Friends

I love visiting with old friends. Part of the fun of Christmas is that all our friends are back in our area visiting family so we also get to see them while they're in town. It is so refreshing! There are some friends that you can just pick up with like no time has ever passed and that has been our experience this past week. Mike, Kelley and Gunnar, Corbin and Laura, Chip and Chelsea, and Eric have all been a part of our home this week and our home has never felt more cozy. I always wonder what it would be like to have them all here living in Lincoln with us but part of me realizes that the reason our reunions are so sweet is because we live at the far corners of the country. Tomorrow we leave to go visit more friends, Amy, Grant and Lily, Jo, Joe and Cayden, Jen and Mike, Steph, Greg and Benjamin....it's going to be a whirlwind but I'm so excited! How thankful I am for the seasons of friendships God has brought through our lives.

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Bath Boy

I couldn't help myself. I know he'll hate me someday for pics like this but I just had to capture the moment. He woke up soaking wet due to a leaky diaper so rather than try to give him a bath before breakfast (you don't want to mess with him when he's hungry) I just pulled out this way too small robe and slippers to keep him warm while he ate. When he was done he was running around the house squealing. You should see the video!

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The Merry-Go-Round of Life

Being sick is definitely no fun. I don't get fevers very often but this one settled in last Wednesday night and stuck around for two days. Ugh. Since hubby is out of state that left me feeling like I just got hit by a truck and yet still responsible for the general daily care of my 14 month old son. Ugh again. But God is so good and sent several angels of mercy to help not only me but care for my son. My in-laws graciously stepped in and whisked W away from my germ-infested house for a couple days. As much as I missed him I was so relieved to know he was in good hands. Numerous friends and family have been calling and coming over to check on me and spend time with me and get me anything I need. Isn't living in community with caring people wonderful?
I always know when I get that sick that I was participating in life at a speed that is just not normal. It's like my body's way of telling me, "Girl, you are trying to fit way too much into a 24 hour time period...BAM...now you're flat on your back." I also always know when I start feeling better because instead of lying awake in bed at night hacking and shivering and sneezing, I'm lying awake in bed at night thinking about all the things that I have to get done now that they've been piling up on me for three days. Reentering life after being sick is always sort of a surreal experience to me. It's like trying to jump onto an already spinning merry-go-round. That's why it's nice to have God's stability to depend on. I can take his hand, close my eyes, and JUMP!

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Cookie Swap

Ever done one? I just did my first one last night and let me tell ya, I'm a believer now! I thought it sounded like a lot of work but it really wasn't and the benefits are worth it. We had 6 people participating in ours so everyone made 6 dozen cookies of the same kind of cookie and then we each swapped a dozen with everyone else. So you go home with 6 different kinds of cookies. We got together at our church kitchen to bake and it ended up working out really well! I'm actually participating in another one later this month. I'm hoping to have cookies coming out the wazoo by the end of the month and I think I'm about halfway there. Excuse me, I think I hear a cookie calling my name...

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Let it ice, let it ice, let it ice!

The big news around here the past 24 hours is the winter storm warning that is in effect. I think it is so funny how crazy people get when they think snow is coming, especially the first of the season. Last year practically the whole town of Lincoln shut down when the forecasters predicted a sever winter storm. By 9 am the inch of snow we got had melted and I imagined the weather forecasters scratching their heads going, "ooops!" They are predicting 6-12 inches for us and so far the only evidence I see of winter is the layer of ice on my car's front windshield and the static I hear on my phone line. Although even that was enough for me to cancel going to my Thursday lunch/play group. I'm just not motivated to warm up my car, scrape my car, bundle up W, bundle myself up, cram him into his carseat and teeter across icy pavement to our destination. I know, I'm a big baby! I'd just rather enjoy the majesty of winter (if we don't get 6 inches I'm going to be severely disappointed!) from inside my warm, comfortable home!

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Christmas

I love this season. Call me corny but I love all the traditions that unfold during this month. Starting with getting our tree (which always has to be real and as big as our ceiling will allow) and decorating our house I just enjoy every minute of it! There's something about sitting on my couch with 36 envelopes around me as I try to find addresses of people to send our Christmas cards to that puts a smile on my face. I can't help but giggle when I turn on the radio and hear "It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas" playing for the 27th time this season. (Tammy, remember Garrett C.'s version?) As much work as it is, my tastebuds require homemade Christmas cookies rolled out and carefully iced. All the little traditions that make this month so fun are what I look forward to for half the year! I admit, it can be easy to get a little too caught up in the cultural traditions we have and forget about what Christmas is all about. So this year I am trying to make an intentional effort and remember why I get to enjoy all the fun traditions of Christmas. Because we are celebrating the birthday of our Savior!

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Adoption

I really don't intend to use this blog as a political platform but this issue is what I believe to be a worthy cause. As you know, there are millions of children throughout the world waiting for forever families. For many families and children, the federal adoption tax credit of $10,000 has made their adoption dream possible. There is currently a proposal to increase the federal adoption tax credit to $15,000 and raise the income level at which the phase out begins. Acceptance of this legislative bill will make a significant difference to many families who have considered adopting. You can help by contacting your representative in the U.S. Congress to let them know of your support for this tax credit increase.

The proposed bill is H.R. 1561. In May, 2006, the bill was referred to the House of Representatives' subcommittee on education reform. A related bill for the tax credit increase is H.R. 4866, which makes the needed changes to the internal revenue code. When contacting your congressperson, you can mention both bills or just H.R. 1561.

To find out who your congressperson is, go to http://www.congress.org. You will need to enter your zip code in the "write your officials" box along the left side of the page.

To learn more about the proposed bill for the increased tax credit, you may go to: http://www.congress.org/congressorg/bill.xc?billnum=HR.1561&congress=109.

If you need help getting started writing a letter here's a link to help: http://www.aasc.org/Help/tips.htm

We have considered the adoption option in thinking about adding to our family and will be pursuing it more seriously if we can't conceive on our own again. The expense of adoption is staggering so this bill would help us pursue our dream of having another child. Thanks for doing your part to help change lives!

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MOUSE!

I am such a wenie when it comes to mice. It just creeps me out. My hubby informed me of our latest houseguest last night right before bed. We've always lived in older apartments and houses so you'd think by now I would be used to our yearly visitors. But all night long I kept waking up thinking I wonder if our traps worked yet...I wonder if the mouse is exploring our bedroom right now...I wonder if mice crawl into cribs and eat baby boys...maybe I should have barricaded W's room somehow. But alas, this morning W was oblivious to the mouse drama occuring in our home. The problem is this mouse seems to be some sort of houdini. Both traps were clean and clear of all the peanut butter we covered them in but also clean and clear of any mice! So hubby officially declared war at 6:30 am this morning and we brought out the secret weapon...cheddar jack cheese and yarn soaked in bacon grease carefully wrapped and knotted around the trigger so there's no way he'll be able to evade the clamp! Ha ha! You may have won the battle little friend but we will win the war!............right?

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Sick boy

W is sick yet again. I'm beginning to think our winter is doomed! He was sick the entire month of October and then developed a fever again last weekend. We're on antibiotic number three. My dad says they should just send you home from the hospital with your brand new baby and a gallon of amoxicillin that will last through their childhood. I've decided that I would much rather be sick myself than W be sick. I feel terrible as I lie awake in bed listening to him hack and cough his way through the night so I go in and give him Robitussin which makes absolutely no difference. It at least makes me feel like I'm doing something. I also hate it because I feel so trapped when he's sick! No play groups, no lunches out, no quick trips to Wal-Mart...it feels like we're prisoners in a germ infested house. Plus, diapers are never quite so gag-producing as when he's on an antibiotic. Yuck. So here's hoping another 14 days of the pink bubble-gum "miracle" medicine will truly do it's work this time!

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Search Chips

It's a search engine I came across one day while entering an online sweepstakes. (Another of my addictions, although I've never won anything.) If it's legit I can earn points towards receiving an ipod! Of course it'll probably take me 10 years at the rate I'm accumulating points but hey, it's worth a shot. If you sign up for it because of my blog I earn points so check it out!
www.searchchips.com

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Random Blue Bird

So, I stopped on my way home from work last night to fill my car with gas. It was a dark, drab, colorless night. Then all of a sudden, this guy walks around the side of his minivan at the pump next to me with this huge blue tropical bird on his arm. I did a double take and thought to myself, am I really seeing what I'm seeing? This bird was probably 2 feet long from head to tail and just sat on his arm like he was a permanent accessory for this gray haired man in a black leather coat! When the bird started talking to it's owner I started laughing so hard I had to turn away! It's pretty common to see people letting their dogs out for a little potty break or exercise at gas stations along the interstate but this was just about the last thing I expected to see last night. What a great little humorous way to end my day!

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Letterboxing

Ever heard of it? It's my latest addiction other than this blog site. Here's Family Fun magazine's description of it: "...letterboxing...combines hiking with the added element of treasure hunting. Participants get clues online--they might be straightforward directions, clever riddles, or something in between--then follow them to hidden boxes containing a logbook, an ink pad, and a rubber stamp. Upon discovering one, you document the find by "stamping in," marking the box's logbook with your own rubber stamp and a brief message, and stamping your own logbook (a passport of sorts) with the box's stamp." There are several located within 50 miles of me and hundreds throughout Illinois. I was pretty skeptical of the whole idea until I found my first one at a park right outside Lincoln. I was so energized I've been telling everybody I know about it! It's just such a fun way to combine going on a treasure hunt and getting to enjoy the beautiful outdoors. Check out more details at www.letterboxing.org Maybe I'll see you on the trails!

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Angel baby

Today, November 10, will always be a day burned in my memory. Today marks the two year anniversary of the miscarriage of our first pregnancy. Although the day reminds me of pain, it also reminds me of the gratitude I feel for that experience. That experience not only shaped who I am today but it gave me a greater understanding of people who experience loss. The flowers my husband gave me this morning in memory of our Angel baby remind me of what a precious gift I have been given in the life of my little one year old son. Totally undeserved, but appreciated in a way words can't express! When I look into his big blue eyes (which by the way is the ONLY facial characteristic that looks like me and not his daddy!) I experience joy in a way I never knew I could!

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...for she loved much.

In my quiet time this morning I read a verse I've probably read dozens of times before but for some reason it struck me like a bolt of lightening. Luke 7:47: "Therefore, I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven--for she loved much. But he who has been forgiven little loves little." That statement makes so much sense to me, not only in the context of my own life but in the context of the clients I see and the people I see around me. Forgiveness is love! Those who have been forgiven little in their lives don't know how to love much. If I am grateful for nothing else it should be that my many sins have been forgiven. I want to be like the sinful woman who knew she had nothing to lose by throwing herself with reckless abandon at Jesus' feet. I want to love much.

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Hello fellow Bloggers!

Well, I'm finally joining the 21st century and beginning my own blog site. Thanks to Tammy Melchien for peaking my interest enough to actually motivate me to do this! I have dodged the blogging world for some time now simply because I wondered who would care enough to want to read my thoughts?! But customizing my own site sounds fun so here I go! Even if no one ever reads my blog, what have I lost really? Reflecting and journaling is right up my alley so I think I'll risk a few minutes here and there to type out my thoughts. Anyway, this is my first entry so fellow bloggers, what should I write about?

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