October 27, 2009



Today would have been Knox's 4th birthday. I'm remembering him and praying for his family today. In his honor, a 4 mile run is in store for me this afternoon. . .

I had the special privilege of loving on Knox many times in the nursery and, often, when I look at Asa (my own 4 year old), I am reminded of what he also lost on that fateful, yet providential day in April of 2007. I love you Jon and Rachel, Anne Michal, Elizabeth, Emma, Jack and Creed. I am thankful for Knox's life and so sorry for the emptiness that he left behind. Praying for you still.

Jack, Knox & Asa

My Most Embarrassing Moment

I guess God figured I needed a light-hearted moment and truly, I can't believe I'm sharing this here, but when I shared it with Marian, we laughed so hard together that well, I felt like we could all use a good laugh. . .

One night this week, we planned on cooking out at our house with the Colemans and my in-laws, who happened to be visiting. So after we finished school, we headed home to start the getting ready process. It wasn't until after I had put the chicken in the microwave to defrost, that I went to wash my hands and realized that the water had been turned off. "Hmmm," I thought "that must be why all those city trucks were on our street." I called Kevin and he in turn, called the city of Bryan and then called me back to inform me that our water would be off from 4:10 pm to 6:10 pm.

By this time, it was almost 5:00 and so I figured we could all make it another hour. I let the kids know they couldn't use the toilets and if they really had to "go", there were a few trees in the back yard they could use. ;)

About fifteen minutes later is when it hit me and I knew I wasn't going to make it until 6:10 pm. I often catch my children doing the "pee pee" dance, but I'm pretty sure they've never seen me doing it. . .until now. I had to go so bad, I walked out back around the side of my house looking for a place where I might be able to, well, you know, go. But then my next door neighbor's upstairs window was inconveniently glaring down at me so I "danced" my way back in the house and decided I could hold it afterall.

Well, another twenty minutes went by and I started thinking I hadn't fully given the back yard its due. I had to have some relief. So I headed out back again to where I had formerly been and copped a squat beside the house, next to the fence. It was the most private spot I could find under the circumstances.

And then it happened. It was in this squatted position that I heard Kevin's voice. And as I was sitting there, mid-stream, I looked out the slats of the fence and I could see and hear Kevin, introducing his dad, my father-in-law, to the elderly accountant who lives next door. I could see them shaking hands. I had a full view of all of them and I just knew that if they happened to look over, they would see me "in all my glory". I was trying so hard to hurry, but I think I had drank a gallon of water, and well, that just takes time. At some point, I was positive that Kevin and I made eye contact and I was just trying to get back in the house as fast as I could, with my dignity in tact.

As I stood up and tried to get presentable, I thought I saw them all look my way, but I didn't stick around to see for sure. When I asked Kevin about it later, he promised me he didn't see me. He did hear somebody there, but he thought it was the kids playing with Pippen, our dog. I really hope he didn't see me. More importantly, I hope my father-in-law and my neighbor didn't see me. And how thankful I would be if my most embarrassing moment was truly just a moment between me and God!

Whew!

FIVE WORDS

My friend, Rachel blogged about 5 words which someone had passed onto her. So I commented on her post and told her to send 5 words my way and I, too, would play along. The thing is, I completely forgot about it until she reminded me yesterday. Sorry Rachel. And since I'm taking the afternoon off from schooling, I thought I'd take a moment to make good on my word, or 5 words, in this case. The words are: shopping, windows, grass, rain and tv.

I wonder if it's ok to put my first two words together. . .

Window Shopping
Window shopping reminds me of when I was little and my parents would take me out on my birthday. Every year, around our birthday, dad and mom would come and pick Marian and me up from school and take us out to lunch, then a movie and then a new pair of shoes was in order. This was back in the day before malls and all the shops were lined up in a row downtown.

As we walked from shoe store to shoe store, mom would look in all the store windows and comment about whatever was on display. I never understood the point of what she called "window shopping". Most of the time when she saw something she liked, she just commented on it and moved on. I always wanted to go in, but we rarely did. I guess with 9 kids, she gave up a lot. That makes me grateful and a little sad too.

Grass
All the way through junior high and high school, I was the one in my house who was responsible for mowing our lawn. My dad told me he would pay for my cheerleading camp (approximately $100), if I kept up with the grass all summer. I think he got the better end of that deal. We had a HUGE yard, ya'll.

Also, I once heard Kevin say that he thought a woman should never have to push a mower. I'm not saying that that was the moment I knew he was the one for me, but it sure didn't hurt his chances either. Over the course of our marriage, I think I've "pushed the mower" twice. Not bad odds, I'd say.

Rain
Just the word, "rain" makes me a little melancholy. Makes me want to sleep in, read a good book, take in a sappy movie, walk with my honey, go for a run, or watch a marathon Monk, NCIS or Law and Order on USA. I love a good rain. It's good for the soul.

Oh, and I almost forgot. The word "rain" also makes me think of my friend, Kierstyn, who commented once about what she likes about going to Six Flags in the rain. I can't really repeat it here, but trust me, it is hilarious. ;)

TV
I have a love/hate relationship with television. Almost everynight, I go to sleep watching ESPN (Kev's choice) or some show on channel 23. USA is my network of choice as my favorite shows are Law and Order (doesn't matter which one), NCIS, Monk and House (I hate to admit that one).

Our kids like Full House and Phineus and Ferb. Both are relatively harmless, pretty silly and yet offer opportunities of discussion (about world views, teenage angst, etc.) that have been good for us, as parents, to have with our kids.

I hate, Hate, HATE commercials. They have become too worldly, too sexy, too suggestive, too everything. It seems like everytime we think we're watching something harmless, like a game on ESPN, or a "family" movie, we are bombarded with images, words and world views that are contrary to our own. Ya know the childhood song, "Be Careful Little Eyes What You See", well, tv makes it difficult to guard your children's eyes (and adult eyes, for that matter) from seeing more than they should.

So there ya go. If you wanna play along, just comment and I'll send 5 words your way too.