Tall....short

First, turn it up load, I took this on my phone.

"Tall...short. Tall....short. Tall....short. "

It's a simple life being a toddler and learnin' things.

Uploading pictures as we speak. I've been out of my blogging habit lately. See you soon!

Fictional Real Life

If you keep up with the blog, you know that I quit my job. You know that we quit cable and got Hulu. And we've picked up a few new shows with Hulu, like Last Man Standing, with Tim Allen. Which is like a modern version of Home Improvement. Different stories, characters, etc but similar format and we laughed out loud a lot. I watched a show that I found out was canceled. Wasted my time on that one I suppose. Oh and we found New Girl. That show is OUTRAGEOUS. And it got a bit inappropriate after awhile. We're going to start the new season and see if it's less raunchy - sometimes new shows start out too sexy. And after we got caught up on these shows and now are waiting for the new seasons, I have found a new show. I have joined the bandwagon and the masses. I judged others for watching the show. And now, it's closing in on possible addiction.

I found Grey's Anatomy. And oh dear. I was looking for a crime show, and really couldn't find any more worth watching. I did find Body of Proof, but got caught up and I'm waiting for the season to start. So, having watched the rest of the series/seasons of House when we got Hulu, I found another medical drama. I had watched one or two episodes before, but it didn't really stick. But this time. Sheesh. Talk about drama. And usually, that's annoying to me. But this show knows exactly when to go from up to down and take another turn. I seriously have cried on several episodes. If you watched Grey's Anatomy, I'll let you know that I finished Season 2 last night. Denny Douqett and Izzie. Oh. My. Goodness. The show is full of really, really stupid decision making, lots of drinking, risk taking and lots, and lots of sex. Yeah.

So, again, this show is really not one I would typically like. And I can't even say I "like" it all the time. The story line is so well written and for once, there are actual surprises on a show. Soapbox moment - these days, they show the whole story on previews for TV shows AND movies. You know what is going to happen. Every time. Even when they try to trick you in the preview, they do it so often that you know that nothing twisty is really going to happen. And maybe if I was watching Grey's in real time, the case would be the same. But bad things happen, people die, and people are stupid. And I love it? No. But it's "real."

I am going to dive into some over-analytical and over-spiritual commentary here. But, I have discovered a new found awareness of the brokeness in the world. Not just today, it's always been there. I just didn't know. Or want to know. Now, I'm not crazy. I do know that Grey's Anatomy IS just a show. It's fiction. Nonetheless, there is some truth in most fiction. Sure there is embellishment and hype because it's a show. But, I'm assuming there are people out there in similar circumstances. Sleeping around, high risk behavior, conflict avoidance, affairs, questionable ethics, daddy issues, cancer and of course, death. And again, it's just a TV show, but I couldn't ever handle the ups and downs, the hurt, the fighting, the instability and so forth. I couldn't handle the consequences; mental, emotional and spiritual, or physical even - on the show there is unwanted pregnancy, scheduled abortion, STD's and so forth.

It's unbelieveable to me the effect watching the show has had on me. I get emotionally involved in shows. Come on Gilmore Girls lovers, you're with me right? But what has afftected me the most is just knowing that there are people just like the characters, living their lives just like the characters, and going through similar experiences and therefore consequences and emotions. There are good lessons to be learned from the show - not waiting to express love and admiration to people, don't give up your marriage just because of infidelity, don't put career over friends & family - but those are lessons learned from bad experiences.

I can't imagine going through those experiences without knowing God. Without knowing that it wasn't the end of the world. Without knowing that I was made on purpose and for a purpose, not for mindless wandering through life. I admit, I have a hard time empathizing with wanting to make in-the-moment decisions with detrimental consequences. I mean, that is why God is God and why the Bible is our guide. One God, one way to do things. Otherwise, who says what is right and wrong? It's different from person to person and whose to say that you can really get mad at someone who "offended" you based on that thinking. It's relative. And I can't deal with that.

God's way is the way I go. I choose to go that way. I choose to love God and live a life that hopefully shows that I love God. He created me, I live for Him. I'm NOT a slave to my impulses (direct quote from Grey's Anatomy - "the body is a slave to it's impulses.") And I know there are many blessings in my life, for which I am grateful. But I think that in watching Grey's Anatomy, I have kind of gotten a picture of where I might be if I hadn't admitted that I was trying to be in control, believed God is who he says he is and confessed that I had given my life over to God. And for THAT, I am grateful.

Yum-mee

 

Ah, pictures of a toddler eating pasta. Timeless. Emersen LOVES pasta. Loves to say "pasta" too.

 

We feel lucky to have a good eater. Em loves broccoli and peas. Carrots not so much. I even tried calling them "dots." Still no go.

 

We feel lucky every time we look at this little face. The other night I got to put Emersen to bed, as Wes was at a couple meetings at church. I got a little overwhelmed with how much I love her. She probably gets tired of me telling her each day, several times a day. But whatever.

 

It's unbelievable how sweet she is, how loving. When she sees I'm upset with her for not obeying me, she asks for a hug and gives kisses. She basically sang "Happy Birthday" to Wes last night at bed time, she said the celebretory phrase over and over again. She daily lists her pets/friends that she misses. She asks to take them to Orange Leaf. She is SO smart. We jokingly ask "are you a genius?" when she finally "gets" something or learns a new skill or idea. This past week, she's really picked up on her colors. We practice with her crayons. She says "orangie" for orange. And right after realizing that, she added it to "leaf" for the frozen yogurt store. She had previously just been calling it "leaf." And today, she's finally grasped the idea of a circle. On our walk, she said she missed Grover. Like from Sesame Street, because he's in one of her books. Then she said she missed Abby. Abby Cadabby, from Sesame Street, as she's in the same book. Hilarious. I love it. I just love it.

Garden Days of Summer

This is apparently our little friend who kept our garden from taking off at the beginning.

Pumpkin, not a wateremelon. A Jackolantern variety, specifically. Apparently our one and only. But this is a 100% increase over our plant from last year.

Em is drawn to my feet for some reason. She'll come to my legs when I'm sitting on the couch and she'll just stand on one of my feet. She tried sitting on me while I was in the yard.

I'm depressed looking at this plant, because this was our one and only zucchini. The plant died, as did our cucumber plant. Depressing.

Banana peppers are growing out of our ears! We would love any suggestions you might have for preparing them.

Eventually, I guess we will get some grape tomatoes. They're coming in but not turning red.

These are marconi peppers I think. Spicy ones.

And Emersen is acting like Daddy in this picture. She usually goes out with him while he waters. So when I wasn't looking, she went over and picked up the watering attachment and brought it over to the garden to pretend like she was watering. Kids are so funny, I love it.

And something VERY exciting is that Emersen stopped crying in the nursery today and made it through the service! Woo-hoo! We also had a record crowd of kiddos today too. Good things!

Our Days

Our days these days are pretty laid back and we are still adjusting to our new normal. I've tried a couple things with Emersen for entertainment purposes. Below is Silly String - it freaked Emersen out. Of course.

Dora holds Emersen's rocks for her. Now rocks - that's the REAL entertainment for Em. She LOVES playing with them. Carrying them. Putting them in and out of the bucket. Of course.

Granna (Mindy) got Emersen this Goldfish goldfish crackers carrier. She loves it. Because she LOVES containers - boxes, bags, etc. So she's having her morning snack with her new little friend.

I love this movie setting I discovered in Picasa. Focuses in on that cute little face. She's eating a colorful goldfish, just so you know.

Em loves sitting at her picnic table to hang out. She's lounging here as she eats her snack. This kid is awesome. We make her sit down for her snack - no walking around and eating here and there. That equals choking and dragging out snack time. Usually not a problem because she loves to eat, especially snack time foods. Usually this consists of goldfish crackers, cheeriors, peanuts, chocolate chips, marshmellows, string cheese, pretzel sticks, grapes or craisins. We combine them for a more balanced snack, like pretzel sticks and string cheese.

She is going to bed at 8:30pm, taking one 2 hr nap in the afternoon and gets up around 7-7:30 in the morning. Her favorite things right now are basketball goals, blocks, and "seek" which is hide and seek. She loves to say her prayers and add in her friends names. She loves to say her Bible verse (only parts of it, of course). She has developed some sort of fear/anxiety over the church nursery. The kid who NEVER has crying fits has cried so hard she's coughing the past two Sunday's. I'm guessing it's because I'm home with her now, but who really knows with toddlers. She has started saying the infamous kid phrase "hold you." She's starting cuddling up more. She loves a show called "Boo!" that's on Hulu. She goes around saying "okay" but repeats it over and over again changing her inflection and volume level. She's hilarious.

More updates to come, hopefully without as much time between posts. I have several posts worth of pictures to share so stay tuned.

P.S. who isn't LOVING the impending cooler weather!? I'm counting down to September 1st, because in case you didn't know, that's when I officially start celebrating fall!

Miss You

Emersen is in some sort of obsessive phase. She is repeating everything all the time. She gets stuck on something and just can't let it go. It had to be dealt with big time on Monday that when mommy/daddy says the topic is all done then she doesn't keep asking. Things have been much better since, but she will latch on to something in a second. Like our neighbor having a basketball goal and she keeps talking about it. Or the neighbor kids themselves. Or our worship leader at church. Or getting up on our bed. I think it's just her way of learning and organizing it - she repeats it to get it. Also, the way she tells stories right now is with key words so she just says the word over and over, but could be trying to talk about the same thing but in different ways.

Em has always thrived from having a routine. Since she was as young as about 6 weeks old, we started a napping schedule (Baby Wise) because she couldn't handle herself by the end of the night. This eliminated what we thought was gas problems and colic. We initiated a bedtime routine in the past year, which she really likes. We've taken the opportunity to brush her teeth, change diaper/pj's, read a book, say her prayers and do a Bible verse. Well, Wes does unless he's not home. Now she has added elements of her routine into her time before her nap in the afternoon.

She's picking up on our sayings as well. When we say we can't play right now because we are making dinner, for example, she answers with "almost done." This is what we would have eventually told her when she kept asking. She mimics a lot of things now - our quick responses and one word answers. She even gets the intonation down as well. She is starting to say "I do this" instead of "Emmy does this" and stringing together words into a phrase. Like when Wes chases her, she ask for "Daddy more running." It's incredible to see her vocabulary and speaking skills develop!

Now that I'm home with her, I think she's developing some attachment issues, or it's her age. But she cried the whole time at church last week, which is so weird for her. She doesn't cry unless she gets hurt, or is whining but that ends once she's in time out for it. She doesn't require being held, but did at church (again, thanks Joni). I've taken the opportunities that I had this week to be out during the evening for a little while so she could have a break from me and be with Wes. And another perk to being home with her is I now actually have the desire to go and do things in the evening (thanks MomSource for the meal planning seminar, Jacki Allen for the wedding planner get together and a meeting with a bride for Weekend Wedding Warriors). And we've had dinner most of those nights, to boot. We rearranged our furniture after getting the carpet cleaned and I LOVE it. I found some great deals at Goodwill and Walmart for some accessories and furniture to put some finishing touches on a few rooms, but have really rearranged items I already had. It's refreshing to change things up a bit.

Anyway, I posted the video on here of Emersen saying the people she misses. She loses focus with the TV on in the background but you'll get the point. She does this little bit every day, sometimes more than once. Since her lengthy stay with my parents, she talks about everyone she saw on a daily basis, and has even added them into her daily prayers. So if you're not mentioned in the video, don't take offense. I just didn't get your name on camera.

On special shout out is to my cousin's daughter Zayna, because Emersen didn't get to see her when she stayed with my parents, but only on the picture we have on the fridge. Nonetheless, Emersen talked about her at least once in the past 2-3 days. And one day she talked about her several times and mentioned her in prayers and her miss you speeches. So there you go cuz. 

Holy Chicken, Batman

You know, now that I'm home with Emersen and have rearranged some things in our life, I feel pretty calm and even keel. I had really been struggling with the "be slow to anger" verse in Scripture. On a regular basis. However, even now I'm kind of worked up about a current event in the media, but I don't have the same extremely annoyed feeling. It's more like...disappointment? sadness? confusion?

I am sure that most of you have heard one version or another of "The Chick-fil-a Saga." There has been a lot of misleading reporting on the original interview with Mr. Cathy of the infamous chicken corporation. There has been a lot of mindless chatter as well. And while it's all pretty ridiculous, it also says a lot about people, beliefs and culture. And I wanted to put my thoughts out there as well. The reaction, as portrayed in the media, has been of large proportions. But I also feel it's been a bit outrageous.

As a reminder, Dan Cathy of Chick-fil-a was asked about the company beliefs and values related to marriage. He explained that they stand for traditional marriage as outlined in the Bible. The end.

My pastor often challenges us as Christians to be known for what we stand for not what we're against. I felt like Mr. Cathy expressed this in his answer. I didn't hear a message of hate, of disgust, of protest against a behavior, lifestyle and especially not against a person. Check out what the company does here - namesake of a football bowl, sell chicken, strive to be "America's Best Quick Service Restaurant," sponsor foster homes, marriage retreats and wilderness events to name a few things. As everyone knows, the famous restaurant is closed every Sunday, which you can read about that decision here. Finally, on the bio page for Dan Cathy, his passion is to meet the Chick-fil-A Corporate Purpose: "To glorify God by being a faithful steward of all that is entrusted to us. To have a positive influence on all who come in contact with Chick-fil-A."

At BRnow.org, K. Allan Blume writes:

In a recent visit to North Carolina, Cathy said, “We don’t claim to be a Christian business.” He attended a business leadership conference many years ago where he heard Christian businessman Fred Roach say, “There is no such thing as a Christian business.”

“That got my attention,” Cathy said. Roach went on to say, “Christ never died for a corporation. He died for you and me.”

“In that spirit ... [Christianity] is about a personal relationship. Companies are not lost or saved, but certainly individuals are.” Cathy added.

“But as an organization we can operate on biblical principles. So that is what we claim to be. [We are] based on biblical principles, asking God and pleading with God to give us wisdom on decisions we make about people and the programs and partnerships we have. And He has blessed us.”

I'm having trouble with the intolerance of intolerance - yes, hear the irony in that. Number 1: Many times, those who aren't Christians will claim they don't like Christians because they're hypocritical. But when a Christian adhered to their beliefs, no matter what may come their way, people were upset. Number 2: For better or worse, in America, we do have the freedom to have different beliefs and are supposed to be able to share them freely. We don't have to agree, but it's supposed to be okay to have differening opinions. Number 3: Dan Cathy didn't say anything about not liking someone who practices homosexuality. He didn't bash a gay person or their wish to get married. Number 4: A gay person wants the right to be gay and have the belief that they should be able to get married. That's their opinion about homosexual behavior. Some people don't think you should go to church on Saturday night instead of Sunday. Some people don't think you should allow processed foods in your diet. Some people think that if you don't breastfeed until your child is one year old that you're not doing it right. Some people don't like the color red, blue or green. These are opinions. Number 5: Please acknowledge that we should expect Christians to adhere to the whole Bible, the whole word of God, and not to waiver on their beliefs. After all, that's sort of the basis of Christianity - that you believe in one God, and one way to heaven. Please acknowledge that you shouldn't expect a person that doesn't claim to be a Christian to act in a way in line with Christianity or the Bible. Why would they? The Bible challenges complete submission to our heavenly Father EVEN AGAINST THINGS THAT COME NATURALLY TO US. Without freely choosing to love God, why would you choose to act in a way that is pleasing to Him?

So...because we live in America, Chick-fil-a gets to operate on biblical principles if they want to. And because we live in America, you can choose not to eat there if that isn't where you want your money to go. And I just wish people would stop looking for something to get mad about or argue about and understand that just because you are FOR one thing, doesn't mean you're AGAINST another thing. Most importantly, for me as a Christian, is that just because I don't agree with a behavior doesn't mean I have anything against the person doing it. Additionally, I want to offer the challenge to give thought to what the numbers say as a result of the "Chick-fil-a Appreciation Day": sales surpassed records and the attendance broke records. What does that say about the perception that was being portrayed by the media? Did they make it sound like everybody disagreed with Chick-fil-a's comments? Because the numbers say that some people agreed with their beliefs. Others agreed with the idea that Chick-fil-a at least had a right to their beliefs and expressing them freely. Others were probably bigots who hate gay people. Such is life. But the people who reacted by vandalizing a Chick-fil-a building with the graffiti "Tastes like hate," or the executive who belittled a Chick-fil-a employee bewilder me; how is that behavior helpful and what point did it make? You are now LITERALLY doing what you ACCUSE Chick-fil-a of doing. Except you broke the law.

Folks. We have got to refocus. God does speak against homosexual behavior in the Bible. And the difference between God saying it and a human saying it is that He is God. Always has been, always will be. He's always existed. His word doesn't change, while humans are imperfect and ever changing and will die and be gone. He also says that if you have hate in your heart, you might as well have murdered someone. He says that if you look at a woman with lust and want, you might as well have committed adultery. You know what else God says? That if you acknowledge that you have sinned (p.s. we all have thanks to Adam & Eve) which means living as if you're in control with disregard for God, and believe that Jesus is who God says He is (Jesus is God in human form, who came to earth, was killed, rose 3 days later and then ascended into heaven), and confess that you're surrendering everything publicly to live out that you believe that He is in charge if your life, then you have absolute forgiveness and reconciliation to God. You will go to heaven when you die, not hell. What else does God say? He says that you can really know a person's faith by what their life looks like. What is different about their life now? What evidence is there in their life that matches how Christ acted? The Bible says we are justified by faith alone, not by works, so that we can't take the credit. But it also says faith without works is dead; that you know true faith by the proof, that actions speak louder than words.

I don't know how any of this gets misconstrued into hate towards any person. At church we often say that we love people and want them to come to Jesus JUST AS THEY ARE. Then we say BUT, we love them enough not to leave them there. We know that we know that we know that God's way is the best way. Any thing separate from God is based on a person, and we're temporary and will change and fail. That's why things can't be "okay for that person, but not me" or say "I don't belief this, but whatever they want to do is fine for them." There IS one God and only one way to be reconciled to God because He's perfect. We can't be enemies with Him AND get into heaven. Then, as a Christian we do have to tell you about God, His Word and what it says because we don't want to leave you where you are! I keep asking if you know what else God says and I ask again. He tells us to go tell our city, state, nation and world about what He says.

I just wish that even those who don't believe in God, or who do but don't have the personal relationship required for heavenly citizenship, would respect that IF a Christian believes in God, believes God and believes what His word says, that we LOVE you enough to tell you about it. We LOVE you because God loves you. God IS love. If a Christian isn't doing that, please, feel free to call them a hypocrite. Myself included.

Day in the Life

Today is one of those days. Wait...not one of THOSE days, but one of those days where you sort of just want to pinch yourself. Or at least take a deep breath and sigh. I know many parents say they can't believe how much they love their kid. And you really can't believe it sometimes. I tell Emersen at least a hundred times a day that "Mommy loves her." Eventually, she's going to say "Ok mom...enough already." Fortunately, she doesn't speak in sentences yet.

One month into my new working arrangement, and I'm still adjusting to our new normal. I feel SO much better on a regular basis. I can work/be productive during the hours that work for me, not between 9am & 5pm. I feel more on top of certain things, like cutting up the celery, freezing meat and cleaning the microwave (still not on grocery shopping/meal planning/couponing) and things that shouldn't stress me out don't anymore!

Changes to things other than employment have made a difference as well. Spending time with a cutie-pants will change your disposition for sure. But, we planted a garden and I love getting veggies out of it. And hopefully sunflowers soon! I'm going to embrace some crafting/creating as well. We freed ourselves from cable and satellite and now we can rearrange our furniture any way we want! And less money is coming out of our bank account at the same time (Yay, Hulu). While I didn't have any excuse previously, I do find it easier to sit down for breakfast and spend some time in God's word each day as well. That will change your disposition and outlook any day.

Needless to say, I wanted to take the opportunity to express gratitude for my day today.

Psalm 118:24

New King James Version (NKJV)

²⁴ This is the day the Lord has made;
We will rejoice and be glad in it.

Baby and Em in her blocks box.

Loves to build with her blocks. We're working on colors. And not knocking them all over.

Traveling in style...to Kroger. We're fancy.