God Is My Co-pilot???

I've never liked those God is my co-pilot bumper stickers. To me, it says I'm in control but I have God "just in case".

Maybe I'm nit-picking and people are just saying "God is in my car with me" and no more than that. But language means a lot to me, and the connotations of the word "co-pilot" to means, the second seat or the second place and I don't like that.

I am trying to teach my kids that God is in charge and we are to follow Him BUT He loves us so much that He is willing to help US!!! Whenever we need help, we can ask for help and it pleases God to rescue us.

Somehow my daughter took that and made it into the "God is my co-pilot"bumper sticker.

After spilling her cheerio snack today, I told Rebecca that she needed to clean up the mess she made.
She responded by saying, "Mom you said God can be my helper so I think God should clean up my mess for me!"

Uh...I think I have some explaining to do!!!!

Tragically Happy...

I was speaking to a friend today about how few people seem to be commenting on my blog site lately. She told me there is a correlation between the number of comments and the tone of the post. If the post is full of angst or tragedy, there are more comments. If the post has a light and happy tone, there are few, if any comments.

Lately, my posts have been very positive as life is good.
But I'm trying to think of something sad to say to get people to comment.

Sadly, the most tragic thing in my life right now is that people don't comment on my blog!!!
Ironic, no?

So instead of a tragic tale...I'll post a smile!


p.s. It is worth mentioning that my sister ALWAYS comments. She is a loyal commentor and will be duely rewarded!!!

Where the Beach...

I remember the commercials from the 80s, Where's the Beef?
Now I'm asking, where's the beach?

The water is so high at the lake that half of our beach is underwater.
The guys have had to add on 30 feet of dock so we can get on the regular dock. But we're hearty Manitobans so we're still hanging on to the sand we've got!

Yesterday, we played on the beach all afternoon. Bella was the chef, and Becca is the rock climber. I just soaked up the sun and watched the girls play. Last time I was a little pink, this time I'm RED. Yikes!

Capital Schm....

Yesterday I felt like a Schmuck with a capital Schm!

I've been many full-time days for a few weeks now, and I see how hard it is for working moms. They have to pack two full lives into one, all the time! I'm exhausted, and even when I do have time with my kids, I'm so tired that I'm not much fun.

I've also seen the impact on my kids, who are not used to this. They are much more clingy, needy and whiny. These are not the happy-go-lucky, fun-loving girls I know who laugh all the time. They have AWESOME grandmas, and their care is LOVING and KIND, but just the change in their lives is affecting them.

Back to SCHMUCK...my friend called yesterday, and she doesn't have kids. I went off on how horrible being a working mom was, etc.

Long story short, I think I offended her. I hadn't thought about careers in which taking 6 years off is not an option, or families who don't have a choice, they need two incomes, for various reasons.

Lesson? How about not being so forth coming with my opinions? Not judging others? There's a good one! Think before you speak might also apply!

I'll take all of the above!

Summer Has Arrived...

Summer has arrived! Yee-hah! Finally.
I'm doing my happy dance!
I'll come home when the sun goes down.

Down Cavity Lane...

Today is my brother's birthday. Happy Birthday Dwight!
We took our girls to the dollar store, and told them they could pick out any one thing that they wanted to give their uncle.

Rebecca picked bubblegum, and Isabella picked a pack of suckers.
They were both very proud of their choices, cause hey! what could be better than candy???

My husband saw the Popeye candy sticks (remember the fake cigarette candy) and remembered them from his childhood, so he bought a few packs.

This got me thinking about when I thought about candy like my daughters. I remember spending hours walking up and down the 7-11 aisles. Even as a youngster I loved to shop.

So here's a little trip down candy lane....
Remember....

Pop fizz

Pop Rocks

Popeye cigarettes

Licorice pipes

Gummy worms

Gummy Bears

Lick n'Dip candy

Gobstoppers

Skittles

Bubblicious

Pez Dispensers

Astro pops

Penny Candies

Nickel Candies

Blue Dolphins

Strawberry Marshmellows

Mike and Ikes

Hot Tamales

Goobers

Marital Therapy...

After 8 years of marriage, we decided its time to test the health of our relationship.
We could go to marriage counseling but that is too traditional so we'll do it our way.

We started playing co-ed 2's beach volleyball together.

I thought it'll either be great or horrible. Last night was great. So far, so good.
Nobody yelled at anyone, or swore or anything. Not even one, "move your ass!" from either of us. But then again, we were winning. We'll see how things progress over the summer.

D.J. was disappointed because they kept serving me. (Which is because that means that I am the one hitting back at them, because they don't want DJ hitting at them...for good reason!)

He complained that he didn't get to hit very much (the team we played was smart) and I got to do most of the hitting. Like I said, it was a GREAT game!!! Ha! Ha! Ha!

Excuse me while I go start a rumour that DJ hit a ball so hard, he knocked some girl's face right off!!! Let's see what I can do to keep this trend going....

hee hee hee

.....And.....Breathe.....

Its been a crazy but great few days.

After returning from the lake on Sunday, my family and my in-laws came over for birthday cake. We had some laughs and visiting, before my sister and I went to church.

After church, my mom, and sister and Gailie took me out for coffee for my birthday.

Monday (my actual birthday) I was hired to help with provincial exams again so I worked all day. At lunch for the markers, the exam coordinator had Happy Birthday Erica put on the cake that was for dessert. She even put on candles and made the markers sing "Happy Birthday". An impromptu party with total strangers!

In the afternoon, as I was working away, my sister brought in a bouquet of balloons and my favorite salad from Applebees.

A little later, still working, a delivery person shows up with TWO dozen red roses from my husband.

The exam markers were asking, why the fuss over my birthday? Was it a special one? I told them I am 29 this year. They would just snigger and laugh, "yeah right, 29!" Ha Ha Ha..
But I seriously am 29....no one believed me. Don't know whether or not to be offended.

After work, my sister came over and stayed with the kids while my husband and I went on a hot date. We went to the Keg, for fabulous food and then went to a movie.

We got home at 1:00 am!!!

I had a GREAT birthday!!!! Yeah me!!!

(Then I got up early on Tuesday and went back in for another full day of work, followed by working on my house. Today I'm just taking it easy.
I finally got to check my phone messages and e-mails this morning. Thanks to everyone who sent birthday wishes!!!)

Beach Babies...

Finally! A beautiful day! Hooray! Hooray!

We spent the whole day on the beach today. The girls love it there.
Its like they are on happy pills when they have sun and sand!

They were so happy and well behaved I just wanted to squish their cheeks and kiss their faces off.

The water is really high so when the kids saw the dock, Bella kept saying, "Holy Moly! Holy Moly!" about the water.

There is a rock on the beach that the kids climb up and stand on, but now that the water is so high, its surrounded by water. Rebecca decided she could still climb it. She slid down the sand dune, jumped across the rocks through the water and managed to climb it. Once she was on, she realized she was now surrounded by water and getting down was harder than getting up. I didn't jump in as I was curious to see how she would handle the situation. She just said, "Okay! Everyone REMAIN CALM! I know what to do. Just STAY CALM!"

ha ha ha She is so funny. She just talked herself through it, and mananged to climb back down with nary a scratch.
She also went swimming today. Brrrrrr....the water is still WAY too cold for me, but she was right in there with the big kids!!!!

I love summer!
I also love that my kids crash as soon as their cute little heads hit the pillow. I've been emailing and blogging all night! Nice and quiet!

A Bigger Box....

People are funny about boundaries.

Too few boundaries create chaos and fear. Too many boundaries are stifling and can breed rebellion.

We need rules, standards, guidelines and direction.
These are all boundaries that give us structure, a sense of purpose, even a sense of belonging.

But what if the some of the boundaries that bring us comfort are unhealthy?

Huh?

What if we are motivated by fear to lead safe, risk-free lives to "keep our stuff". We don't necessarily have to be happy to be comfortable. People who thrive in crisis, create crisis all the time so they are comfortable but it isn't a healthy way to live.

I mention this because I've been asking for freedom from some fears I've lived with for a long time. When God answered my prayers, and granted me freedom, I felt lost right away. I didn't realize how much my fear had been "comforting" me.

It is interesting that we can recognize boundaries that are too big or too small quite easily. But I hadn't considered boundaries that fit me just right could also be unhealthy.

Freedom is wonderful and full of peace, but it can also be scary to step into....

A Perfect Match....

I believe in every marriage, there should be flighty spazz and a grounded geek. This way everyone has their own job to do and no one is confused. Let me explain....

If you have a grounded geek, they will read the instruction manual on everything new you buy and will be able to operate the new toy. The flighty spazz will be able to enjoy the toy.

The flighty spazz can make things fun and bring perspective when life gets too serious and anxious. Thus saving the grounded geek from an eventual ulcer from worrying about the mundane.

See? Geek/Spazz...Yin/Yang....its all about balance. It works!

As a flighty spazz (with geek tendencies) I am the one who is all about having fun. My job is to make sure we laugh as often possible. My husband takes himself too seriously to actually be a geek. He would be a nerd except he found a manual on "How to be Cool". It was written in HTML. He read it cover to cover. He then translated it into Vulcan for his friends. Though not a geek,he is very grounded. His job is to keep his family alive, a job he takes seriously and does well.

There is a place in our home where my not-so-geeky, grounded husband keeps the flashlight in case of emergency. This way, he reasons, if there should be a power outage, he can have light to manoevre around the house and keep his family safe and calm.

Its a good plan. And it would work if there wasn't an F.S. involved.
Just the other day, I had a sore throat again. I wanted to see if my throat was swollen and red, because it sure felt that way. So I got the flash light and went to the mirror to say "ahhhh".
Yep, it was swollen and red alright. I was right. I then took the flashlight and put it down.....some...where....in....the....house.....

Last night there was a power outage in the entire neighborhood. At night. It was dark.
Woulda been great to have a flashlight.

Oops!

Baby? Who me?

Back to my daughter's obsession with having a baby brother. A baby brother whom she has now declared will be named Sammy, although her little sister objects to the name Sammy and thinks we should have a son named Lola.

So far, here is the history of Rebecca's imaginary baby brother...

In the beginning stages of the obsession, she would ask her mom and dad to have a baby brother. The desire took on a spiritual aspect when she began to pray nightly for a baby brother. The prayers went from "Dear God, can please have a new baby brother" to "Dear God, please tell mommy and daddy to have a baby, and make it one that won't be too much trouble."

The obsession progressed to the point where she began telling people about her baby brother in her mommy's tummy. At pre-school pick-up I would have to correct people who were smiling and congratulating me on my new bundle of joy. I would explain that her desire is only a reality in her head, and no I am not pregnant but thank you for thinking that I am fat enough to look pregnant!!! and....IS THAT A FAT JOKE???

Finally, she has taken another step...at prayer time at night, she insists that her parents pray about the baby too! She has her father asking God to open our hearts to any more children we may have!!! Hold the phone! Do I get a vote here??? This is mutiny!

This morning she told me what a great big sister she is, and how last night she sang three lullabies to her sister to put her to bed (which she did) and hasn't she proved she should have a baby????? Crap! Now she's using logic!!! She also informs me that if we have a baby, she will be really helpful and call me, and say, "Mom! The baby has a stinky diaper! Come change it!"

Luckily, I still have the upper hand........a memory. My kids aren't old enough yet that I've forgotten sleepless nights and pukey, poopy clothes. Let's all pray that my memory holds out under all this PRESSURE!!!

Free Agent...

What would happen if I found all the acceptance, belonging and acknowledgement I ever needed outside of people?

What if I was different and I was okay with that?

What if I could talk to people without needing anything from them, but was already full of all that I need?

What if there was no fear of rejection because I already knew who I was, (am and will be) and my awareness of my identity was unshakeable?

What would that be like?

I'm going to find out!!!!!