Road Trips and Reality

The last days of summer have officially drawn to a close around here. I don't know where the time went...besides the fact I slept walked?? through most of it in a queasy pregnancy stupor. For the last "Hoo-rah", we took quick trip to Atlanta to celebrate Ellie turning 6. For her birthday, she got to choose between a party or going to the American Girl Store in Atlanta. Obviously, she chose the latter. What started out as a girls trip ended up as a family event. Cord, Jeremiah and Judson endured 3 painful hours in that place. Bless their hearts. In all seriousness, it was magical. We had the whole experience...dinner reservations in the Bistro, (complete with chairs for the dolls and pink muffins) a much needed trip to the "salon" (seriously, after the lice outbreak last year I nearly burnt those dolls up in the dryer....i also "treated" the doll hair JUST IN CASE...needless to say, it was money well-spent) and finally, an overnight stay in a hotel geared for American Girl visitors. Sounds fun, huh? It was-like I said-magical for a moment! Their little faces were priceless, their hearts-so appreciative, and their imaginations were in overdrive. We explored every inch of Northpoint mall, rode the carousel and played in the playground until we couldn't possibly play anymore. Then it was off to the hotel for the "icing on the cake" to the whole trip. The Marriott Residence inn has a package boasting of pink decor, special beds for the dolls and even cookies and milk at bedtime for all. We could hardly wait. I had arranged ahead of time for a 2 bedroom suite-adjoining rooms-we did have 4 small children in tow. Just to be safe, I didn't make reservations via Internet, but called the 1-800 number instead so I could speak to a real person and be able to rest assured all of my questions were answered and plans executed. It was just a perfect trip-even Jud did good.....until.

!!!!!!AHEM. Attention. Beware. Proceed with Caution!!!!!!

I heard something like this;"I'm sorry, mam. What did you say your name was? Can you spell that for me. Hmmm. Could your reservation be under any other name? Well. I see. OK. Well, we don't have record of your reservation and we are completely booked. I'm sorry."

"Excuse me?" (please tell me this is a cute little joke for the weary pregnant lady with all the kids) "I don't think I heard you right....I made reservations In Advance over the phone with a Live Person...and, I even gave him my credit card number to hold the room."

I could feel the panic welling up! And yep. It happened. I cried out of frustration and desperation. I proceeded to tell the poor clerk how far we'd driven, that we'd just spent 6 hours at a mall with 3 kids and a toddler and now we are exhausted and ready to crash and have no place to lay our head in the city. She felt really sorry for me. Or thought I might lose it and jump over the counter at any given minute. Thankfully, she made some phone calls and sent us several miles down the road to a step above a roach motel. Being the germaphobe I am, the large Lysol that stays in my car, was emptied in the room....all areas disinfected and the kids thought they were at the Ritz Carlton.

It worked out, but not as planned. (And to the donkey who has my credit card number and didn't do your job...I am praying my heart won't wish bad things for you! OHHH, I hate being taken advantage of.)

All in all, it was a great trip. The store was delightful, the mall was entertaining, and the hotel was fun for the kids. However just the time being together was worth every penny spent and inconvenience tolerated. Our kids had our hearts, our attention and our energy UNDIVIDED for 24 hours and that is a gift no money can buy. Unfortunately, it is extremly rare for them. I am so thankful for the time together and for the laughs along the way. I'll close with my top 3 favorite quotes.

1. Upon entering Atlanta, we passed the MARTA train station. The children thought it was 6 flags and begged to ride it.....we should really get them out more.

2. In the Disney store there was a giant stuffed "Dumbo" elephant. I pointed it out to Saddler who tilted her little head and in a very perplexed tone said, "HUH. And all this time I thought Gumbo was a food...."

3. On the way out we had to stop at a toll road. Peppered with questions about why all the cars stopped, why do you have to pay, etc., the best answer I could come up with was that in Georgia, you have to pay to drive down certain roads. Ellie replied so abruptly, "Well. That's the stupidest thing I've ever heard!" Well said. Well said.

What a blessing to be a mom...to have the opportunity to shape hearts and minds. I adore my family. I am blessed beyond measure and unworthy of every gift.......

We have a big week ahead! School begins! I'm sure there will be stories to tell....Until then, I'm counting my blessings~

Daily questions and comments

We've had a lot of funny comments lately about our expanding family. Most come from strangers in the grocery store or other public locations who laugh in pity as I parade our crew from one errand to another. A few weeks ago the car was due to be serviced. The sweet man at the Toyota dealership took a glance in the van at the empty car seats wondering where everyone was. (Apparently its quite a commotion to watch us change out 4 kids, car seats, bags, sippy cups and get settled into another car while the "grey goose" is serviced)He took one look at my belly and hollered-yes hollered-he's an older gentleman from Alabama-"WEll gaaahhh-leeee! You got another'n commin?!"


Here are some of my favorite questions and comments. I kid you not, I get a least one of these daily.


1.) Are you Catholic? Because my mother/sister/uncle/friend is and they have a whole lot of kids like you.


2.) Are you Mormon or something? (To both of these I respond-no. Just crazy christian. Presbyterian, to be exact.)



3.)Honey! Don't you know how that happens???



4.)And my personal favorite..."Are they ALL yours?" As if Anyone in their right mind would want to take extra kids to wal-mart just for the heck of it!

S.O.S.

OK, all my expert blogging friends. I really need help. What do I have to do to get my pictures to go where I want them and in the right direction? My mom is getting a cramp in her neck from always having to contort herself to see my sideways photos. And. Why in the world does it do it's own format thing??? Like leave all this blank space? H-E-L-P! Someone tutor me here before I embarrass myself further, lose my mind, or have to see my mother in a neck brace. Thanks a million:)

The Tutus

I have had a couple of questions regarding the tutus I made for Saddler's birthday party. You were so very sweet to inquire, so here is my attempt to re-post pics of the tutus and give you the super easy/super cute tutorial link I used! You can find great instructions at www.mommyblessings.com Look under the June 23 2009 for the no sew tutu. Hope this helps and I hope your little one enjoys them as much as mine did. Thanks again for asking! :)

Madness at McDonalds

Indoor playland!!!! Sounds fun, huh? NOPE. Not for me. These kinds of places are torture for a reforming germaphobe. Sometimes we end up there on desperate occasions. Last week was one of them. Let me recap my experience.



It was dreary outside and too hot to stay home. The air conditioner was broken. The natives were restless and I needed a coke. So we headed to Micky D's. It started off relatively smooth. My big kids have gotten good at knowing their "jobs" and sprang into action. Ellie held Jud's hand. Jeremiah carried food. Saddler gathered napkins and I fixed drinks. It was setting up to be a pretty successful outing. UNTIL. We entered the play area. As if the germs weren't enough of a party favor to take home, the noise in that place was deafening and my head was killing me. I sat and watched as all my little chicks played happily. They were exceptionally good that day. (Now at home, they fight like any siblings do, but in public they are a team and very protective of one another.) There was 1 family in particular that caught my attention. A brother and sister...all decked out in like pageant clothes and Sunday best, while mine were in their Target best! Ha! Although the pair was much younger, they kept taunting my kids but the mom didn't speak up so I kept quiet as well. (Maybe a good mother would've intervened but I decided it was good for my kids to learn to handle situations on their own.) She was busy polishing her Dolce&Gabana sunglasses and I was glancing at my blackberry when it all went down. Apparently, her kids blocked the the slide and wouldn't let my girls through. My girls continued to ask nicely if they could please get by- the little boy yelled something ugly at Ellie-the girl pushed baby Jud AND Bruiser had had enough! Yep-this is gonna get ugly, I thought as I laughed on the inside. That little girl shouldn't have gone there! Bruiser mowed over that kid yelling something about how nobody can hurt her baby brother or say mean stuff to her sister! Chaos ensued! (Someone should come up with a name for altercations like these for kids...its the age equivalent of a bar brawl!) "Great!" I thought... Now I have to apologize to Mrs. Dolce&Gabana and talk to her....and she's about as hospitable as her kids. We called for a truce and things settled a bit.
******deep sigh.******

Our conversation didn't start off great as she looked at me in a not-so-approving way and said. "Ugh.Just how many kids DO you have????" My flesh wanted to say like 12, but I smiled politely and answered her question. Am I surprised that a "gentle answer turned away wrath"? I preach it to my kids but got to practice it myself . She then asked if I was sure that I could handle another child. Again. I wanted to shoot back a smart remark but, praise God, His Spirit muzzled me and enabled me to again give her a gracious answer.

"You know," I said. "To be honest, no-I'm not sure I can handle another and on some days, I doubt my ability to handle the ones I've got. But I have a Heavenly Father who is so much bigger than me and He is the Rock I stand on when everything around me seems to fall apart."

She immediately softened and shared with me how she wished for more kids but her husband insisted on control/order/impeccable neatness at all times and kids just weren't conducive to that lifestyle. She had a ton of pressure on her. My heart felt compassion for her. Chunk the designer clothes and flawless appearance and she's just a mom trying to do the best she can... thrown and tossed about by the demands and expectations placed on her already weary shoulders. We talked for awhile about motherhood and how we should be a sisterhood yet sometimes act like "Mean Girls" all grown up. We talked about the promise in Prov 18:10 "The name of the Lord is a strong tower. The righteous run to it and are safe." I love the hidden gems in that verse. Name=God's character...the essence of who He is. Strong tower=a mighty haven;refuge; a hiding place. Safe=a sweet place of rest/a buffer from the storms of expectations and accusations...for there is No condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.



Yes, kids will be kids, but I learned a lot that day...like how being "real" might not look pretty or be packaged neatly, but it draws hearts together like nothing else. I learned that when I lay aside my pride and quit worrying about my image it is then that God is most Glorified. And most surprisingly of all, I learned that it was possible to experience peace and quietness in my soul...even in the midst of the madness at McDonald's. Thank you Jesus.

Top Ten Reasons Not to Eat Sunday Brunch at the Country Club.

Well. Live and learn. Our company graciously provides Cord with a membership to the new Inverness Country Club for the purpose of entertaining recruits and other influential business men. It is such a blessing to be able to go swimming and other such things, yet intimidating for me....I am NOT a country club kid and still feel a hair outta place. Especially today as we had our first dining experience in the luxurious new Clubhouse. Consider these, lessons learned!

1. white linen table clothes are not like paper ones you can color on.
2. mashed potatoes do convert into projectile objects. Duck quick.
3. bacon can be laced together like a daisy chain to become a necklace.
4. magic carrots. They don't actually disappear-they just fit nicely down a bishop dress and into Dora the Explorer panties for the sake of earning dessert.
5. glass plates. break. when dropped.
6. key lime pie doubles as hair gel.
7. prime rib cooked very rare will cause your girls to scream at the sight of "blood" and even gag.
8. heavily starched napkins ain't like Bounty-the "quicker picker upper"
9.the floor to ceiling faux waterfall is not a good place to wash your hands.
10. you are required to sign your name and member number so that everyone knows who the dreadful family was with all the kids.

Yep. I came home a very humble woman.

"Enjoy this! You know not if you pass this way again...."

"Enjoy this! You know not if you pass this way again!" The words of Ann Voscamp echo in my heart. A wise exhortation to a me, a mother, who seems caught somewhere in between wishing for bedtimes to come quickly and the haunting guilt of regret that time has again slipped into history-forever irretrievable.

I've thought of this phrase alot lately...with our fifth baby on the way. (I would have never dreamed 10 years ago-in the throes of infertility and loss-that I would ever say that!) But as crazy as this sounds, I have to remember to enjoy every minute of this journey. Though our knowledge is limited, we believe that this will be the last time my belly will swell with life. "...i know not if I pass this way again...."

This is my 9th, yes 9th, time to be pregnant. I surprised even myself with the nonchalant way I responded to the news of this little one. Gone was the elated fanfare...the creative "reveal"....the surprise phone calls to family and friends...the jubilant celebration. No. This time was different for several reasons. One, because it was a total and complete surprise, so the shock factor has to weigh in somewhere! Second, there was obvious joy in our hearts but sadness as well. Both of our siblings longed for children and here we go again. How we wished we could move the hand of God ourselves to grant them heart's desire... Yet He alone is wise. He alone is Good. He is not slow in keeping His promises....The final reason things were different with this baby was the ugly word FEAR. Four times over my womb has failed me....proving to be a cave of death instead of a haven for life. Four times over we have mourned the loss of our little babies and eagerly wait to hold them in Heaven. "Has not the Lord poured out His blessing upon you now?" you might ask. The answer is yes! A thousand times over. But a mother never forgets... not for a second. There will forever be part of my heart that is not here, but in Heaven. And so fear hung in the backdrop of our joy like a storm cloud on a sunny day.

So many times I'd wished blogs were around when I rode the "pregnancy roller coaster". In some old journals somewhere are scattered entries of the intense feeling of joy at the news I would be a mother, contrasted with deep anxiety as I awaited the countless test results. (Would my numbers be ok? Did my progesterone dip? More shots? In the stomach-yikes...in the butt-by my husband???? Have you lost your minds???) O the waiting game!!!

Yes. I so wish I'd done better at keeping up with my feelings and emotions this go around. (heck. I'm just trying to keep up with the 4 wild Indians I've got running around me at home!) However. I remember the first ultrasound a few months ago. Cord was in Texas and I was alone. ****The last time I was ever alone for an ultrasound was not a good outcome. I'd learned early on to study the look on the nurse's face if I couldn't see the screen. Their expression says it all. And on that day, several years ago, it said enough. The image that had been bright with promise just one week before was no longer...and the flickering little light of our baby was now gone...replaced with darkness and emptiness. Death had again entered.

And so, for me, (fast forward to this baby) being alone again for an ultrasound was unnerving. To make matters worse, I was taken to the very exam room where the events I just described had happened so many years ago. (Like I said, a mother never forgets.) And so I waited. On that really cold table. Alone with my thoughts, prayers, and my Father. I had begun reading The Ragamuffin Gospel and the book literally feel open to this page-242. It was then that the baby being knit together in my womb was forever engraved onto my heart. Listen to what it says:

"The great spiritual battle begins-and never ends-with the reclaiming of our choseness. Long before any human being saw us, WE ARE SEEN BY GOD'S LOVING EYES. Long before anyone heard us cry or laugh, WE ARE HEARD BY OUR GOD WHO IS ALL EARS FOR US. Long before any person spoke to us in this world, WE ARE SPOKEN TO BY THE VOICE OF ETERNAL LOVE. Our preciousness, uniqueness, and individuality are not given to us by those who meet us in clock-time--our brief chronological existence--but by the One who has chosen us with an everlasting love, a love that existed from all eternity and will last through all eternity."

--Henri J.M. Nouwen

I don't want to forget the profound significance those words had on me at that moment in time. I don't want to forget the way His Spirit seemed to fill every crevice of that room as if He were holding my hand as I watched and waited. I don't want to forget any piece of this story. ****

I went back to the doctor again today-a follow up visit from some complications they discovered with me (but that's another post for another day). The baby looked perfect! Every beat of that little heart was music to my ears and I pray it will beat hard and strong for Christ. I don't know what kind of story is being written by my Father for this little one, but I know that Jeremiah 29:11 is true-"For I know the plans I have for you declares the Lord, plans for wholeness and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope." And I also put my hope in Psalm 139:15-16 "My frame was not hidden from you, when I was being made in secret, intricately woven in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed substance; in your book were written, every one of them, the days ordained for me before even one of them came to be."

No. I know not if I pass this way again....so I will chose to enjoy it! Word by word. Page by page. Chapter by chapter. Isn't it thrilling to be part of HIS-story. And by the way, in case you didn't gather by the picture...its a boy!!!! :)