Biting my nails...

Bow season opened yesterday...Hence this post. Tony is out of range on the cell phone at this moment tracking some animal.

He left me in charge of setting his Fantasy football line up...

Here is the rub....Brian Westbrook. Philadelphia's running back who last week got us 42 points but also strained his abdomen. He did not practice on Friday...so I am thinking I should not start him...But if he plays he could have a field day with the NY Giants defense. You would be embaressed for me if I revealed how much time I have spent researching this...and weighing our options.

These are the thoughts that are racing through my mind this morning

Any last minute fantasy football advice...always welcome.

Observations...

1. Thank you for your prayers and encouragement regarding lectureship. It went well. I was overwhelmed in the best sort of way. The Lord poured out His mercy in more ways than I can recount...I left feeling filled... I continue to pray that others did as well.

2. I loved being a student at ACU...I loved my friends, my teachers, my life in general...Last week though I realized again what a gift it was...and how it keeps giving. Several people I was at school with that I had not seen since (over 10 years now) came to my class...and they encouraged me, they made me laugh and in our breif conversations we shared deeply things that the Lord is doing in our lives and things we hope we will see Him do. I am so thankful for the gift the Lord gave me in my 4 years out there...I left that campus with a light heart this past week.

3. I did the obligatory drive by our old house on Cedar Crest...and was amazed it had not fallen down. I called each of my roommates and as I talked to them I felt like I was in college again...until I looked in my rearview mirror and noticed 2 cars seats, that my car has doubled in length, and I was listening to Woody (from Toy Story) sing you've got a friend in me...even with no kids in the car. I would say I am definitely out of the college scene.

4. My boys have been passing back and forth some type of bug. The other day Payton had a really high fever. My favorite thing about this is Benjamin calls it a beaver. I recognize I need to correct this, but it is the cutest thing I have ever heard to hear Benjamin say in his raspy voice, "Hey does Payton still have that hot beaver on his head."

5. We have somethings in our life right now that we are really wrestling through. The other day I turned up praise music loud in our house...trying to get my focus back where it should be. Payton walked in and said, "what in the world are you doing?" I told him...I am trying to get focused on the Lord Payton...blah, blah blah...way too much explanation on my need to focus on His goodness in the midst of trials for a 5 year old. At the end...He said..."REALLY? sounds to me like you just want to wake up Benjamin and I wanted to remind you that is not something we do around here."

****We just received our deposit back from our vacation...I am stopping this post right now to begin my top 10 vacation moments I will never forget that I wish I could:) Stay tuned...

this and that

So heres the deal on vacation stories...as soon as I get our deposit back from the house Tony says I can begin to speak publicly...until then I better keep my trap shut (my words, not my husbands)...you never know whose browsing these things and might alert the landlord. :) Thanks for all the encouragement on sharing these stories. I assure you they will be the worth the wait.

I am speaking next week at ACU's lectureship...I would so appreciate your prayers. I had mentioned a while back my topic of transparency in the Body of Christ. So often in studying I realize the Lord is revealing some things that I might share them...others that I might change something in myself. I think this time more than ever the list of "that I might change them in myself" was a lot longer than what He revealed that I will share with everyone. It has been convicting, uncomfortable, and exactly what I should of been working on. I am looking forward to it...with a healthy dose of fear, trepidation and full stomach of butterflies. I will share more when I get back.

The other night I had one of those "you have got to be kidding nights" I had just explained to Tony how I had not been sleeping well and how my tasks around the house seemed to mulitply daily...in other words I was having a week when I did not feel like I was accomplishing anything. He encouraged me to go to bed early (And I did). Sometime in the night I woke up to an odd sound (somehow Tony never awakens to these) I got up and walked into our bathroom...what's that? Oh Payton peeing in our bathtub. I stood in amazement and watched...there was no stopping him unless I wanted to swing a solid stream around our whole bathroom. I shook my head, picked him up (He was still asleep) washed his hands, (at least we are hygenic when we pee in the bathtub) and carried him back to bed making a mental note to myself that our bathtub and tub toys must be throughly bleached the next day. I was so tired I immediately went back to bed. It felt like I slept for ever but when I looked at the clock 15 minutes later when I heard an ear piercing scream I realized I had not been. Once again sleeping beauty (whom I married and I love) slept soundly through this. I ran to the boys room to see Benjamin standing on his bed, pants down...you guessed it...peeing. Seriously now. All over everything. I bathed Benjamin (in a different bathtub than Payton had just used), got him new pajamas, got new sheets, piled up his comforter, his mattress pad, his sheets on an already full laundry basket and went back to bed...my list for the next day multiplying as I slept.

I love these 3 boys the Lord has given me. Weeks like this one that feel crazy, dirty, and unorganized I am thankful that the Lord has given me the ability to laugh. In Jeremiah 30 the Lord is giving the Israelites a message through His prophet Jeremiah...he tells Jeremiah to let the people know new days are ahead where "Thanksgivings will pour out of the windows; laughter will spill through the doors." I want our boys to have that view of our home...on some nights there are heavy tears, heavy hearts and a very overwhelmed mom in the middle of it...but if they catch a few glimpses of that thats ok...even more than a few, I am still ok...because overall I want them to reflect on this home and remember that on most days it was a place where thanksgiving poured out and laughter was spilled (along with the entire jug of orange juice when Benjamin was thirsty in the middle of that same night and decided to get himself a drink.) Thank goodness the Lord's words were true for Israel, even now as they are true for us...a new day came for all of us in the form of Christ...May His name be praised.

The latest...

1. We just returned from vacation...we had the most fun and hilarious time. I cannot write about it because Tony says over the internet it will sound like I am exxagerating and making it up. He is right. Ask me about it in person. We rented a beach house sight unseen from a rental company over the internet...I advise you to never do this. Hopefully I will post pictures soon. We went with some of our best friends...we are even closer now. Sleeping in a house that might fall down at any moment and where you can't drink the water will do that for you. We would all do it again in a heart beat. Seriously...I have got some stories.

2. On the second day of our vacation Payton said..."you do not know how nice it is to get away from it all." The kid is 50 in a 5 year old body.

3. My sister told me over the weekend she joined facebook. Today I thought I would check and see her picture. You have to have a profile to check anothers profile...I entered my email and somehow clicked some button where it sent a "i want to be your facebook friend" to every person in my email address book. Thanks to all of you sweet people who responded. My profile on facebook says I turn 47 tomorrow...I wonder how many people will seriously think I am 47. Just an FYI I am not. Not that theres anything wrong with being 47.

4. Today I was bragging on Benjamin for doing a "big job" in the toilet. He looked up at me and said, "mom, if this makes you so happy...I bet I can make another one later."

5. Today we were out of orange juice so I gave the boys apple juice when they got up...Apple juice is not Payton's favorite but I had told him the situation and asked if he still wanted it, he said yes. I am big on them not wasting things after they have said they want something, I am not a fan of saying "I don't like this." so we have been working on other alternatives.He took one drink, wrinkled his nose and said, "My doctor said I should not have apple juice." This is not one of the alternatives we have worked on...

6. My mom has really been struggling with allergies out at the ranch. Her eyes itch, water, are painful etc...Today as we were driving home from walmart Benjamin said, "my eyes are burning so bad I am about to scratch them out.My allergies are killing me out here." Benjamin is a direct quoter with no allergies...We are learning to watch our words carefully around him.He loves to pull out lines whenever he has a crowd.

7. The beach that our house sat on allowed cars on it. A Ford Taurus nearly took out our sand castle...we laughed so hard we cried. You can't make things like this up.

Usually I write 10 things...a nice round number...tonight I will stick with 7 hoping to post more pictures later.

So thankful...