Oh the Horror!

I LOVE scary movies. Not the slice and dice, gory stuff but the psychological thrillers. I also enjoy a good Dean Koontz or Stephen King novel. I often wonder how they come up with their ideas and sometimes worry about them. I mean don't you think you have to be a little off to write some of that stuff? Maybe you have to be a little off to enjoy reading it too- I hope not! :)
If you've ever read a Stephen King novel then seen it on the big or small screen, you know that for whatever reason, his writing just does not translate well. I think the same could be said for Dean Koontz. Well, Jim and I watched a movie this weekend based on a Stephen King story. I've not read this particular story but I can tell you that finally that edge of the seat, fear of the unknown, rapidly beating heart feeling you get when you're reading a King novel finally came across on the big screen- or at least that was the case for Jim and me. If you haven't seen the Mist, I would recommend it. Its not gory and most of the intensity comes from what you can't see on the screen. If you've seen it or see it, leave me a comment and let me know what you thought about the ending.

Life with Boys

When I tell people I have two little boys the most frequent response is, "Don't you wish you'd had a girl?" I'm certain women who have girls get the other end of that question. I know little girls are fun and sweet and of course I would have been happy if God had blessed us with one; however, I have to say I LOVE my boys. I know I'm missing out on all of the cool girl clothes and sometimes I think it might be nice to have some Barbies or some pink in our house but little boys have fun, cool stuff too.
I mean who else can put the words poop or poopy in front of any other word and amuse themselves non-stop?
In what other company can passing gas be so hysterical?
I bet many of you are not aware of just how many superheroes there are out there?
Only with boys do you get to be surprised every single time you walk in the bathroom. (its apparently very difficult to aim)
Yeah, you can have a princess party but you miss out on puke green colored icing for a Shrek party or black icing for a Darth Vader Star Wars party
And oh the trips to the ER because they broke their hand wrestling with daddy or almost knocked their front teeth out by running full force into the back of their friends head.
And who else can rile up everyone else's kids in 0 to 60.
Don't forget the creative thinking- who knew that a hanging picture frame could be used like a ladder or that a ceiling fan could propel you if you hooked a hanger on to it while jumping from the couch (ok I can't claim that one- that's a shared story from my friend)
Ok- I am being funny (although every single bit of the above is true). In all sincerity I LOVE my sweet boys- every high energy, spirit filled, superhero lovin', poopy head callin', ER visiting inch of them. And I love my biggest boy (Harve, Jim, Jimmy) too. :)

I Saw The Light...

Dr. Robert P. Selkin MD

and the trees and the sky and read the roadsigns and can see the tv and... I could go on and on and on and believe me I want to; however, I'll refrain. :) Yesterday I had lasik eye surgery and can I just tell you it is the most amazing process. For those of you who have never worn corrective lenses, be it glasses or contacts, this probably isn't very exciting. I have had some type of corrective lenses since the 4th grade. I'm certain I needed them before then. I remember exactly what it felt like when I first put my glasses on (gasp) 27 years ago. Its as if the world came alive to me at that very moment. I never realized how crisp and colorful everything was until then.
Yesterday I walked in to Selkin Laser Center at 1pm and at 2:30 I walked out seeing without any type of corrective lenses whatsoever!! Surgery time- 8 minutes. I have to admit I was a little nervous when I went into the room. I have to tell you the staff and Dr Selkin himself were wonderful- so kind and caring. They walked me through every bit of the process and made me feel very comfortable about a laser cutting my cornea. Now I've had other friends who've had it done and they got a valium before the procedure to calm them a little. I don't know if I looked particularly strong and together (I wasn't) or if Dr. Selkin's office just doesn't offer that but I went in with nothing. I have to admit it was a little unnerving. My biggest concern you would think would be that my eye was being cut, but no I was most concerned about those eye prongy things that they insert to keep your eyes open. Turned out not to be an issue. For a split second as the laser is doing its thing, you lose your vision in that eye- now that is freaky. Then slowly your vision starts to come back- very blurry but yes people I actually saw-- I SAW- I saw Dr. Selkin pulling back the flap he had created in my cornea. Now my friends who got the valium say they don't really remember a lot about the procedure. I have to say that if I had to have it done again, I'd ask for some valium. :) Jim's going to get it done also in a few weeks and he's already said he plans to ask for something to take the edge off.
So my eyes were a little blurry and irritated the rest of the evening but other than that not really much discomfort. The worst part of it is that you have to wear these protective goggles at night so you don't rub your eyes. You wear those for 7 nights and if last night is indicative of how well I'm going to sleep with them then I'm in for a long seven nights.
I have to say if you have corrective lenses and have ever thought about lasik I would definitely recommend it. Thanks to my friend Lori who registered Jim and me in a contest, Jim and I were able to purchase the lifetime plan at a very discounted rate. Should we ever need any corrections over our lifetime, those procedures will be free.
Praise the Lord I can see!!!! :)

INTERNET DANGER!

We hear about this all of the time. I know the internet can be a dangerous place for adults and children alike. This morning I experienced first hand why it can be for children. My children are young so they are never on the computer unsupervised. The sites they frequent are Nickelodeon, PBS Kids, and Playhouse Disney. Their experience has been confined to these websites and a few of our friends blogs- they like to see their little friends soccer pictures, funny videos, etc.
This morning I did a dogpile (similar to the google search engine) search for Ben 10 kids birthday party supplies. I clicked on several sites looking for party favors. The last site I clicked on stated in the little blurb with the link that it contained personalized Ben 10 candy bar wrappers- you know the wrappers you can put over the regular candy bar wrappers. I thought, "How cute would that be- easy and an inexpensive goody bag addition." When I clicked the link it immediately took me to this site that had in the web address "hard core porn." There was an inset screen that was attempting to download a movie- thankfully I didn't have on my computer what the movie needed to download. I kept clicking cancel and trying to X out but I was unable to get away from this site. I finally had to turn my computer off!!!
Oh my goodness!! What if this had been Avery searching for something harmless like Ben 10 candy bar wrappers?? What if my computer did have what that movie needed to download and play??
We will definitely be investing in some software or whatever is needed to block this kind of filth. The sad thing is that I knew it was out there- I just didn't know how easily you could accidentally access it. How easy it would be for my child to happen upon a site like this from a harmless dogpile search. I'm angry. I'm appalled that someone would be allowed to attach a pornography site to something like candy bar wrappers.

Oldies but Goodies

My friend and I were talking the other day about how much we love the worship music at Long Hollow. Its powerful and sometimes I have to fight back the tears- its that emotional. As much as I love the music I sometimes miss those old hymns we sang (out of a hymnal) growing up in church.

Precious Lord take my hand
Lead me on, help me stand
I am tired, I am weak, I am worn
Through the storm through the night
Lead me on to your light
Take my hand precious Lord, lead me home.

Just a closer walk with thee
(just a closer walk with thee)
Grant it Jesus tis my plea
(just a closer walk with thee)
Daily walking close to thee
Let it be, dear Lord, let it be
I am weak but thou art strong
(just a closer walk with thee)
Jesus keep me from all wrong
(just a closer walk with thee)
I'll be satisfied just as long as I walk close to thee

Those are just two of my favorites. I think I love them because they both reference walking with the Lord, our father. They both speak of His strength. Just a closer walk with Thee, dear Lord. Tis my plea. I'll be satisfied just as long as I walk close to thee.

Would You Like some Cheese with that Whine?

Somehow I feel like I need to start this post with a disclaimer. I love my boys so much that I can't even put it in to words. I need you to remember that as you're reading. That being said, I'm not loving being around Aidan these days. He's three- for some of you that statement alone sums it up. Some of you are or have been where I am. You're lollygagging along just whisking your way through the twos thinking, "I don't know what people are talking about- two is not so bad." and WHAM!! Three just smacks you down. All of a sudden you look at your precious little one and expect that any moment his or her little head is going to start spinning around.
This is where I am with Aidan. I can't really say I wasn't expecting it- three was definitely more challenging than two with Avery also. But even so, I just don't remember Avery being as head strong, stubborn, deliberate. And I really don't remember the whining being this severe. I don't know- maybe God just clears your memory of things like that or lessens the intensity of them. Its kind of like in that movie with Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones (the name escapes me at the moment) where they are chasing aliens and if civilians see the alien, they pull out this device that flashes a blinking light and people's memories are erased.
Everything is a major life, fall down in the floor, scream and cry crisis.
I know- I know- this too shall pass. For now, we are taking a no tolerance stand on the whining. Jim and I have suited up and we're ready for battle. So if we're playing with you and I pick Aidan and up and calmly leave (you know he won't be calm) please know that we had fun, thank you for asking us to play, visit, meet you at the mall, etc. Maybe one day we will once again be able to have complete conversations and stay for a while. :)

First Grade Goes to the Zoo and Mothers Day Out Rides for St Jude

On Wednesday Avery's first grade class along with all of the other first grades from Jack Anderson as well as a few other schools went to the Nashville Zoo. It was a beautiful day and the class had a blast. Avery's teacher Miss Murff even stopped to pose for a picture with Jim and Avery's group.



Today Aidan rode in the St Jude's Bike A Thon at Children First (his Mothers day Out). His teachers asked them to decorate their bikes so I took him to Target to pick out some streamers and a new bell for his bike. We stopped by Kroger for a balloon, came home and washed our bike, then we spruced it up with our decorations.
Aidan's little class lined up at the start line. A Metro Policeman talked to them about Bike Safety and then waved them on. The little girl at the front with the curly hair and pink and white trike is Mary. Aidan is VERY fond of Mary. :) They are really cute together. It was a fun time and the money raised will benefit St Jude- a very worthy cause.

Red Robin

We met our neighbors, Ashley and her girls at Red Robin for our first dining experience there. Have you been? I have to say that the whole experience was great. The food was awesome, the service was great, all of our kids got a balloon, and its very loud (which is nice when you have kids). I don't think it would be a great date night place since it is so loud. I was struggling to hear Ashley and she was seated next to me.
The boys had pizza and fries (of course), Jim had this hugongous cheeseburger and said that it might possibly be the best burger he's had. I had the garden burger (veggie burger) and I have to say it was wonderful. The sauce they put on it was really yummy and it came on a whole wheat bun.
I would definitely suggest that you try it out. The menu is a bit overwhelming. They have something like 45 different kinds of burgers. They also have wraps and salads. I think I will have to try the wrap next time. Ashley got one last night and it looked good!
Now, I can't wait for Qdoba to open! :)

Passing The Time

The reason we love spring and summer so much is that we can play outside till bedtime. When its cold and rainy and we have to stay in with the boys, we end up playing a million games of hide and seek, duck duck goose, and the tickle monster. We have our own version of charades where we act out different animals and then there's the ever popular superhero charades where we act out our favorite super hero. Then if we really get stir crazy we just start coming up with funny stuff or better yet let the boys come up with crazy stuff.

Many of you may not have known that in his younger years Jim was a cheerleader.(Ok- he wanted me to insert here that he also played football and baseball) He was the one that came up with idea for this. :)

The boys could do this for hours- they walk up Jim's legs and flip over.


Sometimes I take the boys pics with them laying down and their heads together so they suggested we do this.




Avery suggested that we strike our favorite superhero pose. Avery is heatblast from Ben 10, I'm Spiderman (he's not my favorite but the only one I could think of a pose for) and Aidan is Storm from the X-Men (see the lightning coming from his hand- ha!)


Here's Avery as Four Arms from his new favorite show Ben 10.

So if you ever get bored drop on by our house and play a game of hide and seek or superhero charades- we'd love to have you! :)

Baseball Ready

Today is Avery's first baseball game for the spring league. He is very excited. Here he is in his cool Marlins team uniform. Not to be outdone, Aidan had to give us some baseball ready poses as well. He really looks like he's ready to catch a baseball in the last picture, don't you think? :)
GO MARLINS!!

Forgiveness Part 2

A lady in my MOPS (Mothers of Preschoolers) group encouraged us to pick a word and focus on that for the new year. My one word is forgiveness. Since we are about a 1/4th of the way through the new year, I thought I'd hold myself accountable by reporting my progress. I keep thinking while typing this post that I hear Dr Phil in my head saying, "And how's that working for you?"
So, here's the brutal truth- I haven't come very far in this journey yet. I don't have any excuses other than when you hang on to something for so long it's hard to let it go and sometimes I think (at least for me) you don't want to let it go.
My focus for forgiveness is on forgiving myself and forgiving my brother. I've made a lot of (for lack of a better word) stupid decisions in my life-most of them in my younger years. Every day I KNOW that it is by the grace of God that I am where I am today. So many times I look back on some of the situations I created for myself or on some of the choices I've made and KNOW that had it not been for God's hand, I would have been lost a long time ago. I thank God continually that He does not give me what I deserve.
I struggle with not giving things wholly to God. Even though I know- I mean I really, logically know for certain- that God can handle anything so much better than me- I still cling on to things thinking I can do it myself. While I've worked through many of the things I went through in my younger years and have turned those over to Him and know He has forgiven me, I still work on forgiving myself.
I can't even begin to explain my relationship with my brother here. We don't have one at the moment. I don't even remember where it ended because there was a time when we were younger when we loved each other. There is so much history prior to my mother getting sick that sets the stage for my feelings for him. I won't get in to it here but along the way I just lost my respect for him and my trust in him. And then when my mom got sick and had to live with us, he just decided that he was going to be hands off as far as providing any help for us with her. He left me and Jim and my precious little boys to do it all on our own. He hardly ever called her to talk with her and I can count on one hand the times he came to see her the entire 7 or 8 months she was with us. He knew we were struggling and that because we were so overwhelmed, our home life was crazy.
Even typing this right now I can feel the anger rising in my chest. I finally had to let him go toward the end before my mom passed. I remember telling a friend that its too much to even think about him. I had so much on my plate emotionally at that time that I couldn't keep that anymore. But I did keep it- I just pushed it down for a while. And when she died it came roaring back. I read Beth Moore's Get Out Of That Pit and her words on forgiveness were powerful. God's words in the Bible are powerful. It shouldn't be so difficult to forgive someone- especially your own brother. And you know if God can forgive me the things He has I have to forgive. The portion of The Shack where Mac is asked to forgive the man who killed his daughter spoke to me hugely.
So, its still a work in progress and I meet the Lord on my knees almost every day about it. I think I have made some small steps. These may make you laugh especially because they are baby steps. I sent my brother a birthday card. I wasn't going to but then I knew it might be the only one he received this year since it was his first birthday after my mom's death. He asked to come by on Christmas morning for a bit and I said he could. Ok- I know they are tiny steps but they are steps.
I'll leave you with some excerpts from Beth Moore's Get Out of That Pit. I'm still focusing on my one word and have no doubt God is going to bring me through this journey.

• Its a tough thing to do, but we've got to forgive, even- no ESPECIALLY - those who don't care to be forgiven.
• I thought forgiving... would make what happened all right. But, to be sure, it didn't. Still isn't. What I didn't understand about forgiveness was that it would make ME all right.
• When we won't forgive, the people we often want to be around the least because they've hurt us so badly are the very people we take with us emotionally everywhere we go. (WOW!)

Personality Quizzes- Do You Put Any Stock In Them?

I hope Jennifer won't mind that I copied this from her blog. I LOVE doing stuff like this; however, I'm not always sure the results are correct. Here are my results- click on the links below each result and take the quiz. Let me know what you get and if you think it accurately describes you. :)
What Kind Of Thinker Are You?
Your Thinking is Concrete and Sequential
You are precise, orderly, and realistic.You tend to get to the point and get things done.Difficult, detailed work is easy for you. You take things step by step.Time limits aren't a problem for you either. You work well with deadlines.What does drive you crazy is any sort of task that isn't precisely laid out.You don't like anything to be ambiguous. You prefer to deal with the facts at hand.
http://www.blogthings.com/whatkindofthinkerareyouquiz/

What Your Handwriting Says About You
You are highly energetic. You are a passionate, intense, vigorous person.You are somewhat outgoing, but you're not a natural extrovert. You think first before you act. You tend to be independent, rational, and logical.You are very detail oriented and meticulous. You are a careful thinker and a true intellectual.You don't a lot of space, and you prefer to spend time with others. You are a little nosy and intrusive. You sometimes don't give people enough space.You are somewhat traditional, but you are also open to change. You listen to your head and your heart.You are a poor communicator. No one really knows exactly what you're getting at.
http://www.blogthings.com/whatdoesyourhandwritingsayaboutyouquiz/
Your Linguistic Profile:
50% General American English45% Dixie0% Midwestern0% Upper Midwestern0% Yankee
http://www.blogthings.com/whatkindofamericanenglishdoyouspeakquiz/

Its All In The Knees

I've added a poll in the upper right hand corner of my blog. I was just wondering what you use to get stains out of your kiddos clothes. I use Shout exclusively. I bought Avery new jeans from Old Navy at the beginning of the school year and by December, there was a hole in at least one knee of each pair of pants. It also happened with these brand new gymboree pants- in the knees. So at the end of December, I bought him a couple of pairs of jeans from the Gap- thinking they might be better made. Just this past week I noticed that a hole is starting in the knee of two pair of those pants.
I have a theory that the composition of Shout somehow compromises the fabric and that's why he's getting holes in the knees so quickly. That or he's just a little boy who is rough on his clothes! :)
What do you think?

Medium

Not the size but the occupation. Have you ever seen the show Medium on NBC? Patricia Arquette plays a character (supposedly based on a real life lady) who has dreams and visions and can communicate with people who have died. I know that what I've just described to you is tv but there are plenty of real people who believe they possess this ability. From the palm readers at the carnival all the way to the psychic mediums who have parlayed their ability into world wide success, telling the future and communicating with the dead is a popular thing these days.
One of the more well known psychic mediums is John Edward. He's written books, has tv shows, and does readings in front of live audiences around the world.
For a while after my mom passed away, I thought very seriously about contacting a medium. I searched online and found several people in and around Nashville who call themselves mediums. I never made an appointment with any of them. I have to admit that part of the reason is that most of the people in an around Nashville that I found looked weird-scary weird. I kept thinking if I could only find one that looked normal like the clean cut John Edward, I might feel better about going. I know a huge part of my uneasiness about going was that I just really don't know what the Bible says about this issue. Did God give some of us these kind of abilities? And if so, why just some of us- why not everyone? Or, is this not from God? He offers us the promise that when people die in Christ, we will be reunited with them in Heaven. Is this promise supposed to be enough? God gave me ample time to really talk with my mother- I had 35 years with her here on Earth. I can't blame God or anyone else if things were left unsaid. Another point of contention was that I'm not sure I even believe people have these abilities.
In the end, I decided that my uneasiness about the whole thing was God's way of telling me that I didn't need to do this. I think in that period of time right after my mom passed, my grief was so intense that I started looking to anything to help the pain- I should have looked to God first and while I did make my way around to Him eventually, He should have been my first stop.
So, there are so many of you (and I just love it!!) that are so familiar with the Bible that you can hear a topic and just hand out the scripture. I would love to know what the Bible says about this subject. What do you think about it?

Lazy Day (s)

This weekend we have done absolutely nothing. Wow-it has been a long time since we have been able to just hang out and be on our own schedule. Because of the torrential rains this past week, Avery's first baseball game was canceled. We took this opportunity to just hang out as a family. Both boys slept very late yesterday morning which is always a blessing. We played Wii, superhero action figures, caught up on some episodes of the old cartoon Spiderman, and watched Avery's new favorite show, Ben 10.
We did get out of the house a little yesterday afternoon to play glow golf. We were heading to Opry Mills but then decided we didn't want to drive that far and just stopped off at Rivergate. Take my advice, make the drive to Opry Mills. :) The boys loved it but Rivergate just seems to have really gone down hill.
And today, (shhhhh) yes we are skipping church. We didn't set our alarm because Aidan typically is our alarm but again today he slept in which means we all did. So we're going to have a Bible story in our living room floor and round it out with a rousing "Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes all work for Jesus."
Hope everyone has had a wonderful weekend.

What Do You Think About This?

My friend Carrie had this video on her blog. I urge you to check out her blog post and the comments section where many left scripture quotations. I have to admit that I was blown away by it. Now, I haven't had a wonderful opinion of Oprah for a while. She has done some very good things and has been extremely generous with her money; however, it seems as if she can never just do something charitable or good without an enormous amount of self promotion. I had heard a little about her new book club selection and some about her XM Satellite radio show. I was blown away when Oprah was speaking to the ladies in her audience and said Jesus was not the only way. It was frightening to me to watch this clip because there are so many people who love and adore Oprah- she has a profound influence in our society today. It also unnerved me to hear a few of the people on the video state that they are Christians and that this book changed their whole way of thinking about spirituality and God. To me that is proof how many are so easily led astray by a charismatic personality. I'd love to hear what you think after you watch this clip. You'll have to scroll down, looking on the right and turn off my Music That I Love sidebar so you can hear this.

Have You Ever Wondered...

...where in the world are Max and Ruby's parents?

...why Oswald is so appealing to children especially with that annoying penguin voiced by the guy who played Squiggy on Laverne and Shirley?

...if either of Caillou's parents have a job?

...if Yo Gabba Gabba was created by people on crack?

...if Dora's parents are concerned because her only friends are a monkey, a squirrel, an iguana, and a bull?

...if Diego attends school?

...if Eeyore needs some therapy?

...how someone hasn't smacked the crud out of Goofy for acting well, goofy?