Faces

God, can we keep him?

I promise I'll take really good care of him. He needs a home on this earth.

I'll feed him every day. And clean up his poop.

Look, he likes me!

See, he's really smart. He's thinkin'.

(Oh yeah, You already know that.)

I promise to love him every day.

Wow, he's the best present we've ever gotten!

Thanks, God for letting us keep him.

Weekend Fun

This weekend has been somewhat ho-hum, but wonderfully relaxing. We've done things like... recover from my first week back to work, and my 2nd to last week of work before I quit - which basically means I'm working like a maniac as I try to prepare things as best I can for the future manager of my department. His name is Andres and he is wonderful! Please pray for him as he just took the first step up a very steep hill called Learning Curve.

So, needless to say, I've thoroughly enjoyed dinner, a movie at home, sleeping late, hangin' with my two boys, having friends over for dinner, having friends over for breakfast, church, oh and a Kirby vaccuum demonstration (even though we already have one I was helping someone who is practicing his presentation and low-and-behold you wouldn't believe all the cool things we learned that our Kirby can do! - so then we went crazy cleaning the house! "Ooooh, look Honey, we can use it to clean this too!!"). Yes, this is a low-key weekend for me. Yes, I know I need to slow my life down. Yes, actually I kind of like my life this way. Yes, I know I'm rambling and I'm writing horribly long run-on sentences.

Ok, back to the point.

On the other hand, last weekend we had a much more adventuresome three days because we decided to go camping! Again! We just had to squeeze in one more trip before it gets too cold. And before Melissa's tummy is too big to squeeze into her tent. Ok, actually, you could fit a whole tribe in that tent. Melissa and Matt (and little Caleb) put up with us while we crashed their camping trip were our companions for the weekend... and they have an obscenely huge tent. I'm not lying. I wish I had a picture.

Here... meet Melissa:

...and her husband Matt.

...and little Caleb! (He'll be joining us sometime after Thanksgiving.)

Our happy little family joined them. Alejandro, Danilo and I:

Oh yeah, and the Tobster:

We spent the weekend building fires (well Alejandro and Matt did) and avoiding the smoke sitting cozily around them keeping warm and eating fire-cooked meals.

See how cozy my little peanut is?! And how very CUTE he looks?!

The weather was really nice. (Uh, most of the trip.) Danilo got tons of attention.

We even decided to stay two nights instead of one. This, of course, required a trip to Safeway for extra diapers, hamburgers and hotdogs. But that's no big deal.

Macgyver My husband helped us by rigging a tarp to give us shade and protection from the possible rain.
Which was a really good thing, because about two hours after he got it up,

It.

Poured.

For about three hours.

We started to wonder if staying an extra night was a good idea.

But we waited it out, stayed cozy, and let Danilo entertain us while we wondered if we were going to actually be able to cook the hamburgers and hotdogs purchased that afternoon.
Sure enough, it did clear up and we dried out.
All in all... it was well worth the trip. Fun, fellowship, s'mores, smoky clothes, dirty hair, camp fires and a cuddly baby - the recipe for a perfect camping trip!

Poop and Weeds Wednesday

Well, I was going to re-name this Weedy Wednesday, because the word Poop has occurred in this blog far too many times... and I'm sure that's unlikely to stop anytime soon. But then the "weedy" part of Weedy Wednesday sounded a bit too much like something to avoid at a college frat party, so back to Poop and Weeds Wednesday it is!

Anyway, to the point.

In case you're catching up, this is a weekly devotional post that will last through the next several months. About a year ago, I was randomly inspired to go clean up my back yard. At the time, it was filled with weeds and our dog's poop. Somewhere in between pulling weeds and carrying the loads to the trash can, I felt God whispering to me to write a devotional. So I put down my gardening tools, took off my gloves, and headed up to the computer. And now I'm sharing it with you.

I pray God speaks to you through these weeds words.

______________________________________________

Thank You God for Poop and Weeds

Mark 4:3-20

"Listen. What do you make of this? A farmer planted seed... Some fell in the weeds; as it came up, it was strangled among the weeds and nothing came of it. Some fell on good earth and came up with a flourish, producing a harvest exceeding his wildest dreams.

"Are you listening to this? Really listening?
‘…Whose eyes are open but don't see a thing,

Whose ears are open but don't understand a word,
Who avoid making an about-face and getting forgiven.’”

"He continued, "Do you see how this story works? All my stories work this way. The farmer plants the Word… The seed cast in the weeds represents the ones who hear the kingdom news but are overwhelmed with worries about all the things they have to do and all the things they want to get. The stress strangles what they heard, and nothing comes of it. But the seed planted in the good earth represents those who hear the Word, embrace it,
…and produce a harvest beyond their wildest dreams."

The Message Bible
Some verses omitted

Part II: Root it Out

I think it was my Mom who taught me the somewhat sick and twisted masochistic love of pulling weeds. She always loved to garden. When I was a kid, she used to spend hours in the backyard, painstakingly pulling out any plants that were out of place so that the one she wanted to could grow. …Actually, I think she just welcomed the opportunity to be in the sun and away from the phone and never-ending bickering between my sister and I. But that's besides the point.

My Dad loved to weed too, only his target was the grass, not the garden. There were several times that I went outside to join one or both of them, and asked if I could “help.” “Sure!” they would respond enthusiastically. And they would toss me a tool to use. My first instinct was to pull the weed as hard as I could and whatever ended up in my hand would be tossed into the garbage bag and the job was done—so I thought. My work would look something like this picture.

Sure, the weeds were shorter… but they were still just as present as before. Maybe just not as noticeable. That actually made them worse! They could spread more easily and grow a stronger root. It also made them harder to pull out. Have you ever tried to pull out a weed like that with nothing to hold onto except a nub at the top? My parents explained that the weeds don’t go away until you pull them out, root and all.

Unforgiven or unresolved issues in our lives have exactly the same effect in our lives. Have you ever had an argument with a family member over something petty? You start by arguing over what color to paint the bedroom, and pretty soon you can’t even remember what you’re fighting about! Usually, somewhere in between “How about blue?” and “YOU NEVER LISTEN TO A WORD I SAY!” and the door-slam, you’ve touched on something much deeper. It’s easy, in those situations, to smooth over an issue, and call it resolved. But shoving it under the rug, usually means it will rear its ugly head again in the future, and you will find yourself back in the same argument.

Take it one step further. Have you ever been mad at God over something? Maybe you’re mad at Him because you are in a tight spot financially. Then an extra $200 lands on your doorstep and the problem is resolved… this time. But the root of the problem was mistrust in His provision. That part of it was never fixed. God will bring issues like that back in front of you time and time again, until you learn the lesson once and for all. Though the particular issue worked itself out and God proved Himself faithful, you must reconcile the root of the issue. As long as you “avoid making an about-face and getting forgiven,” the weed will never go away.

There have been many many times in my life that I find myself in the “same ol’ place” frustrated over the same issue as before. I’ve cried to God,”WHY?!? How many times will I circle this mountain?” His answer to me, as it was to the Israelites (for 40 years in the desert) was, “Until you learn what I am trying to teach you.” Open your heart to Him. What is it that He’s trying to show you about His love through the situation you are in? What is the root issue of the problem you are facing?

Once I learned that God teaches us through these situations, only then I was able to understand how David could dance while he was mourning, and how Paul could give thanks for each trial he encountered.

Better than a Novel

I should be sleeping right now... since it's 12 a.m. And tomorrow is my third day in a row of working two jobs and being a mom to a two-and-a-half month old. I'm exhausted. But I've been catching up on my favorite blogs.

Did you know that reading my favorite blogs is better than a good novel? Know why? Because they totally inspire me because they're real people loving God and their kids and their friends in real life and real time with real lack of patience. Know why else? Because I can only read one day at a time. Unlike a really good novel, which I get addicted to and have to finish the whole book in one night. Which leaves me sleep-deprived and red-eyed, and which then leaves me with no good books to read the following night. That's why I think blogs are better than a good novel.

A little update on life around here:

After only two days of this triple-duty, I am thoroughly convinced that it was the right decision to quit my "real job" (ie: non-marykay job... we call MK a non real job, because it's way too much fun and way too convenient to be a real job... plus it pays too well for the time put in to be a real job... back to the subject).

And that's the reason I've been a little M.I.A. around here lately. Although I do think of you all often and wish I could write. Because I really do love it!

So soon, you can look forward to Weedy Wednesday. (Yes, I've decided to call it Weedy Wednesday because, well, I think if the word poop showed up one more time in this blog, it would be the most commonly occuring word in this blog and well, that's kind of embarrassing. Plus, I'm seriously worrying that it might cause this blog to be sensored. Ok, not seriously. But still... poop happens way too much around here.) Anyway, Weedy Wednesday is coming.

And you can also look forward to the best pictures of an even better camping trip that we took this past weekend with some friends. ...they're the best pictures, because I did not take them.

This, as soon as I can spend a little face to face time with my little one tomorrow afternoon. And take a nap. A long one.

In the mean time, check out these two fun videos that Danny's most fabulous Aunt Melissa took of him while she babysat him yesterday! Click here to see the videos. (Sorry, I couldn't figure out how to embed the video this time.)

Talk Write to you all tomorrow!

Love,
Renee

You know you've joined the Mommy club when...

...in the shower you mentally survey yourself from head to foot just to make sure you’ve washed and shampooed everything that should be washed. And then you get out of the shower and realize you’ve forgotten your feet!

...you look at the spot of spit-up pee on your shirt and think, “That one’s not that big. I can still keep wearing this shirt.” Gross!

...you're so excited about seven straight hours of sleep, you post it on the internet. :)

...in contemplating the next car you want to buy - you know, some day when I actually have the money to do that, in like 10 bazillion years - you think, "A minivan would be nice." I know. Scary! - But actually, we used to have one that was 14 million years old and we loved it! We drove that thing all over creation!

...you wake up at 7 a.m. and think, "Nice! I got to sleep in!"

Weeds and Poop Wednesday

Grrr!! I can't believe I forgot to post the second part of this little devotional affectionally titled..

Thank You God for Poop and Weeds

In case you missed it last week, you can go back and read here. About a year or two ago, I was randomly inspired to go clean up my back yard. At the time, it was filled with weeds and our dog's poop. Cleaning it up was quite a chore. But somewhere in between pulling weeds and carrying the loads to the trash can, I felt God whispering to me to write a devotional. So I put down my gardening tools, took off my gloves, and headed up to the computer. I wrote a short devotional, which I then saved and shoved in a drawer. It stayed there... until now.

And so started... Weeds and Poop Wednesday! Except that this Wednesday, I FORGOT! Well, posting something on the wrong day has never stopped me before... So here you go. It's a little late, but here's Part 1. And this week, I promise to post Part 2 on time. ;)

______________________________________________

Mark 4:3-20

"Listen. What do you make of this? A farmer planted seed... Some fell in the weeds; as it came up, it was strangled among the weeds and nothing came of it. Some fell on good earth and came up with a flourish, producing a harvest exceeding his wildest dreams.
"Are you listening to this? Really listening?
‘…Whose eyes are open but don't see a thing,
Whose ears are open but don't understand a word, Who avoid making an about-face and getting forgiven.’”
"He continued, "Do you see how this story works? All my stories work this way. The farmer plants the Word… The seed cast in the weeds represents the ones who hear the kingdom news but are overwhelmed with worries about all the things they have to do and all the things they want to get. The stress strangles what they heard, and nothing comes of it. But the seed planted in the good earth represents those who hear the Word, embrace it, …and produce a harvest beyond their wildest dreams."

The Message Bible

Some verses omitted

Part 1
Weeds Choke out Life

Once I found the corner of my yard that I wanted to start working - one that’s shaded and green, and where moisture isn’t immediately obliterated by the dry heat and sun, I discovered something rather discouraging. The grass grows here quite well, but so do the weeds! It was the area of the yard where the grass was actually still alive, however weeds enjoyed that same setting. As I studied the corner I was about to work on, I thought, “I bet the grass here would grow much better if the weeds weren’t choking it out. It would get more of the earth’s moisture too, if the weeds weren’t sucking it dry.” In Mark, Chapter 4, Jesus talked about seed that was strangled by weeds and so nothing came of it. The weeds took up all the space, water and soil’s nutrients, so that the seed had no chance.

God’s truth is the same way. Sometimes we hear His truth and it goes in one ear and out the other, because what’s really occupying the space between our ears is worry. Worry about life. Worry about spouses, finances, children, jobs, friends, age, wrinkles, weight, to-do lists, dirty laundry… The list goes on and on. God’s Word to us says:

The farmer plants the Word…

"The seed cast in the weeds represents the ones who hear the kingdom news but are overwhelmed with worries about all the things they have to do and all the things they want to get. The stress strangles what they heard, and nothing comes of it. (Mark 4:17-19 The Message)

Worry, fear, doubt, hurt, sin, and broken relationships can cause us to lose the richness of God’s desire for us. That is why setting down and doing the hard work of fleshing out day-to-day life according to God’s will is so important. Because until we’re willing to face the nitty-gritty situations and apply God’s word to them, and be willing to change for Him, we will always be choked by the weeds. We refuse God’s sovereignty in our lives unless we take it to the next step and pursue maturity in understanding His ways for our lives. But once we do set ourselves to this task… oh! What wonderful things can come! The Message Bible puts it this way:

"But the seed planted in the good earth represents those who hear the Word, embrace it, and produce a harvest beyond their wildest dreams." (Mark 4:20)

…Let me say it again for you: A harvest beyond your wildest dreams! Are you living a life in Christ that surpasses your greatest expectations? When I first gave my life to the Lord, I had NO CLUE of the wonders He would do in my life. I gave my life to the Lord in third grade, but I was 20 before I really started to pursue what it meant to LIVE for Christ. I’m 30 now, and I look back at the last decade and marvel at how far God has brought me. I can truly say that I live a life now, that is beyond my wildest dreams, and that is only true because of God’s incredible grace and the work of His Spirit in my life!

Are there things in your life that overwhelm you? Do you want to live with joy and excitement? Do you want to live bigger and better, at peace and in intimate relationship with Him? Read the rest of Mark, Chapter 4 here. And come back on Wednesday and hear more!

Something to look forward to...

Ok, I am totally ripping this one off, but it was too funny not to share! My stomach hurt from laughing so hard after reading a conversation thread among months. It's all the funny things moms say to their kids... particularly their boys. Here are my favorites:

DO NOT GET POOP ON YOUR BATMAN CAPE!!!

...do NOT punch your brother...we don't drink milk if its solid...Make sure you wash your privates...do NOT hit your sister...how did this shoe end up in the garbage...do NOT hit the baby...how did my camera end up in the garbage...no I am not pooping blood, I just had a baby thats what happens...stop hitting each other...no you cannot eat that shoe...what is that on the bottom of that shoe...thats part of a tampon, no that is not a straw to drink with...no the baby CANNOT ride the 4 wheeler with you...this time lets try to pee IN the potty...you have to aim...no I do not have a pip(aka penis) and no it did not fall off I just wasn't born with one...no you will never have big boobies...yes sissy will...no you may not hit them like punching bags while I try to shave my legs in the shower...every one get OFF the counter...yes I am pooping no you CANNOT watch...

The next person to pee on the curtains is going to get a spanking!

He let you stab him, now let him stab you!

Why did you suck on your arms until you got a hickey? Do NOT suck on your arms!

No I am not going to pull your finger....followed by... alright but don't ask me again...followed by....good one honey, maybe you should check your pants.

Stop grabbing the doggys peepee. He doesnt like that! He will bite you! No! Don't rip your diaper off and then pee on the kitchen floor. Oh and now youre fingerpainting with it. Yay!

Sweetheart, we don't put our fingers in our butt - that's bad manners.

No darling, my peepee is not squished, I wasn't born with one like yours. Girls have different ways they go to the bathroom.

To 5 year old: "Who peed in this cup and put it in the freezer??" (Imagine this said in a hysterical voice as I spilled pee on myself and my kitchen floor)

"No, that is not a kazoo." (Rushing to bathroom to empty garbage of used
tampons)

If you don't stop pestering your brother, I am going to give him permission to beat you silly.

How many times do I have to tell you to NOT drink from the toilet - that's disgusting!

How long ago did you catch the worms I just found in your pocket?

Please don't put your hand down Mommy's shirt.

No, I am sorry. You can't go back into Mommy's tummy and see where you came from.

Nutty, put your sister down. No don't DROP her! Put her down NICELY!

Please don't drink the bath water.

What do you mean you're not wearing panties?

"It's not nice to pick your nose and eat it." "Why?""Because God created boogers so bad things couldn't get in your body through your nose."(He eats a booger)"It's going right here" (points to his foot and then picks up a carton of tomatoes) "Christian, you just touched my tomatoes with your germs." "It's okay. They were in their cage."

No, I don't want you to get into my shirt with me.

PLEASE, do not eat anymore crayons!

While attempting to nurse in a fancy restaurant: "Will you just go ahead and put it in your mouth?"

To my 4 year old, "No honey, it's not proper to play with our girlie parts and make them talk like a vantriloquist."

"No, you cannot wear your sissy's Cinderella panties. Because you are a boy. Because I said so. OK, fine, just for a few minutes and then stop asking." (doorbell rings) "Great, the Arrowhead delivery man is here. Please stay inside. I said stay INSIDE! Can you stop running circles around the Arrowhead truck in your Princess panties for everyone to see? No sir, he doesn't normally wear Disney panties..." sigh

Honey, it's not nice to tell grandma that she's getting old and is going to die one day.

It's called a penis. Followed by shouting around the house "penis! penis! penis!"

Oh, I just can't wait.

To read the rest of this thread, click here. To read what comes out of MckMama's mouth, click here.

A little of this and a little of that... and some big news

It's official. My kid is THE CUTEST. I don't care what all you other moms say.
But does anyone have any ideas for how to cure a baby's hiccups? Because this kiddo has had hiccups All. Day. Long. The poor guy! Every time I think he's finally rid himself of them, they come back.

It's so sad. So very very sad.

Maybe my anxiety over the last several days is somehow transferring from me to him and coming out in the form of hiccups.

Why was I anxious, you ask? Well, after lots of thought and prayer, we decided I'm going to quit my job. The decision to stay home with Danny was a no-brainer. Like, who wouldn't want to do more of this all day long?

Especially when you get this response...

(Ignore the house-hold-hair-do, please.)

The difficult part was in deciding to leave my job. Because I really enjoy it. And I am kinda' good at it. (If I do say so myself.)

But the really difficult part was in telling my co-workers that I'd be leaving. Particularly my co-workers in Ecuador. By the way, for those of you who don't know what I do, I actually have two jobs - ok, well, now I have one. But before I turned in my resignation letter yesterday, I had two jobs. One is as a Mary Kay consultant. That's the job I'm keeping. That job is part of what is enabling me to quit the other one. The other is as the manager of the International Media Services department at HCJB Global.

The huh?

The... Well... What I do is establish and manage contracts between HCJB Global and other Christian ministries. We produce, distribute and broadcast Christian radio programs in other languages. Mainly Spanish - hence the team of co-workers in Ecuador. It's really cool! And I work with some really really cool people!

So, I'm going to miss them. A lot.

But I am So Very Glad that I have the opportunity to stay home with Danny. And really, there is nothing better I could give him than his Mommy with him all day.

Anyhooo... the anxiety came from having to write the resignation letter. But everyone has been extremely supportive. Sad to lose me, but happy for my decision. Exactly the kind of decision you want when you leave any position.

By the way, I am SO sorry if any of my co-workers are finding this out through this blog! I hope that's not happening!!

Also by the way, I am thoroughly enjoying beginning all my sentences with conjunctions. This lady inspired me to do so. Check her out. She's hilarious!

So, this evening I'm sitting here on my night off, sipping the remains of my flat root beer float from our trip to A&W last night healthy glass of ice water, I'm just struck with the fact that I am really thankful. Thankful for so many blessings in my life. This morning I woke up in a particularly good mood because Danilo slept all the way until 7 a.m. and when I went in to get him, he was happily cooing and laughing and playing in his crib. (One of these days I'll have the presence of mind to take a video camera in with me. It'll put anybody in a good mood.) I felt so joyful and thankful.

But I wish I felt joyful and thankful ALL the time. Even when I'm in a crummy mood. (I know, don't we all?) And I wish I could figure out how to make my voice sound sweet and patient on the phone to my husband. For some reason, it is permanently in the impatient and rude setting. I'm working on that. Please pray for me. Seriously.

And now that I've wandered around to six different subjects in one post, you're probably wondering where I'm going with this. (Actually, I'm wondering that too.)

I guess the over-riding thought tonight is that I am blessed and content. And if my life ended tomorrow, I'd be really glad to have had a cute kiddo and hiccups and two jobs that I love and the Lord's provision to stay home and cool co-workers and conjunctions and cute men in my life and flat root beer floats cool glasses of water - among other things. I hope your day is filled with thankfulness too.

What are you thankful for?

Foody Friday

Ok, so it's really not Friday. But I'm hurtin' for somethin' to write tonight, and I've been wanting to put this up for a while, just because my charming husband was so proud of them that he took a picture... He actually said, "Here! Take a picture so you can blog about it!"

Does he know me or what?

Anyway, I did think about blogging this on Friday. So, it's ok to post this now, right? I don't have to wait all the way till next weekend, right??

Ok, to the point...

We enjoyed the MOST amazing shishkabobs on Friday. They are really Alejandro's creation. I can take no credit for this. But you've gotta' try them, because they were delicious!

Here's how to make them:

Cut chicken, onion, mango, pineapple, and red pepper into bite-size pieces. Stab them with the shishkabob stick and slide 'em down in the most colorful of patterns... Then fire up the grill.
In the mean time, put the following spices into 1/4 cup of oil (olive oil sounds good, but the truth is, we're cheap when it comes to groceries, so we used vegetable oil).

oregano - 2 pinches
cumin - 2 pinches
garlic - 2 pinches
salt - 1 pinch
pepper - 1 pinch

(Actually, he doesn't measure... he had to wrack his brain when I asked him how much of each spice, so feel free to be creative.)

Then slap 'em on the grill and while they cook, brush on the oil and spices mix. When they look like this...

...eat 'em! Oh, yummm!!!

Make sure to check out Kingdom Mama's Foody Friday creations too!!

Romance Her

Last night I was having one of those nights when sleep eludes me and I forget that worrying gets me NO WHERE.

"Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?" Matthew 6:27

I was laying there, playing out a number of scenarios in my head... mulling over everything important and unimportant:

Who will watch Danilo when I go back to work? - in a week!
What time do I need to get up in order to make it to work by 8 a.m.?
What is the housing market going to do in three years?
I should be sleeping right now. What am I going to do when I'm so tired tomorrow?
Did the dishes get put away? Is dinner still out on the table going bad?
Do I need to wash diapers tomorrow?

Mostly I was worrying about the future.

Someone once said that when we fret over the future, we are always picturing a scenario where we have to figure everything out without God. Have you ever found yourself worrying about a future scenario with God in the picture? I haven't. Otherwise, I wouldn't be worrying.

So that's what I was doing. Worrying. And finally - after about two hours of laying there - I prayed with desperation, for God's help.

His response was to romance me.

Has God ever romanced you? If not, ask Him to sometime. (Or ask Him to point out to you a time when He has and you haven't noticed.) You'll be amazed.

Immediately, He whispered, "I know my plans for you, Renee." (Jeremiah 29:11 - my favorite verse of all time.) "I know what I'm doing. And although it seems chaos is ahead, my plans for you hold a hope and a future. One that's better than you can imagine."

The hug seemed somewhat tangible.

Then I rolled over and woke up my husband. "I can't sleep. I'm so worried." And I started to cry softly into his shoulder.

God wasn't done romancing me. He continued through the words of my husband - that is after the poor guy pulled himself out of sleepy delirium.

Alejandro listened and held me. He was quiet and I thought maybe he didn't know what to say. Then suddenly, "Lord, please wrap your arms around Renee right now. Hold her and comfort her. I pray for your incredible peace, and that she could just set her mind at ease. Remind her that you know the plan you have for us, and that we don't have to worry, because you are in control and you are taking care of us. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen."

You know how you know God is speaking to you when you hear something twice?
I. LOVE. THAT.

After that we cuddled some more, and then, um... I got romanced some more.
(Hey, I'm married, people! Sorry, T.M.I.)
(Did I really just write that on the internet?)

And after that, I drifted off into peaceful sleep.

Well, then God romanced me (through my husband) even more!

Because, check THIS out. He ever-so-sweetly woke me up and plopped breakfast-in-bed on my lap! Yummm.... crepes!
And coffee! (I can't believe I'm posting this picture on the internet.)
This part is the very best.
I almost cried.

What an incredible thing to be loved so deeply and appreciated so much by my Lord and my husband. I may be a little sleepy today. But I feel like a million bucks.

So, to all the gentlemen out there who have a wife who has a young baby and is worried... Or all of you who just have a wife... I just have one thing to say:

Romance her.

When Grammy Comes to Town

When Grammy comes to town...
...it's better than Christmas! ...not that I know what Christmas is like - yet. But I'm sure this is better.

Because she and I hang out. And cuddle.

We talk. About deep stuff.

She reads. She's practicing for me. For when we can read together.

She shows me cool new toys and games.

She and Mommy take me on walks and they exercise. I sleep when they walk.

I like making faces and Grammy likes looking at all my faces.

Bein' with her is the best! I just really love her. And she really loves me.
Plus she lets my parents go out on a date, and that makes them really happy. Then they're better parents for me.

Thanks Grammy for coming to visit me! Thanks for hanging out and cuddling me and talking and reading and showing me new games. Thanks for walking with me and Mom, and for letting my parents go on a date. Thanks for loving me!

Come back soon. Really soon! ...Um, what are you doing tomorrow?

______________________Español______________________

Cuando mi abuela viene a visitarme...

...es mejor que la Navidad! ...aunque yo no sé cómo es la Navidad... todavía. Pero estoy seguro que esto es mejor.

Porque ella y yo pasamos tiempo juntos. Y ella me abraza.

Hablamos juntos sobre todos los problemas del mundo. Los resolvemos.

Ella lee. Está practicando para cuando podemos leer juntos.

Me enseña nuevos juegos.

Ella y Mami me llevan a caminar. Me gusta dormir cuando caminan.
También me gusta hacer muecas y a mi abuela le gusta ver todas mis muecas.

Pasar tiempo con ella es lo mejor. Yo le quiero mucho. Y ella me quiere también.

Más, ella deja que mis padres salgan para una cita, y eso les hace muy felíz. Entonces, son mejores padres para mí.

¡Gracias, Grammy, por venir a visitarme! Gracias por pasar tiempo conmigo, por abrazarme, por hablarme, y por enseñarme juegos. Gracias por caminar conmigo y con Mami. Y gracias por amarme.

¡Regrese pronto! ¡Muy pronto! ¿Qué haces mañana?

Introducing... Poop and Weeds Wednesday

Yes, you read it right. Poop and Weeds Wednesday. :)

No, this is not more potty humor stories... Although, those seem to abound in our household.

Actually, this is the beginning of a weekly devotional post that will last through the next several months. You see, about a year or two ago, before I was pregnant, before I blogged... before I was thinking about any of these things... I was randomly inspired to go clean up my back yard. At the time, it was filled with weeds and our dog's poop. Cleaning it up was quite a chore. But somewhere in between pulling weeds and carrying the loads to the trash can, I felt God whispering to me to write a devotional. So I put down my gardening tools, took off my gloves, and headed up to the computer. I wrote a short devotional, which I then saved and shoved in a drawer. It stayed there for over a year.

Now I know that I was supposed to write that devotional for such a time as this.

This is the introduction of the devotional, titled, "Thank you God for Poop and Weeds." Each week I'll post the next section. I'm not guaranteeing anything deserving of the Pulitzer Prize! But I promise you these words are from my heart. I pray God speaks to you through them.

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Thank You God for Poop and Weeds

Mark 4:3-20

"Listen. What do you make of this? A farmer planted seed... Some fell in the weeds; as it came up, it was strangled among the weeds and nothing came of it. Some fell on good earth and came up with a flourish, producing a harvest exceeding his wildest dreams.

"Are you listening to this? Really listening?
‘…Whose eyes are open but don't see a thing,

Whose ears are open but don't understand a word,
Who avoid making an about-face and getting forgiven.’”

"He continued, "Do you see how this story works? All my stories work this way. The farmer plants the Word… The seed cast in the weeds represents the ones who hear the kingdom news but are overwhelmed with worries about all the things they have to do and all the things they want to get. The stress strangles what they heard, and nothing comes of it. But the seed planted in the good earth represents those who hear the Word, embrace it,

…and produce a harvest beyond their wildest dreams."

The Message Bible
Some verses omitted

Introduction

Today I went out into my backyard on a mission. To conquer the weeds in my yard. My yard is somewhat connected to my pride… I’m learning to let go of this. But I still find great pleasure in looking out into the back yard, seeing that it is well-manicured, green, and well… pretty.

Right now, it is not any of those things.

You see, our sprinkler system is broken, and neither my husband nor I have thought our yard a high enough priority to spend an hour and a half, twice a week watering it. So right now, our landscaping is composed of various shades of brown and weeds. “That doesn’t trample my spirit though!” I thought triumphantly, this afternoon after church. “No matter! Weeds must be pulled anyway!” And another thought occurred to me: “Certainly, there must be corners of my yard that are protected by shade, where the little moisture we get here in Colorado, is well-received and where plants grow and flourish and there is still living grass to save!”

Sure enough, I did find such a corner. And I set in to work.

As I set to work, lashing out life’s frustrations on the weeds, and enjoying the physical work of it, I began to think… and God began to speak to me. He reminded me of the Parable of the Sower, and he began to show me how much our spiritual lives are very much like the backyard grass. One parallel after another came to me, and I am now convinced, that God gave us weeds and poop – yes, that’s right… I said poop, too – in order to help us understand the importance of rooting out evil in our lives, in order that we may live a more abundant, life-giving, full life in God.

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Over the next several months, I'll share with you what those parallels are. Come back next week! In the mean time, would you share what this story means to you? Do so in the comments section, so all can enjoy and benefit.

Potty Humor - Part II

Warning. This post is rated PG.

Parental Guidance strongly recommended.

Lots of potty language to follow.

This is the sequel of Potty Humor - Part I, when Danny smiled for the first time - on the changing table. This is most definitely his favorite time to play.

It all started last night with a little diaper rash on my baby's tooshie. When changing Danilo's diaper, I noticed a bit of redness that was not going away, so I decided to let him have some bare-butt tummy time in the living room. Dryness and air always help this redness go away. I gathered a changing pad, a receiving blanket and several cloth diapers to put underneath him.

My Mom (who is visiting again - isn't it wonderful?!) and I were watching as Danny was playing, making the best sounds, talking and chattering. We recorded this video, and then turned him on his back while we turned to watch it. We were so focused on the video and the noises and expressions coming from his top end that we didn't notice what was happening at his bottom end.

Suddenly, my Mom looked down at her shorts, and shrieked, "He PEED on me!!" I immediately fell into fits of laughter. Nope, no sympathy or concern from me. I've been on the receiving end of Grandparents' Revenge plenty of times, so I just laughed my head off, while cleaning up the carpet. My mom said something about taking a shower, and I (again, with no sympathy at all) said, "Really?" I mean, gracious, if I showered for all the times I got pee, poop, or spit-up on my pants, I'd shower 3 times a day! So I handed her the box of baby-wipes and suggested she just change.

Well, I should've known what was coming.

Because today, my Mom and I were in the baby's room and I was changing Danny's diaper on the changing table. As always, he was giving me the best smiles ever (being in his favorite place to play) and I paused while he was bare to talk to him.

Big. Mistake.

The spray of pee that came flying out of nowhere could compete with fire hydrants everywhere. My face, my hair, my shirt, my pants, and all of my underclothes were wet. And after the shot in the face, I was laughing too hard to do anything but just use my hand to shield myself from any more. I wish I'd caught it on video. Words cannot describe the scene.

Just when I thought that the disaster had ended and I was preparing to survey the scene and clean up, Danny let out another squeal of delight.

Then there was Explosive. Poop.

My Mom (who stayed comfortably across the room) and I were laughing so hard we were crying. I couldn't even speak.

I'll spare you all the poopy details, but I decided that the best course of action was to strip myself and him down, put all of our clothes and the changing table cover in the cloth diaper laundry with all the other dirty diapers, and to take both our bare bottoms directly to the shower.

My Mom waited outside the shower for me to hand him out, and made a comment about my needing to take out the trash - which was overflowing and spilling onto the floor. What can I say? I just hadn't made it up with plastic bags yet, and nobody usually goes in there but Alejandro and I anyway.

Then I handed the clean baby out of the shower to his Grammy to be dressed and cuddled.

After stepping out of the shower, I saw all of the embarrassing items that were NOT in the trash, but rather spilling onto the floor because I hadn't cleaned up. Something about always wearing clean underwear in case you are caught in an accident came to mind. Lesson learned. My trash will be taken out promptly from now on. No matter who is or is not in the house.

Well, that's what I get for laughing at her last night.

Danny did get her one more time by peeing on the first diaper she tried to put on him and spitting up on the clean changing pad cover that she'd just put on. She deserved it. Poor Grammy!