Blog?

What's that?
I wasn't sure for awhile if I was going to continue blogging or not.  After coming out of the haze of summer, I think I'm going to keep going.  I like reading back through posts.  I like having a place to put my thoughts down and chronicle our little happenings around here. 
So after quite the break, here's a doozy for you...

This kid is funny. 
Today, he's been doodling on a dry erase board while Autumn and I are working at the table.
He says, "I'm going to draw you, Mom.  Here's your eyes and your big arms.  And your PEANUTS!"
Peanuts, you ask??
Yes, peanuts.  Whatever you think he meant is most definitely what he meant.
With a very serious face, I said, "That is very nice, but girls don't have peanuts."

A Dub

She's on her way...Just a few more hours...

We've had some seriously good times over the years!

OMAHA!

WICHITA!

TACKY CHRISTMAS SWEATER PARTY!

VOLLEYBALL AND MARGARITAS!

CAN'T FORGET FOOTBALL AND TAILGATING!

OMAHA!

We've made great memories in lots of places, with lots of amazing friends!
Can't wait to make some more!!

Slowing Down

My bible study girls and I just finished up our most recent book. 
A Good and Beautiful God.  It's a good one.
Our last chapter was about slowing down.  
It's hard.  Most of the time.
Some days, it's too easy.
I'm not completely sold on the idea that this disease of over-working is a new phenomenon.  I think previous generations of working class Americans worked harder then we do today.  They spent their days working to sustain a modest, humble lifestyle.  We work today to buy more clothes, appliances, tvs, ipods, cell phone, computers and filler STUFF. 
Our expectations of a "good" life are high.  A "good" life looks a certain way, feels a certain way in our minds and we try so hard to achieve and maintain that image.  We're susceptable to the marketing and imagery and pressure to do more, be more and have more, but all that costs more so we work more to live up to that idea.
It's a powerful pull.
It often takes a conscious effort to recognize what is truly good and valuable...relationships, peace, faith are all meaningful to me, but I'm certain my daily life doesn't always reflect that.
Slowing down makes us pause.  We often move at such a pace that we don't even recognize how fast we're moving.
Sometimes just a pause is all it takes to notice the pace of our lives.  Some people (ME!!) need a whole lot of pauses to see that they need to slow down. 
I'm working on my internal speedometer.  Life just moves fast sometimes, but my inner "speed" can be calm and peaceful.  I can hit the brakes, externally, too.  We don't HAVE to be everywhere, in everything.  I feel like it's part of my responsibility as a parent to guard our kids from that mentality too.  It's so pervasive.  And often comes one little activity at a time.
Now, the irony in all this, is my next few weeks are CRAZY busy!  I will have ample opportunity to work on my peaceful and calm internal speedometer!  We'll see how that goes!
Until next time...

Caleb

If there were, in fact, a finite number of words we could speak in a lifetime, I'm going to guess Caleb is nearly maxed out.
There will come a day when I won't hear his sweet baby voice ask me, "Why are you wearing that bra?"  or say "I don't care about that." or "But, I want to hit Cory". 
I will miss these days.  I really will.
In honor of all the words I've heard from him over the past 3 years, here is a wordless photo gallery of his life to date...

Old friends

I love old friends.  The ones who have known you for ages.  Before kids and husbands and adulthood.
There are a particular group of chicks that I dearly love. 
It's an interesting bunch.  We came together as kind of a mish mash of circumstances and ages and experiences. 

These hot mommas became friends way back...Back when tucking your shirt in was cool and Lennon sunglasses were hip.

Let me try to explain how we all became friends. 
It's actually quite interesting, well maybe not to you, but it is to me.
The cute little thing with the red shirt in the front is my cousin, Noelle.  We go way back, ALL the way back.  She's the only cousin I grew up with and has turned out to be one of my closest friends.  Can't get much better then that.
The chick in the blue jacket, LV, or Laura, if you like to be formal, happens to be a lovely person inside and out.  Laura and Noelle have been besties since high school.  Laura and Noelle were seniors when I was a freshmen so I've known Laura for a long time, but it took a few fun experiences like this...

and this...

to really solidify the friendship, which now that I think about it could be based on blackmail so as to never reveal what went on some of those nights!

And here's the pic again for a point of reference...
The adorable strawberry blonde in the striped shirt is Riggerts, or Erin or whatever you want to call her.  She doesn't really care much.  She went to college with Laura and Noelle and one year with me and married a friend of all of ours from high school, who we called Ron, but his actual name is Brian. 
Got that??
And finally, the lovely gal in the black happens to be one of those friends you can not talk to for months and not miss a beat when you chat again.  Although, she is, well, lets just say, a FEW years older then me, we met when I was in high school and I can honestly say, she made those years all the better.  She was fresh out of college at her first job and my brother and I helped her move in.  From then on, we spent ALOT of time hanging out.  We've only gotten closer over the years.  So glad she moved close to me!
And this year, we're adding a friend!

This awesome gal on the left...Jill!  So glad she gets to join us this year!
So, those are my girls.  My chicks.  My peeps.  I like em.
We're going to hang out this weekend and I'm uber excited.