had an autograph book and a huge stuffed fabric autograph shoe at one time. Wonder if my mom still has those somewhere...that would be a really fun find!
Yeah, I wasn't much of an athlete. Jacks? Really? And wow...it seems my indecisiveness was firmly rooted way back when.
I do remember my best friend Leeann. In fact, I ran into her one year at Race for the Cure in Little Rock, AR...while we were running. We had an interesting, and somewhat breathless conversation before she left me in her dust! I think I must have been older than four when I wrote her name because I specifically remember Sister Florentine teaching me to write in cursive in second grade (I had lots of nuns as teachers in Catholic school).
There's much more in this book, but I don't have time to upload all the pics! Several of you told me you also had a Razorback cheerleader doll. I won't be one bit surprised if a bunch of you have a book this as well!

*Guess what? You can still buy this book on Amazon! I had no idea.

Lent

I've put this post off because there is so much I want to say and I start feeling overwhelmed when I think about trying to say it all and I'm not even sure where I want to begin.

Our family observes the season of Lent. People have asked me if we're Catholic. No, we're not (though I was growing up). Denominationally speaking, we've been all over the place. Several years ago, we became a part of an Anglican church and fell in love with liturgy. Basically, liturgy is a pattern for worship that follows the Christian calendar year.

Do you know that (very old) country song--I Was Country When Country Wasn't Cool? Well, John was liturgical even back in his Southern Baptist pastor days. He'd break out the Advent wreath and preach thru the lectionary readings and even incorporate some Lenten stuff into worship. These days, we're at home in a Lutheran church (which we LOVE) and I'm telling you all of this so you'll know that Catholics aren't the only ones who observe Lent.

Lent begins today (Ash Wednesday) and continues for forty days (weekdays, not Sundays) until Easter. I thought this site did a pretty good job explaining the facts about Lent.

I sat down a week or so ago and made a list of things I want our family to do during Lent. I've always found it easy to focus on Holy Week (the week preceding Easter) but I feel like this season deserves more than just a week. Traditionally, Lent focuses on three areas: prayer/penitence, fasting, and alms (giving). With those themes in mind, I decided on some activities for us to do together.

I hope that we can have some focused scripture reading as a family after our evening meal. Maybe not every night, but a few times each week. I talked over this plan with John and he offered to come up with all the scripture readings and to handle this part of things. I readily agreed. I have no idea what stories/verses he is planning to use, but we both feel that it's important for our children to really know the gospel events leading up to Christ's death...and resurrection.

Prayer/Penitence: The Sin Box. I have an empty box (cereal box--reduce, re-use, recycle!) that I want the kids to help me cover with some sort of red scrapbook paper. I plan to keep it on the kitchen table/kitchen cabinet and if the kids have something they want to confess, they write it on a slip of paper and put it in the sin box while explaining that Jesus' death on the cross bought forgiveness for our sin. It's private stuff...between them and God, and I will NOT force them to write something/anything down on the paper. It's completely voluntary

Fasting: Giving something up. Isn't that what most people think of when they hear the word Lent? Maybe it's just me but giving something up for 40 days seems a bit extreme for kids. I don't doubt my kids can do it, I just don't want them to see themselves as failures if they don't (and a couple of my kids have a tendency to be really hard on themselves). 

So, we're asking them to give up something for a week at a time. This week it might be dessert, next week it might be television. John explained to them that sacrifice is involved and that when we're reminded of what we're giving up, it's an invitation to spend time thinking about the sacrifice Jesus made for us.

My son told me today he was giving up his time on the Wii. The girls have chosen to forego listening to their ipods for a week. (They all suggested at dinner the other night that I give up the computer which I thought was hysterical...and highly unlikely). As a family, we're going to give up eating out. John shared this article with me this morning and I thought it had some great ideas for me. I'm still undecided as to what my "thing" will be.

SO, at the end of each week I want to reward the kids for their sacrifice. I look at it as positive reinforcement. If Will didn't play Wii all week, then he'll get a yet-to-be-decided, small monetary reward. Same with the girls. BUT...the money isn't for them to keep. It will go into our Blessing Bank.

Alms (Giving): I have a can that we're going to decorate as a Blessing Bank. I think we've decided to give whatever money we collect to a missions group through our church. 

Any money we would spend on a family meal out will go into the Blessing Bank also. Should I decided to give up Starbucks, I'll chunk that change into the bank as well.

Our church is having some Lenten services on Wednesday nights which we'll be going to as a family. Our theme for Lent is The Road First Traveled and all of that kicks off tonight with the Ash Wednesday service. Our church also has an Easter drama production during Holy Week and rumor has it that my long-haired husband might be playing Jesus. *wink*

Oh...a couple more things before I forget. I read this article about pretzels, and how they have been traditional Lenten fare. I think one night we're going to try our hand at making some...just need to find a recipe. Or even easier, I could just open the box of frozen, soft pretzels in the freezer!

I thought this site had some very simple and easy devotional thoughts to use with kids.

And my friend, Wendy, is posting her Lenten devotions on her blog each week! She's also good at coming up with crafty ideas for kids.

I feel like I'm leaving tons of stuff out, but I really want to get this posted before my crazy afternoon/evening begin! If I think of something earth-shattering, I'll add it later.

I'll Take It!!!

The temperature here today is 64 degrees. SIXTY FOUR DEGREES. In February. In Colorado.

Just last week I had snow in my backyard, and the weatherman was reminding us that March and April are our snowiest months.

Not today though.

When I was picking kids up from school this afternoon I passed walkers and runners everywhere wearing tank tops and shorts! So many people (and pets) were out enjoying the Colorado sunshine!!!

I don't know how long these temps will last, but I'm not complaining.

It feels like spring and I LOVE it!

Maybe that groundhog/shadow thing really is a hoax. I would NOT be disappointed one bit.

For your reading pleasure...

I can't seem to put a coherent post together lately which is why I'm sharing some links with you today.

I had the most amazing salsa at Bunco last week. It was unbelievably delicious and I'm definitely going to have to make a batch very soon.

Also, I'm planning to try this recipe for baked oatmeal this week. I got this link from Leah, and Stephanie sent me the same recipe. For those of you who asked, baked oatmeal is not the same thing as oatmeal cooked in a crockpot. This recipe calls for baking it in muffin tins. Others I've seen use a 9x13 dish.

I loved this post that John wrote. I happen to think he's the most brilliant writer.

I sometimes think it would be cool to live in California. Beaches, mountains, warm temps, green grass in January, and this make it all very tempting.

Have any of you seen this movie? I went to see it yesterday afternoon (all by myself!) and thought it was really, really cute!

Got girls? Then you need to check out this great tutorial for hair clips.

I found this blog a couple of weeks ago, and I love it! She has some great ideas.

I'm trying to get my Lenten ideas into a post. I adapted some of them from a devotion book that Wendy wrote. She'll be sharing devotions each week during lent on her blog, and yesterday she posted some fun craft ideas for kids.

Hope you have a happy Monday!

Ready for the Weekend

I'm very thankful it is Friday, aren't you?

I've been at home every day this week which rarely happens. I generally plan to be home all day on Mondays, Fridays, and one day in between but since Abbey has been sick my schedule was (wonderfully) clear! I'm happy to report that she's feeling much better today and she's returning to school. 

Which is great because I need to get out of the house for a little while!

I'm heading out soon to buy all the stuff for this. And deliver the final few boxes of Abbey's Girl Scout cookie order. And hopefully by the time I'm home, John will be too! (He had a short business trip to the Windy City and I'm thankful he also had a chance to connect with one of his best friends--who I've heard reads my blog religiously--while there!)

I'm really looking forward to a good night's sleep tonight because I sleep SO badly when he's away.

I'm also looking forward to the weekend because this is the first time in about three weeks that we have NOTHING going on. We are so stingy with our Saturdays and Sundays, and this one is entirely ours! Woohoo!

I have a question for you guys. Do any of you have a recipe for baked oatmeal? I really want to try this, but I'm trying to find a recipe that doesn't call for one cup of oil. My friend, Kellie, has issues with mayonnaise, but I have (serious) issues with oil. Yes, I realize I could always substitute applesauce, which I often do, but I'd like to try a recipe that doesn't require substituting and one that is tried and true. Anyone?

And one more thing...you guys really need to go over and meet my friend, Susan. She's only been blogging for a few months, but her blog is one of my absolute favorites! She'll have you laughing in no time, I promise.

Happy Weekend!

Unedited Thoughts on Nothing (and I really mean NOTHING!)

I have a huge, and I really mean HUGE pimple on my chin. And it hurts even when I'm not touching it. Lovely.

I haven't had a drink from Starbucks in two weeks. TWO WEEKS, people! That is huge for me. I was tempted to stop on the way home from church last night because it was SO cold, but I kept on driving. Now, I'm doubly glad because I slept horribly and I'm sure the caffeine wouldn't have helped at all. 

I'm beginning to think Facebook is ridiculous. The status updates? Who really cares what I'm doing? Or what you're doing for that matter. Interestingly, I don't feel the same about Twitter. I have some theories about why that is...

I painted a ceramic Blessing Bowl and eight stones to go with it last night at church. I can't wait to see it after it's fired and tell you more about it. (It's very cool!)

Highs are in the 30s this week. I'm tired of being cold, but realize that spring is still far off for us. *sigh*

Abbey is home sick again today. My kids never get perfect attendance awards. If they're getting sick, actually ARE sick, or are getting over being sick, I'm quick to keep them at home. Today, I'm banning HSM3. Abbey watched it way too many times yesterday and I'm ready to move on to some Anne Shirley--our classic sick-day dvd.

I drank the last of my gingerbread coffee from TJ's this morning. I'm a little sad about it too. It has only lasted this long because I didn't willingly share. (John didn't love it though so that's okay!)

I never buy books. I'm a library girl. However, I did buy the first three books in the Twilight series (why?) and was so happy that I was able to borrow the fourth one. Well, now it looks like I'll be buying that one too because my dog gnawed the corners of Molly's book. (Sorry, Molly! I'm replacing it for you). Argghh. I have a love-hate relationship with our dog. 

Speaking of that book...WEIRD...and I'm still not finished with it because it is so absurd. I'm trying to read a little every day but I'm not trying very hard. 

I don't live in a place that sees rain very often. Our precipitation is usually of the frozen variety. But I'm really, really wishing for a rainy day. 

I thought this was funny: I grabbed Abbeys' ipod yesterday before hitting the treadmill. I shuffled through Miley Cyrus and Taylor Swift and the Mamma Mia & HSM soundtracks while doing my run/walk workout (I'm trying to keep our lonely treadmill company these days). 

Anyway, I'm shuffling through and get to some hard rock song. Evidently she convinced someone in our family to load Rock You Like A Hurricane by the Scorpions onto her cute little pink shuffle. Which now explains why she was grinning from ear to ear last week (with the earbuds stuck in her ears and the shuffle clipped onto her belt) when she told me that she had some sweet new tunes on her ipod. (I'm pretty sure my mother is cringing right about now).

I needed to laugh...

I'm home today with Abbey. She has a yucky cold and feels pretty miserable unless she's bossing me around or sipping juice with a straw while watching HSM3 or playing Webkinz. She's wearing me out.

I just read through all the comments on Fran's post today.  They are hysterical and I SO needed to laugh out loud. I think you should all get your creative hats on and go over there and play along--there's even a $25 Starbucks card up for grabs. 

Authenticity: Part I

Well, based on the number of comments and personal email responses I've gotten about this post, I think it's safe to assume that I'm not alone in my struggle with authenticity/transparency/honesty in regard to blogging.

I've read and re-read every comment and email and have been trying to sort out some of my feelings on the matter. There is still much that I'm wrestling with, and I don't pretend to have answers, but I do have some thoughts to share. It could get rather lengthy so I've decided to break this into two (maybe three) posts.

None of this is profound, or even original, but here goes...

I'm a transparent person by nature. I've never been shy and I'm not very private. If I'm happy or sad or worried or mad or grieved or struggling with something, you usually know it. I'm not ashamed of my tears, and I cannot count the number of times I've totally lost it when a friend (or stranger) has innocently asked me how I'm doing. I'm just not very good at keeping that stuff in. 

I've realized that I expect that same level of honesty from others. 

I've also realized that is not at all realistic. We're all different. What may come easily for me may be excrutiating for you. I'm usually willing to bare my soul and share my heart...but it comes with risk, and maybe not everyone is willing to be so risky. Maybe they don't know how or aren't practiced enough. I can live with that. Basically, I'm saying that this is my issue. If you hear nothing else, please hear this: It's my issue.

I also realize that the blog (mine or yours) may not necessarily be the best place to bare and share.

I agree wholeheartedly with all of you who commented that your blog is not a place to air your dirty laundry. Some of the stuff we struggle with involves other people, and talking about it on the blog could end up hurting or diminishing people we care about. I get that. Good grief, I've even done that.

I also believe that some things are better left discussed with real life friends. Sometimes it feels like the blog community can be a substitute for real life friendship and community. Personally, I have a lot of friends AND I have a lot of blog friends. But when it comes right down to it, there are only a handful of women who really know me. And that handful is who I will share the deepest, darkest, and messiest details of my life with. Yet I still want the "bloggy me" to be more substantive than just the happy life stuff. Does that make sense? I've yet to figure out a balance in all of this.

I loved what Moriah said in her comment about the depth of honesty depending on the purpose of the blog. I definitely agree. I also love that Mrs. Naz had a mission carnival last summer in which participants shared their blog's mission/purpose. I've yet to go back and read all of the posts. I'm actually trying to come up with something along those lines for LifeAt7000Feet. Right now, it's just a place I write about things I love...but I think maybe I want to clarify that a little more.

My friend, Teri, asked in her comment why I even care when someone isn't authentic. It's their blog, they can write about what they want to write about and if they're not honest, so what? Isn't that their "stuff". I'm always free not to read it, right?

I agree with her, and I drastically pruned my google reader last week, BUT I still feel irritation at the cycle that gets perpetuated by the "plastic" persona and how it affects other women. It's sorta like the story I shared about my friend who claimed to love everything about being a mom. I was left scratching my head and wondering what in the world was wrong with me for not loving everything. Wondering why motherhood seemed so hard for me when she was breezing through it with a cheerfulness that put Pollyanna to shame. 

I don't believe she was breezing through it though, and I don't believe she was always cheerful, but for some reason she didn't feel like she could admit that to anyone. And that just makes me sad...and mad because again, I expect honesty from people and there was something going on within her that prevented honesty.

See? It's MY issue.

I know that I can't change people. That is NOT my job. I can live MY life authentically though, and I desire that very much.

I'm afraid this is starting to sound whiney. That is not my intent, so maybe this is a good stopping point...for today.

I have lots of thoughts still stirring in regard to what authenticity looks like for me, especially in regard to my faith. 

A Rash Decision...

I decided just a minute ago that I need to unplug today.

Most of you know that I've been doing this one day a week since the first of the year. I want to make a bold claim and tell you that it's changed my life but that might be exaggerating a bit. It has made a big difference in my level of productivity around the house though. 

Today marks the end of a four-day weekend for us. It's been wonderful but all that sleeping in and napping and lazing around in my pjs has done nothing for my house--it definitely needs some attention today. I also need to do this. And do some planning for Brownies. And I have a date with my treadmill later too. My to-do list is getting longer by the minute.

Before I unplug though, here are a few things that aren't quite worthy of an entire post but that I want to mention.

My cousin had a baby! I'm so happy for them. She's not my first cousin to have a baby, so I don't know why I'm making such a big deal out of it. Maybe it's because I got to see her pregnant when we were at the Razorback game in Arkansas last fall. Maybe it's because she's a special cousin (one of the few girl cousins I have), or maybe it's because she had a baby boy very close to the time of year that I had a boy. Anyway, I'm just thrilled for them!

John and I watched Nights in Rodanthe last night. I've decided I hate Nicholas Sparks because his books and movies make me cry the ugly cry. Man, I didn't see that ending coming. If you watch it...have some tissues handy.

I spent some time this weekend planning some family activities for Lent. It begins next week on Ash Wednesday! It's easy to focus on Holy Week, but this year I want our family to stay focused during the entire season. I'll share some of what I've got planned in the days ahead.

And I'm STILL working on that follow-up post to authenticity. I worked on it Sunday and Monday, but my thoughts are still so jumbled. Maybe today as I'm cleaning I can get it all sorted out!

Hope you have a great Tuesday.