Hello to anyone who might be reading this old, unloved web-log. I figure this is still the best way to share news with the most people in the easiest way.
Steve came to visit for Easter, which was wonderful but way too short. The only reason I was able to say goodbye to him again without weeping was that we have come to the decision to move to Memphis to be together with him. This was a move I always said I would never make, but you do what you have to do. At this point it is a temporary move, but if there is one thing I have learned this year, it is that God is in control of our lives, not me. If anyone had told me a year ago that I would end up spending six months with my parents away from my husband, I would have laughed. But by the time we leave in three weeks, it will have been exactly six months.
And the future is quite a blank to me, which is actually kind of exciting. I have never before moved to a new city where I know absolutely nothing about it(except Elvis) and nobody in it(except Steve). But home is where the family is, and any uncertainties or doubts I may have are completely overwhelmed by the thought of having a father and husband close by again.
As to this blog- I don't know if I will have a computer or wireless access, but if and when I do, I will try and get this old thing up and running again. Thanks for reading.
Thursday, April 8, 2010
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
So, about the blog
Just in case anyone ever checks in on this blog anymore-
I am not sure what to do with it. Its original purpose was to give some updates to grandma and other family members back in Washington. Seeing as I have been living at grandma's house for the last three months, surrounded by my once long distance family members, makes that purpose a bit pointless.
I suppose an update would be good. I originally decided to move back home for a couple of months for several reasons- the primary one being that my husband was working out of town 5-6 days a week, and it was pretty lame being a single mom. Other reasons are family related, but mostly having to do with my father losing his job and being diagnosed with dementia in the fall. I had hoped to be of some use to him and my mom as she needs to be at work all day. Then I was to come back after the holidays with my husband.
Well, Christmas came and went and all of the reasons why I originally came out here were as strong as ever. Steve is still working far away, dad is still in need of help, and other issues, some having to do with our housing, have led us to decide that I am going to stay here for a while longer- not sure how long, but probably as long as my husband is MIA.
This has not been an easy decision for us- it has been difficult to give up my life in Tennessee for such a long period of time- to say goodbye to friends and church, but we are certain this is the right move for us right now. So for those of you who have been wondering what happened to us, that is it, in a nutshell.
As for the blog, I don't know what the future holds for it. It may be repurposed, or it may just be on hiatus until our lives are back to normal (whatever that might mean). So thanks for checking in.
I am not sure what to do with it. Its original purpose was to give some updates to grandma and other family members back in Washington. Seeing as I have been living at grandma's house for the last three months, surrounded by my once long distance family members, makes that purpose a bit pointless.
I suppose an update would be good. I originally decided to move back home for a couple of months for several reasons- the primary one being that my husband was working out of town 5-6 days a week, and it was pretty lame being a single mom. Other reasons are family related, but mostly having to do with my father losing his job and being diagnosed with dementia in the fall. I had hoped to be of some use to him and my mom as she needs to be at work all day. Then I was to come back after the holidays with my husband.
Well, Christmas came and went and all of the reasons why I originally came out here were as strong as ever. Steve is still working far away, dad is still in need of help, and other issues, some having to do with our housing, have led us to decide that I am going to stay here for a while longer- not sure how long, but probably as long as my husband is MIA.
This has not been an easy decision for us- it has been difficult to give up my life in Tennessee for such a long period of time- to say goodbye to friends and church, but we are certain this is the right move for us right now. So for those of you who have been wondering what happened to us, that is it, in a nutshell.
As for the blog, I don't know what the future holds for it. It may be repurposed, or it may just be on hiatus until our lives are back to normal (whatever that might mean). So thanks for checking in.
Thursday, October 1, 2009
Birthday Cake
Whoever came up with the idea for allowing a one year old to have an entire cake to himself must have been a glutton for punishment (no pun intended).
I know, these pictures are a week after his birthday, but we didn't celebrate until this week. I thought the cake eating was cute, but take a look at the tub that Steve had kindly scrubbed spotless for me the day before. Needless to say, he did it again, and I will reconsider the chocolate frosting next time.
I know, these pictures are a week after his birthday, but we didn't celebrate until this week. I thought the cake eating was cute, but take a look at the tub that Steve had kindly scrubbed spotless for me the day before. Needless to say, he did it again, and I will reconsider the chocolate frosting next time.
Thursday, September 24, 2009
My Sweet September Baby
A very happy birthday to you, my third little man child. And stop growing so fast.
love mama
love mama
Thursday, September 17, 2009
I almost built an ark
I had to put up a new post. That picture of Steve glaring at me every time I opened the page was getting to me.
So those of you who live round these parts know that it has been raining a wee bit the last few days. Or should I say dumping large heavenly buckets-full of water?
Now normally I like the rain- the coziness of being indoors-the excuse to make a pot of hot chocolate with lots of whipped cream, not to mention little piece of home it represents. But this warm, sticky, jungle rain is a different monster, especially when it starts invading your personal space. Unfortunately, Steve took the camera to Memphis with him this week or I would post some pictures of the the predicament I was in last night, around midnight.
We had a leak- a major one in our kitchen ceiling. It started by the bathroom door and spread- spread till it was coming out of the recessed lighting in the kitchen- spread until the sheet rock started to crack and bulge. I called Steve in a panic, standing in the middle of the room, surrounded by post and pans quickly filling with water, expecting to be electrocuted every minute or at least to have the sagging ceiling come down on my head. He was of course, very calm about it and suggested I find the point in the ceiling that looked like falling in the most and poke a large hole through the sheet rock. So i got a chair and started poking. The sheet rock was pretty saturated and I soon had bored a dime size hole. The mistake was that I was standing right under it. That's right- a shower of gritty rainwater was my reward. I put a big bucket underneath, cleaned myself off, and watched the water from the hole pour down, relieving the weight of all the water that had spread around the kitchen. It helped, but I am not sure how much damage was done. We might be looking at replacing the ceiling of the kitchen.
At any rate, I was really tired by this point, so leaving plenty of towels and buckets behind, I went to bed. I was awakened at 4:30 in the morning by awful screaming. I jumped out of bed to find Etienne standing in the kitchen in a big bowl of water with soaked jammies and yelling his head off. He was so confused, he didn't know where to go. So I hauled him out, dried him off and we got back to sleep.
First thing this morning, I called someone to come fix the roof. I am hoping they will come soon- it is supposed to pour again tonight. Maybe I should build an ark.
So those of you who live round these parts know that it has been raining a wee bit the last few days. Or should I say dumping large heavenly buckets-full of water?
Now normally I like the rain- the coziness of being indoors-the excuse to make a pot of hot chocolate with lots of whipped cream, not to mention little piece of home it represents. But this warm, sticky, jungle rain is a different monster, especially when it starts invading your personal space. Unfortunately, Steve took the camera to Memphis with him this week or I would post some pictures of the the predicament I was in last night, around midnight.
We had a leak- a major one in our kitchen ceiling. It started by the bathroom door and spread- spread till it was coming out of the recessed lighting in the kitchen- spread until the sheet rock started to crack and bulge. I called Steve in a panic, standing in the middle of the room, surrounded by post and pans quickly filling with water, expecting to be electrocuted every minute or at least to have the sagging ceiling come down on my head. He was of course, very calm about it and suggested I find the point in the ceiling that looked like falling in the most and poke a large hole through the sheet rock. So i got a chair and started poking. The sheet rock was pretty saturated and I soon had bored a dime size hole. The mistake was that I was standing right under it. That's right- a shower of gritty rainwater was my reward. I put a big bucket underneath, cleaned myself off, and watched the water from the hole pour down, relieving the weight of all the water that had spread around the kitchen. It helped, but I am not sure how much damage was done. We might be looking at replacing the ceiling of the kitchen.
At any rate, I was really tired by this point, so leaving plenty of towels and buckets behind, I went to bed. I was awakened at 4:30 in the morning by awful screaming. I jumped out of bed to find Etienne standing in the kitchen in a big bowl of water with soaked jammies and yelling his head off. He was so confused, he didn't know where to go. So I hauled him out, dried him off and we got back to sleep.
First thing this morning, I called someone to come fix the roof. I am hoping they will come soon- it is supposed to pour again tonight. Maybe I should build an ark.
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
Here we go, over the hill!
I never post about my husband, so here is a quick shout out just to say Happy 30th Birthday honey!
This picture just captures everything I love about you- your patience, kindness and understanding, not to mention your clean cut, well groomed appearance at all times. Most of all I love it that you let me take pictures of you.
All joking aside, we couldn't ask for a better husband or father. And don't worry about turning thirty- I will be joining you soon enough.
This picture just captures everything I love about you- your patience, kindness and understanding, not to mention your clean cut, well groomed appearance at all times. Most of all I love it that you let me take pictures of you.
All joking aside, we couldn't ask for a better husband or father. And don't worry about turning thirty- I will be joining you soon enough.
Thursday, August 13, 2009
Some days are like that, even in Australia
First of all, name that book.
Second of all, let me tell you a little story.
Yesterday started badly when both boys woke up at 6:30, having soaked their beds. I figured it was going to continue on this way when I realized there was no electricity in the house. A storm the night before had knocked down a few trees up the hill which in turn knocked down a few telephone poles. We talked to one of the guys working to get things fixed and he said they would have to replace several of the poles, so we would be without power for most, if not all of the day. A few things had to be decided right away. What should we do about the food in the fridge? The forecast was ninety degrees, and without AC, this did not bode well for the milk and the frozen chicken. We decided to fill the fridge with ice and hope for the best. We also needed to decide what to do about coffee. Emergency Starbucks run or cold instant coffee? Unfortunately, cold instant coffee won the debate. Then there was the matter of urine soaked bedding stinking up my laundry room. I just shut the door on that one.
Needless to say it was a long day, wherein I had to try and describe to James how electricity worked and why he couldn't watch Curious George. He finally figured out that the wind had blown out the power, kind of like a huge candle, and the men in the street were trying to light it again.
I might have rejoiced that this was a great excuse for not having to cook, but I actually really like cooking. After a salad dinner, we headed to church where we had the difficult task of voting to accept our pastor's resignation, and of trying to decide who was going to decide who our new pastor was going to be. The meeting went late, and the kids were really cranky so we loaded them up quickly in the van. Then Steve turned the key and nothing happened. He tried again- dead. So we just looked at each other and smiled. What else? James piped up immediately, "Did the wind blow the car out too?" Something like that.
Steve tried several more times, but to no avail, so he jumped in the car with someone who lives close to us and was going to return with our other car, and then get a tow truck or something to get our van back home.
James was really worried and kept asking what we were going to do. I was trying not to do the same thing, so instead of panicking with him, I said, "Don't worry James, the Lord will take care of us," as I continued hopelessly to turn the key in the ignition.
With that, he went to the car door, opened it up and yelled to the night sky- "HELP US LORD!" He sat there, watching and waiting for a few seconds, then with a pout demanded why God wasn't coming to fix the car. I tried to explain that God doesn't exactly work that way, when the car suddenly came to life with the next key turn. I couldn't believe it, but it seemed very simple to James. He had asked, and been answered, so he said "Thank you Lord," and went back to his seat. Steve pulled up soon and escorted us safely home. When we got there, the lights were back on.
I could go on and on about the lessons I learned (hopefully permanently) yesterday, but I figure they are pretty obvious. Some days are worth having for the lessons they teach. Oh, and the chicken stayed frozen!
Second of all, let me tell you a little story.
Yesterday started badly when both boys woke up at 6:30, having soaked their beds. I figured it was going to continue on this way when I realized there was no electricity in the house. A storm the night before had knocked down a few trees up the hill which in turn knocked down a few telephone poles. We talked to one of the guys working to get things fixed and he said they would have to replace several of the poles, so we would be without power for most, if not all of the day. A few things had to be decided right away. What should we do about the food in the fridge? The forecast was ninety degrees, and without AC, this did not bode well for the milk and the frozen chicken. We decided to fill the fridge with ice and hope for the best. We also needed to decide what to do about coffee. Emergency Starbucks run or cold instant coffee? Unfortunately, cold instant coffee won the debate. Then there was the matter of urine soaked bedding stinking up my laundry room. I just shut the door on that one.
Needless to say it was a long day, wherein I had to try and describe to James how electricity worked and why he couldn't watch Curious George. He finally figured out that the wind had blown out the power, kind of like a huge candle, and the men in the street were trying to light it again.
I might have rejoiced that this was a great excuse for not having to cook, but I actually really like cooking. After a salad dinner, we headed to church where we had the difficult task of voting to accept our pastor's resignation, and of trying to decide who was going to decide who our new pastor was going to be. The meeting went late, and the kids were really cranky so we loaded them up quickly in the van. Then Steve turned the key and nothing happened. He tried again- dead. So we just looked at each other and smiled. What else? James piped up immediately, "Did the wind blow the car out too?" Something like that.
Steve tried several more times, but to no avail, so he jumped in the car with someone who lives close to us and was going to return with our other car, and then get a tow truck or something to get our van back home.
James was really worried and kept asking what we were going to do. I was trying not to do the same thing, so instead of panicking with him, I said, "Don't worry James, the Lord will take care of us," as I continued hopelessly to turn the key in the ignition.
With that, he went to the car door, opened it up and yelled to the night sky- "HELP US LORD!" He sat there, watching and waiting for a few seconds, then with a pout demanded why God wasn't coming to fix the car. I tried to explain that God doesn't exactly work that way, when the car suddenly came to life with the next key turn. I couldn't believe it, but it seemed very simple to James. He had asked, and been answered, so he said "Thank you Lord," and went back to his seat. Steve pulled up soon and escorted us safely home. When we got there, the lights were back on.
I could go on and on about the lessons I learned (hopefully permanently) yesterday, but I figure they are pretty obvious. Some days are worth having for the lessons they teach. Oh, and the chicken stayed frozen!
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