7.31.05
9:20pm

     It was a very hectic day.  To start off, we had to get up earlier than normal for the combined service, and that was hard considering that Isaiah doesn't even get up till 8:30am or later on a regular day.  Then, after finally getting to church, we settled into Sunday School class which I very much enjoyed.  The topic really kept your brain thinking, and I even knew the answer to a question.  Yea me!!  I also enjoyed the church service today.  I always enjoy when there is lots of singing, as long as I don't have to stand up for it all, and do the singing the whole time.  I like to watch others do it.  Well half way through the sermon we were getting really hungry...so we got out of there kind of fast to go eat.  We went to this place in Elk Grove called the Stage Coach I think.  It was actually really good.  I think that Isaiah must have been having a clumsy day though, he kept spilling things.  Then we had to go to Wal-Mart, to buy a present for our nephew whose birthday party we were going to, well, Evelyn wanted to eat, so I stayed in the back seat with both kids and fed her.  It was cramped...very cramped.  Well, at one point after Evelyn was done eating, she started making some noises that indicated to me that she needed to be changed.  Well, I thought that I might as well change Isaiah too, before we got to the party.  I tried to get out, and then realized that the child safety feature was on, and the door only opens from the outside.  And I didn't want to climb from the back to the front, because I am not the smallest girl around, and thought it might be hard.  Well, after some time going by, and James still wasn't back, I decided to try it, and it wasn't easy let me tell you.  And of course, as soon as I got up there, James also got there.  Figures.  So I changed Isaiah and he had Evelyn, which I think he regretted.  lol
The party was good though, Isaiah swam a lot, a whole lot, and they also had a bouncer.  He fell asleep on the way home.  It was almost 7pm by then, so I just cleaned him off, which he slept through, and put him to bed.  I think he will enjoy the long nights sleep. 

     My parents come home pretty soon.  It will either be tonight, or tomorrow morning.  I can't remember.  All I know is how strange it is to be gone all day, come home and check the caller ID, and not see them on it.  I just don't like it. 

     You know what else I don't like?  I don't like coming home to a stampede of dogs.  I think that when it come to what I can handle...2 is enough.  Four dogs attacking me for attention when I come home is way too much. 

     Oh, and because of the fact that Isaiah has been getting too much of an attitude lately when it comes to shutting off his video games, or even when someone else who is playing one shuts it off, or even if there is just a game in the same room as him and he can't play it, we have decided to ban any computer or console game from him for a whole week.  He will simply have to figure out something else to do.  His attitude needs to change.  He was doing great for a while, but now it is getting kind of bad again.  And James had the idea to put a oven timer on top of the TV for when he is allowed to play again, and set it for an hour, so when it goes off, he knows that is the end.  This way he will have something that is telling him time is actually up, because I think that when we simply say it, it doesn't register with him that time has gone by...you know what I mean?  I don't know if I explained it right. 

Adopted to Belong

A Sunday school superintendent was registering two new sisters in Sunday school.  She asked their ages and birthdays, so she could place them in the appropriate classes. The bolder of the two replied,  "We're both seven.  My birthday is April 8th, and my sister's is April 20th." 

The superintendent replied, "But that's not possible, girls."

The quieter sister spoke up.  "No, it's true.  One of us is adopted."

"Oh?" asked the superintendent.  "Which one?"

The two sisters looked at each other and smiled.  The bolder one said. "We asked Dad that same question awhile ago, but he just looked at us and said he loved us both equally, and he couldn't remember anymore which one of us was adopted."

What a wonderful analogy of God's love!  The apostle Paul wrote to the Romans:  "Now if we are God's children, then we are heirs--heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ" (Romans 8:17).  In essence, as adopted sons and daughters of God, we fully share in the inheritance of His only begotten Son, Jesus.  Our heavenly Father has adopted us and loves us just as much as His beloved Son.

Be affectionate with your children and purpose to love them unconditionally.  In doing this, you will  be modeling for them the incredible, unfailing love of their Father God. Teach them to trust in His love and rest in His promise.

God's Love

John 3:16
"For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life."

Deuteronomy 7:13
He will love thee, and bless thee, and multiply thee.

Psalm 146:7-8
The Lord sets prisoners free, and the Lord gives sight to the blind, and the Lord lifts up those who are bowed down, the Lord loves the righteous. 

Zephaniah 3:17
The Lord your God is with you, he is might to save.  He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing. 

 

7.30.05
11:48pm

     Well, I wish that it wasn't so late, but it is.  So I am going to try my very best to get this done quickly and go to bed.  I know if I end up not getting enough sleep, it will just make it harder to stay awake while I am in church.  And it's not like it's the sermons that get me sleepy, at least not all the time.  lol  j/k  It's usually just because I am comfortable and sitting there being all comfortable listening to someone gets you tired sometimes.  Or at least it does me. 

     Today was a good day.  This morning James and I packed up the kids, and took that couch to the church for the nursery.  I drove my dads truck, and James had our family car.  I was a little bit worried that the couch wouldn't fit through the door, but it did, and Theo was even there so he helped with it.  It looks really good in that room, and the playpen that I bought does match good.  Now I just have to get another couch, preferably one that is a dark color, so stains won't show up.  Bigger kids are known for having spills. 

     After that I went to Robin McCalls house to watch their video from Liberia.  It was really interesting to get to see the whole thing and ask a lot of the questions that I had stored up.  That lasted about an hour and a half.  Then I had to rush home, get the kids ready, and head back to Galt for the third time, so I could drop the kids off at my in-laws house.  They were going to baby sit so James and I could see a movie.  We saw the Fantastic Four.  It was really good.  I know that the reviews were kind of mixed, and yes, a couple of the people didn't have good acting, but I think that it was still good.  I would give it a B+.  Then, we had to drive back to Galt again, to pick up the kids.  So all in all I was on the freeway today 6 times.  It was crazy. 

     Tomorrow is my nephews birthday party.  I forgot to go get him a gift tonight, so I guess I will have to either get up early in the morning and go do it, or just give him an IOU.  Hopefully I can go get him a gift though.  I would like to.  The birthday party starts at 1:30pm, and it is in Carmichael.  So odds are that we are going to be gone most of the day. 

     I haven't heard from my mom and dad at all.  Only briefly to tell me they got there ok.  I really miss them.  I don't like that they aren't close by me.  Just incase I need them.  But I won't go into all that again.  lol

     Anyway, so I guess that is the extent of my day.  I will see you all at church.  Bye.

A White Handkerchief

Once upon a time there was a young man who left home, denouncing his father and mother.  He wanted nothing to do with them again.  Yet years later, he felt led to return home to see his parents.  He wrote a letter to his mother, begging for her forgiveness.  He asked that if she would let him come back home, to hang a white handkerchief on the clothes line in the backyard.  The train passed near the rear of their house, and he said that if the handkerchief were there as he passed by, he would know that she would let him come home. 

As he passed by on the train, to his amazement, there was not a white handkerchief on the line; however, a number of white sheets flapped in the breeze.  How great was the love of that mother for her son!  It was a small thing to hang sheets on the line, but what great love it conveyed. 

A mother's heart is always big enough to hold the love she has for all her children and the forgiveness for the wrongs done and said by them.  That capacity for forgiveness is a part of a mother's love and the love God has for us.

Forgiveness

1 John 1:9
If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

Psalm 86:5
You, Lord, are good, and ready to forgive, And abundant in mercy to all those who call upon you.

Isaiah 43:25
The Lord say's: "I, I am the One who forgives all your sins, for my sake; I will not remember your sins."

2 Corinthians 7:14
If my people will humble themselves and pray, and search for me, and turn from their wicked ways, I will hear them from heaven and forgive their sins and heal their land.   

 

7.29.05
9:41pm

     You know what I love about Evelyn?  I love that when I decide it is bedtime, anywhere between 9pm and 10pm, I put her in her crib while she is awake, give her a pacifier, and she goes to sleep.  How many babies do that?  Well I don't know the answer my self, but I am sure as heck glad she is in the percent that does.  It is so nice.  I get to get things done, like the dishes, this journal, and whatever else there is.  Today has been especially interesting, as we are babysitting both my parents dogs while they are away.  Which by the way they did have a safe trip and they even thought it was fun on the plane.  The fools!  lol  Anyway, so there are now 4 dogs in this house, and let me tell you it is a good thing that 3 of them are small, other wise it would just be over crowded.  But they are being good...and Isaiah is enjoying it.  But what little kid wouldn't I suppose.  I am excited to bring the couch to the nursery at church tomorrow.  I think that it is going to look great.
I am not sure what time we will be taking it, but I know I want to do it tomorrow, so it is there on Sunday. 

     You know, I have never read the book, "Oliver Twist" by Charles Dickens.  But I just finished watching the movie trailer for it and it looks pretty good.  I think that I might consider reading it.  There are still so many books that I want to read though, and that I need to buy.  Such as: "The Last Unicorn", "The Princess Bride", "The Hythrun Chronicles".  Books that I really feel like I need you know.  One of these days I will get them all...and one of these days I will also have a beautiful wood, real wood, book shelf to hold all of my books.  I have two big books shelves already, but they are annoying to look at.   They are made of that ply wood stuff.  I hate that.  I want some thing solid.  After all, I must have at least over 200 books. 

     I did go visit my grandma today.  Isaiah had fun playing outside and then watching some cartoons, but I must say that he had the most fun when it was around 7:30pm and he was playing in the dirt here in our backyard....for almost an hour he was in the dirt, digging, pouring dirt over himself, putting it down his underpants that he had on...by the time he came in it was falling off of him, and when he got in the bath, well, you can only imagine.  What is it with little boys and the desire to be as dirty as possible? 

     It is going to be so strange this weekend not seeing my mom, not talking to my mom.  I am just so used to it.  And I know that she is going to miss her grand kids like crazy.  Luckily she will be home Monday morning, so it won't be that bad.  But still...I will be missing them both.  You know what is nice though is that I have the kind of relationship with them that I do miss them.  Not all people, and especially not all girls, have a friendship with their mom and dad.  It is really something special.  I can't even tell you how many friends I had in high school who couldn't stand their mom and dad.  And to make it worse, sometimes those same teens were doing things that they probably shouldn't have, and the parents were in complete denial.  They thought that their kids did tell them everything, and that they would be able to tell if their kid was drinking, or doing drugs, or having sex.  Well, you can't always tell.  And sometimes, the best thing to do is to grab your child, look them straight in the eyes, and ask them.  Just say it.  "Have you had sex?"  "Have you done drugs?"  "Have you drank alcohol?"  It is easier then you might think.  And, if you swear to your kid that you won't get angry, that you will only talk to them about it, and that you won't try to make them do anything that you want...they might even be honest and tell you the truth.  But you better hold true to that promise.  If your kid says yes to the sex question, talk to them, discuss with them the pros and cons.  Tell them an experience of yours if you think it will help.  But do not yell, because then they tune you right out.  Now, I am just saying all this from experience based on my life, and mostly the life of my friends.  And like I always say, this is just my opinion, and you certainly don't have to take it as truth.  But, I think it will work.  So there is my two cents.  lol

No Fishing

The story is told of a boy and his mother who went to the shopping mall.  The boy acted badly--demanding this and that, running away from his mother and hiding, whining that he wanted something to eat or drink, interrupting her while she was attempting to talk to sales clerks or make a purchase.  In total exasperation, she finally gave up and returned to the car. 

As they were driving home, the boy could sense her displeasure, and he said, "I learned last week in Sunday school that when we ask God to forgive us when we are bad, HE does.  Does he really do that?"

The mother replied, "Yes, He does."

The boy continued, "And the teacher said that when he forgives us, He throws our sins into the deepest sea.  Does He do that, Mom?"

The mother responded, "Yes, that what the bible says."

The boy was silent for a moment, and then he said, "I've asked God to forgive me for acting bad at the mall, but I bet when we get home, your going to go fishing for those sins, aren't you?"

Children will err; that's a reality.  Once you administer the appropriate discipline, throw  the transgression in the sea and resist the urge to fish it up.

Forgiveness

Isaiah 55:7
Let the wicked leave their way of life and change their way of thinking.  Let them turn to the Lord, our God; he is merciful and quick to forgive.

Isaiah 1:18
"Come now, and let us reason together," say's the Lord, "Though your sins are as scarlet, They will be as white as snow; Though they are red like crimson, They will be like wool."

Psalm 32:1
Blessed is he whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered.

Ephesians 4:32
Be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God has forgiven you because you belong to Christ.

    

7.28.05
11:09PM

     My dads former co-worker was getting rid of her couches.  My dad told her that I had been wanting to get some for the church's nursery and she offered them to me...for free!  I am so excited.  My dad and James went to go get it tonight.  We only got the love seat, because my dad didn't realize I would want both.  One for each room in the nursery.  It is in great condition though.  It looks so nice and comfortable.  I think that the colors will even match the way we painted that room.  Not to mention the fact that it will be much more comfortable for the girls when they are feeding babies. 

     Today was a good day...very productive.  Not only was I able to mow the lawn in the back yard, but I also cleaned out master bathroom.  Isaiah ended up waking up kind of early, so he took a nap, and Evelyn slept a lot since I am giving her Tylenol for her shots she had.  It always feels good to get things done.  Especially stuff that you have been putting off. 

     Tomorrow my mom and dad are leaving to go to San Diego.  The are flying there.  It will be the first time that either of them has been on a plane.  If you read this often, you know that I am not a risk taker, and to me, flying is a big risk.  I just won't do it.  I am therefore very nervous for them.  My dad isn't worried, he says that if something happens then at least they will die together.  But a lot of good that does me.  If you think about it tomorrow, around 3pm, say a prayer for them...for safe travel. 

     Tonight we were watching the movie Spider Man 2 with Isaiah.  At the end, when it is the wedding scene, James takes notice that all of the brides maids are wearing black dresses.  He then says, "Who picks out black dresses for their wedding?"  To which I look up at our wedding picture, then look at him, and say, "ME."  lol  He gets one of those stupid looks on his face and says "Oh" while giving a slight laugh.  What a dork.  Shows how much he remembers huh? 

     You know what is funny?  I think that new playpen I bought will actually match that couch.  That is cool. 

     My work out today was tough.  I started out with the jump rope, and then sparred with my dad, and then did more jump rope.  Man my arms were tired after that.  They felt all wobbly.  Anyway, tomorrow I am going to be in Galt to visit my grandma, and I might drop off that play pen and some other stuff at the church nursery.  So, I guess I will go for now.  Bye.

Whoever Has the Gold Makes the Rules

In Seoul, Korea, a wealthy visiting American textile executive was the after dinner speaker for a large organization of Korean business leaders.  To get his audience in a positive mood, the speaker told a rather long and rambling story that he thought was funny.  Then he waited for the translator to relay it to his listeners.

After only a few words, the audience laughed uproariously and applauded at length.  The speaker was so surprised he was barely able to complete his address.  As soon as he was finished, he headed straight for the translator and complimented him for his efforts. 

"I especially appreciate the way you translated my joke," he said.  "I think it's wonderful that you helped me make such a good impression--and especially how you were able to shorten it in Korean."

"Think nothing of it," the interpreter replied.  "I merely said. "Man with big check book has told funny story.  Do what you think is appropriate." 

Our lore is packed with stories that illustrate, humorously or not, the fact that too often our society has inverted the Golden Rule to read:  "Whoever has the gold makes the rules."  What values do your children pick of when they observe your attitude toward money? 
Make sure that you are instilling the type of financial values that will equip them to live a Godly life. 

Finances

Matthew 6:3-4
"When you give to someone, don't tell your left hand what your right hand is doing.  Give your gift in secret, and your Father, who knows all secrets will reward you."

Matthew 6:19-20
"Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal.  But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal."

Matthew 7:12
"Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them: for this is the law and the prophets."

1 Timothy 6:7
We brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of the world. 

 

7.27.05
10:09pm

     Wow, I am watching the movie Hostage and it is really good.  I mean really good.  Intense is a good word for it.  But anyway, that is not what I wanted to write about.  What I had planned on writing about was that Evelyn had her 2 month appointment today with the doctor.  Would you believe that she already weighs 13 pounds and 5 ounces?  And, she is also 23 inch's long.  Wow she is growing fast.  And to think that you don't even notice it happening, she has grown 4 inch's since the day she was born, and I hardly even noticed the change.  How is it that happens?  It was the same thing with Isaiah, he grew so fast, one minute I had a baby, the next minute I had a toddler, then, a little boy.  It worries me that in no time at all, I will have a little girl, and then, Isaiah will be in school.  

     Also today, I went and bought a play pen today with a built in bassinette.  It was a really good price.  I did that because I had  not received a good one from any one yet.  I did get one play pen, which I really appreciated because it was needed during VBS.  But unfortunately it was rather old, and I was unable to get it clean enough.   So I think that I will keep that one in there as a back up.  I am a little bit worried about getting all my money back that I am putting in to the nursery.  The budget doesn't start over again for a while, and so I have been using my own money and keeping the receipts until the budget starts over again and I can get paid back.  But, I think that I will just turn in the receipts now, and then whenever they can reimburse me is fine.  Other wise I stand the chance of losing them all, and that would be bad.  James is kind of a stickler for money.  lol

     That movie just ended.  It was excellent.  Really really good, I am surprised that it didn't do better in the theatre.  It should have. 

     Well, there was one especially nice part of my day.  There was one point today where Evelyn was sleeping, and Isaiah was at my mom and dad's house, and me, well, I was alone.  Not technically I suppose, Evelyn was here.  But still, there was all quiet in the house, no one to talk to, to bug me, nothing that I had to do.  It was wonderful.  I love being alone.  I love the silence of it all.  I like being able to sit down and just be.  Does that make sense?  Maybe it's the only child in me coming out, but sometimes I just really need to be alone.  And not alone with things I have to do, but alone with nothing to do.  Nothing at all.  That is the best.  My other favorite thing to do is to sleep.  Ah I love sleeping.  I have no problem with wasting the whole day away.  Some people think that is dumb, but to me, it is great.  See, I am strange.

Tigers in the Dark

One night at a circus that drew a packed audience of children and their parents, the tiger trainer came out to perform.  After bowing to the loud applause, he went into the cage.  A hush drifted over the audience as the door was locked behind him. 

Suddenly, as the trainer skillfully put the tigers through their paces, everyone heard a loud pop! followed by the complete blackout of a power failure.  For several long minutes the trainer was locked in the dark with the tigers, knowing they could see him with their powerful night vision, but he could not see them.  A whip and small kitchen chair seemed meager protection.

Finally the lights came back on, and the trainer finished his performance.  Later, in a TV interview he admitted his first chilling fears.  Then he realized that the tigers did not know he could not see them.  "I just cracked my whip and talked to them," he said, "until the lights came on." 

At some point in life everyone will confront the the terror of "tigers in the dark."  Assure your children that with God's help, their fears will never be able to win victory over them. 

Fear

Psalm 46:1-2
God is our refuge and strength, A very present help in trouble.  Therefore we will not fear, though the earth should change, And though the mountains slip into the heart of the sea.

Psalm 56:2-4
My slanderers pursue me all day long; many are attacking me in their pride.  When I am afraid, I will trust in you.  In God, whose word I praise, in God I trust, I will not be afraid.  What can mortal man do to me? 

Luke 1-74
That he would grant unto us, that we, being delivered out of the hand of our enemies, might serve him without fear. 

1 Peter 4:13-14
Be glad for the chance to suffer as Christ suffered.  It will prepare you for even greater happiness when he makes his glorious return.  Count it a blessing when you suffer for being a Christian.  This shows that God's glorious spirit is with you.

 

7.26.05
6:43pm

     Well, my arms feel very weak.  But I guess that is a good thing.  I was at my parents house and my dad has me punching the punching bag right now.  Man that really makes you tired.  Good thing I had a nap earlier.  Tomorrow he said that we are going to start using the jump rope too.  I don't think that I have used a jump rope in a very long time, possibly since grade school.  I have a feeling that I will be even more sore tomorrow evening.  The nice thing though is that I know it is all going to pay off in the end. 

     I have a few cds that I just got that I really like.  One girl in particular has a great voice.   Her name is Rilo Kiley.  Wow, she is good.  I would like to put one of her songs on here so you could here it, but copyright law and all kind of put a snag in that plan. 

     James just called, he wants to get pizza for dinner tonight.  I said that was fine with me.  At first he said he would come home, (jeff is driving today) get the car and go get the pizza, but then he changes his mind and says that I should go get it.  I was like, "Are you kidding me? You want me to pack up the kids to go pick up pizza?"  He said, "Why not?"  To which I replied, "How about because I am tired from exercising and it is too much trouble anyway."   Well, he finally saw the light and will come home first, and then go get it.  I mean what is he nuts?  Why would I do that?  I don't even know how I would get the pizza into the car while I am holding onto Evelyn in her car seat, and watching Isaiah.  The guy must be nuts.  Here is a guy who can't even have both kids by himself for two nights and three days while I am at the Ladies Retreat.  ugh...he is lucky that I am such a wonderfully understanding woman who knows that he can be a big nerd sometimes. 

     I was just reading about some new idea that is going around right now London.  They (the government) is trying to introduce the plan to have everyone put the word I.C.E. in their cell phone.  It stands for In Case of Emergency.  The idea is that paramedics could grab the persons cell phone, check for ICE and then find that persons Emergency contact.  They can then tell the paramedics who the injured person is, and give medical info as well.  I think this is a great idea, as most of the people around now have cell phones.  I know that I for one have a great fear of being attacked and left for dead with no identification on me.  (yes, I am weird)  That is why whenever I go out I always have my ID on me.  No matter what.   Yes, I am such a paranoid freak.  I can't help it.  I don't like to do risky things that involve the chance of me dying either.  I am just weird like that.

     Of course there is plenty of stuff about me that is strange.  Like how I can not leave trash sitting on my kitchen counter.  I can't.  It bugs me so much.  I prefer the counter tops to be as empty looking as possible.  The less that is on it the better.  I try to just keep the necessities on it.  Microwave, spices, toaster, vitamins, sugar, baby formula.  That is it.  Nothing else.  No wrappers, no indoor cooking grills, no cute decorations.  Nothing else.  The less there is the cleaner it looks.  That's how I feel about it.   I also hate it when my entertainment center is dusty.  Drives me nuts.  I probably dust thing every other day.  If I could I would just hire a house keeper...at least then things would be constantly clean...since it would be her one and only job to ensure that everything is in order.  But, then again I would probably get annoyed with her because odds are she would not clean things good enough.  I have a certain standard when it comes to cleaning my own house.  I'm hopeless.  lol   Aren't you glad you don't live with me? 

A Cleft in the Rock

A little boy and his big sister went out for a walk one day and decided to take a short cut home by walking through a long, narrow railroad tunnel.  For safety reasons, the railroad company had built small clefts next to the track in the tunnel so that if people got caught when a train was passing through, they might save themselves.

The little boy and girl had walked some distance into the tunnel when they heard a train coming.  They were frightened at first, but the sister put her little brother in one cleft, and she hurried and hid in another.  As the train came thundering toward them, the sister cried out, "Johnny, cling close to the rock!" 

After the train had passed through the tunnel, the sister went to retrieve her brother.  They both were safe. 

When the train of life is barreling toward you in a dark tunnel--when your problems seem overwhelming--cling to the Rock.  His name is Jesus Christ.   Trust Him with your life, and teach your children to trust Him as well. 

Fear

Psalm 73:26
My flesh and my heart may fail, But God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. 

Psalm 86:7
In the day of my trouble I will call upon the You, For You will answer me. 

Hebrews 13:6
Let us be bold, then, and say, "The Lord is my helper, I will not be afraid.  What can anyone do to me?"

2 Timothy 1:7
God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.

 

7.25.05
9:21pm

     Isaiah is driving us crazy!!!!  The kid must be eating tons of sugar behind our backs, because he is nuts.  It is like someone turned on the hyper button and didn't leave instructions for where the off button is.  The kid is constantly on the move, running, jumping, and constantly loud...you could say his volume has been turned up...he isn't turning it down though.  Whew!  And it's not like you can get mad at the kid for just having fun and running amuck.  He isn't being bad, he is just being annoying.  I hope it ends soon. 

     Today was kind of boring though, all that happened was me going to the bank, opening a savings account for Evelyn, and then going to Target and buying some bottles.  Lots of fun huh?  Yep, my life is full of excitement.  I can hardly contain myself.

     I really do love the pictures we had taken.  Especially the one of all four of us.  We all just look so good in it and I feel so wonderful looking at it.  It is so nice to see it and know that I am looking at my family.  I have my whole family.  It feels completed now.  It feels like we are a whole unit.  Even though we were a family before Evelyn, now it is different, something just feels finished.  And I am so happy about that.

     Pastor Rob wrote in his blog today about tattoos.  I have always wanted one.  Although I have many concerns about them, one of the concerns I have is that when I am older, I might not like it as much.  I recently saw a girl working in Carl's Jr. who had a tattoo on her arm that said Lodi.  I asked her about it and she said that is what happens when you are very young, and think that being born and raised in Lodi is the greatest thing ever.  Obviously, she regrets having a town name on her arm now.  I don't blame her.  Now, I wouldn't be that stupid of course, but I do worry that if I got a cute picture put on, something cute, that I might not like it later.  What then, pay a lot of money to have it removed?  Doubtful.  And then there is the whole aspect of where to put it.  Most people do the arm...I think that is fine for guys, but not all girls like there arms, and I am one of them.  I was thinking that maybe my lower leg, since I don't wear shorts that often...but then I thought, what's the point in having one that no one will ever see?  I don't know, it's a lot to think about.  The nice thing is that if I do want one, I can have my cousin do it, since he knows how. 

     Well, one final note.  I was reading that a judge has ruled that the Union Pacific Railroad is discriminating against women by not covering birth control pills in it's health care coverage.  Well, when I was younger, and first started taking them, I too was mad by the fact that they were not covered by my insurance...but upon further reflection I decided that they were right not to.  After all, it is not something that is "needed" for your health.  This is not to say that I  don't wish that they would cover it.  I do.  I just understand where they are coming from is all.  I have Kaiser insurance, and luckily they do pay for a good portion of my prescriptions, but not all of it.  I think I still had to pay $15.00 for 3 months worth.  But that is much better compared to when I used to pay $30.00 a month.  I hated that.  Anyway, that is all for now.  I think that after I finish this, I a, going to clean my bathroom really quick.  Proof once more of how exciting my day really is.  lol  Bye.

P.S.  If you like cute little games to play, check out this website that I found a long time ago...you'll probably like them.  http://www.ferryhalim.com/orisinal/

The Favor of God

The story is told of a king who owned a valuable diamond, one of the rarest and most perfect in the world.  One day the diamond fell, and a deep scratch marred it's face.  The king summoned the best diamond experts  in the land to correct the blemish, but they all agreed they could not remove the scratch without cutting away a good part of the surface, thus reducing the weight and value of the diamond. 

Finally one expert appeared and assured him that he could fix the diamond without reducing it's value.  His confidence was convincing, and the king gave the diamond to the man.  In a few days, the artisan returned the diamond to the king, who was amazed to find that the ugly scratch was gone, and in it's place a beautiful rose was etched.  The former scratch had become the stem of an exquisite flower.

Any mistake we make in life may temporarily mar our reputation.  But impress upon your children that if they stick to what they know is right and continue to conform their will to God's, they can trust him to turn the "scratch's" on their souls into part of his signature---that's what it means to have God's favor.

Favor

Proverbs 3:3-4
Never let loyalty and kindness get away from you!  Wear them like a necklace; write them deep within your heart.  Then you will find favor with both God and people, and you will gain a good reputation. 

Luke 2:52
Jesus grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor with men and God.

Acts 7:9-10
But God was with him and delivered him out of all his troubles, and gave him favor and wisdom in the presence of Pharaoh, king of Egypt, and he made him governor over Egypt and all his house.

Proverbs 14:9
Fools don't care if they are wrong, but God is pleased when people do right. 

 

7.23.05
12:18am

     Today was jam packed.  I left this morning at 9:40am with Isaiah to go pick up Andrew for the day.  My mom was watching Evelyn for me as James had already left to go help his friend Kevin move.  By the time we got home I was already amazed by the fact that Andrew seems to understand way more of what Isaiah says than I do.  Nice to know that someone does.  Anyway, they had a great time.  They even had what I would call an epic battle involving swords and laser guns all through out the house, including my room which was where they continually hid from each other under the blankets.  It was hilarious. 

     After Andrew left at around 4pm, and James still was not home...I decided that since I could not leave to get a hair cut, I would try to do it myself.  That didn't turn out that good...and...since James came home five minutes after I started, it was also pointless.  I went to our favorite place here in Lodi, got my eyebrows waxed, and my hair done.  The lady who did my hair repeatedly said she couldn't believe that I did that to myself.  Now, I am not saying it was good, but it certainly wasn't horrible.  Anyway.  Then I came home, we all got ready, and headed down to Stockton to get Evelyn's 2 month old pictures taken.  We were also going to get one of just Isaiah and her, and all four of us too.  I decided that I wanted black and white ones, since Isaiah's that are currently on the wall are too.  It will make everything match nicely.  Of course I also had to go buy new frames, I only had enough for the one kid we had. 

     So, to sum things up, I was a witness to a great battle, ruined my hair, fixed my hair, and then got our pictures taken.  Full day.  And may I just add that Evelyn just looks amazing in them.  She is so beautiful.  Now I don't know what pictures to put up on here next.  I will be doing it tomorrow though, I promise.  I think that I need to scan some of them into my computer though, so I can also email them to people.  Ugh, it is really getting late now...I need to wrap this up.  Oh, I forgot to mention something though, my dad told me that his friend is going to give me their loveseat sofa to use in the church nursery.  I will probably go get it on Monday.  I am excited about that.  Anyway...Bye. 

Nothing But Weeds

The great English poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge was once talking with a man who told him that he did not believe in giving children any religious training whatsoever.  His philosophy was that children's minds should not be biased in any direction, but when they came to years of discretion, they should be permitted to choose their religious opinions for themselves.  Mr. Coleridge said nothing, but after a while he asked his visitor if he would like to see his garden.  The man replied that he would, and Coleridge took him out into the garden where only weeds were growing.  The man looked at Coleridge and said, "Why, this is not a garden!  There are nothing but weeds here!"

"Well you see," answered Coleridge, "I did not want to infringe upon the liberty of the garden in any way.  I was just giving the garden a chance to express itself and to choose it's own production."

Are you allowing your children to make all the decisions about their Christian education, or will you build a foundation for them on which to  base our faith?

Faith

Psalm 8:3-5
When I look at the night sky, and see the work of your fingers--the moon, and the stars you have set in place--what are mortals that you should think of us, mere humans that you should care for us?  For you made us only a little lower than God, and you crowned us with glory and honor.

Proverbs 3:3
Let love and faithfulness never leave you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart.

1 John 5:4
Every child of God can defeat the world, and our faith is what gives us this victory. 

Matthew 25:21
"His Master said to him, "Well done, good and faithful servant; you have been faithful over a little, I will set you over much, enter into the joy of your master.

    

7.22.05
11:41pm

     Well, I did a lot today, but nothing that is particularly exciting for you all to read.  But, I did go to the last day of VBS tonight and to be quite honest, although it looked like everyone else was having fun, and I am sure they did, I don't think Isaiah cared one way or the other.  He certainly didn't want to stay in the church the whole time and watch the videos, so he came out on the grass with me to play with some other little kids.  And we hardly ate anything, due to the fact that the line was so long that by time I got in there everything was gone.  But, praise God for the reason for that, there were so many people who showed up!  I don't recall ever seeing our church that packed.  So I guess if you are going to run out of food, that is a good reason.   I took about 60 pictures tonight, and 3 videos.  At least 10 or 15 pictures didn't turn out.  It couldn't be helped though, or so I thought, as the the kids and people were moving around so much.  But, it turns out, as James just informed me, I could have made the shutter speed faster on my camera, and then it would have been fine.  Will wonders never cease?  Anyway, after I figure out which pictures I like best, I will most likely put a few up on here.  This of course also depends on when James has time to do it for me.  So we will see, since he has been working a whole lot.  He has a very big and important project due very soon.

     Have you noticed lately that most people who work in retail no longer smile?  I have.  In Wal-Mart, when I go to the register, they usually say hello to me while looking down and have no smile at all.  Now, don't get me wrong, I know Wal-Mart isn't the greatest place to work, I used to be employed there so I know, but when you work with people it is your job to fake it, and honestly I think that the people in charge have started slacking off on enforcing this necessity.  Even today, at Carls Jr. the man at the window looked like he could have cared less what he was saying to us.  He almost looked like he wanted to be anywhere but there.  So, I made a point when we left to say, "Have a nice day!", and I did get a smile out of me.   But once again, I have worked at Carls Jr too, so I can't blame him for being kind of miserable.   But still, like I said before, even when I was having a bad day, I still faked it, why?  Because it is our job to have a smile on our face and greet our customers cheerfully.  Personally, I don't think it's that hard. 

     Anyway, I am going to do something different today.  Instead of writing out of that book I have, I am going to put something in here that a friend sent me.  I think that it is very touching, and that all moms will relate.  I know I did, and at the end, I almost cried.  Because I know that's how my mom feels.  I hope you enjoy it too.  Bye.

 

Before I was a Mom –

I slept as late as I wanted and never worried about how late I got into bed.
I brushed my hair and my teeth everyday.

Before I was a Mom -

I cleaned my house each day.
I never tripped over toys or forgot words to a lullaby.
I didn't worry whether or not my plants were poisonous.
I never thought about immunizations.

Before I was a Mom -

I had never been puked on.
Pooped on.
Spit on.
Chewed on.
Peed on.
I had complete control of my mind and my thoughts.
I slept all night.

Before I was a Mom -

I never held down a screaming child so that doctors could do tests, or give
shots.
I never looked into teary eyes and cried.
I never got gloriously happy over a simple grin.
I never sat up late hours at night watching a baby sleep.

Before I was a Mom -

I never held a sleeping baby just because I didn't want to put it down.
I never felt my heart break into a million pieces when I couldn't stop the
hurt.
I never knew that something so small could affect my life so much.
I never knew that I could love someone so much.
I never knew I would love being a Mom.

Before I was a Mom -

I didn't know the feeling of having my heart outside my body.
I didn't know how special it could feel to feed a hungry baby.
I didn't know that bond between a mother and her child.
I didn't know that something so small could make me feel so important and
happy.

Before I was a Mom -

I had never gotten up in the middle of the night every 10 minutes to make
sure all was okay.
I had never known the warmth, the joy, the love, the heartache, the
wonderment or the satisfaction of being a Mom.
I didn't know I was capable of feeling so much before I was a Mom.

And before I was a Grandma, I didn't know that all those "Mom” feelings more than doubled when you see that little bundle being held by “your” baby...


 

7.21.05
10:46pm

     Well, I have a good amount to write to you.  First and foremost, I finished the Harry Potter book tonight, and OH-MY-GOODNESS I can not believe how it ended.  First of all, some things that I wanted to have happen did, and I was very excited about it, so much so that I said "Yes!" out loud.  Then, of course, the bad stuff started happening, and I am very upset by the turn of events.  I am even more mad, just like I was at the end of the last one, that I can not continue to read and find out what happens next.  I am so annoyed that I will have to wait God knows how long until she finishes the last one.  I need it now!  I feel like I should read it again, just so I won't go through withdrawals. 

     Ok, the second thing that I wanted to say was that late tonight, after I finished reading my book, I had to go to Longs Drugs to buy some shampoo.  As I pulled up I noticed that there were a bunch of goth teens hanging out in front of the store.  I noticed that there were a few girls too.  I could tell that these were the kind of kids who didn't want to go home, for whatever the reason, they probably had problems I am sure.  Anyway, while I was shopping, I got the urge, or feeling, that I should buy them, the girls, something.  I don't know if it was God telling me to do it or not, but I felt like I should.  So, I found some bracelets that I thought they might like, and bought them.  I was hoping that maybe in giving them the bracelets, they might realize that there are people out there who do care.  So, I bought them, went out, and they were gone.  I was upset, but then noticed that they had simply moved down some to Blockbuster.  So I got in the car, and drove up some, and got out.  I said hi to the nearest girl, the others were about 10-15 feet away sitting down.  She said hi back, and I told her that I saw them sitting by Longs and though that all the girls might like bracelets.  She gave me a surprised, but happy look, and said, "Really?"  I said yes, asked how many girls there were, she said two more, and I gave them to her and said that I hoped they liked them.  I was walking back to my car, when I heard one of the other girls say. "She bought these for us?"  But it didn't sound like she meant it in a suspicious way, or a unbelievable way, more like she thought it was really sweet.  I hope that if any of them was feeling lonely, or sad, that it gave her a lift.  That's what I was hoping for.

     Besides that though I didn't do too much today.  I did go to Wal-Mart though, and I bought some stuff there.  Including some new towels that they had on sale, they came two in a pack and are only $5.00 each.  I bought $20.00 worth.  They are the kind that girls would use to wrap up their hair after a shower, and it is hard to find that size.  The ones I currently have were passed down from my grandma, to my mom, to me, so you can imagine how very old they actually are. 

     Anyway, that is all from me.  I may or may not go to VBS tomorrow, I am not sure.  Guess I will decide at the last minute. 

The Red Sweater

John Croyle told the following story in Focus on the Family magazine. 

One day a father took his children for a boat ride.  They were traveling downriver when suddenly, the motor stopped.  When the father looked behind him, he noticed a red sweater tangled up in the propeller.  Then his young son yelled, "Sherry fell in!"

In horror the father saw his little girl entwined in the propeller of the boat.  She was submerged just beneath the surface of the water, looking straight into the eyes of her father and holding her breath.  He jumped into the water and tried to push the motor up, but the heavy engine wouldn't budge.  Time was running out.  Desperately, the father filled his own lungs with air and dipped below the surface.  Then he took a knife and quickly cut the sweater from the propeller and lifted his daughter into the boat.  She was rushed to the hospital. 

When the crisis was over, the doctors and nurses asked the girl, "How come you didn't panic?"

"Well, we've grown up on the river," Sherry said, "and my dad always taught is that if you panic, you die.  Besides, I knew my daddy would come and get me."

Children have such inherent trust in their parents.  Teach your children to have this same simple faith toward God.

Hebrews 11:1
What is faith?  It is the confident assurance that what we hope for is going to happen.  It is the evidence of things we cannot yet see.

Ephesians 6:16
Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. 

2 Corinthians 5:7
We walk by faith, not by sight.

Mark 9:23
"Everything is possible, for him who believes."

 

7.20.05
9:40pm

     Well, I don't think that I am going to bring Isaiah to the last 2 days of VBS.  I think that at this age, it just doesn't make any sense.  I mean, he doesn't have the best of verbal skills anyway, and he really isn't into the whole sitting down and listening to a lesson thing.  I think that next year I will bring him though for the whole thing, because then he should be able to actually sit down for a longer period of time and listen to a story.  Not that he can't sit down for a long time, he can, but it is usually when he is playing video games.  lol I don't think that counts though. 

     I started my work out today.  Although it was tiring, it was also quite fun.  I enjoy hanging out with my dad like that.   I mostly was punching the punching bag, and then my dad and I sparred some.  I will be going there 3 days out of the week, and maybe, if we are both not busy, one day on the weekend.  I was also thinking about going for a walk or a run in the mornings after I feed Evelyn.  That was James is still here, and Isaiah and Evelyn are still sleeping.  Evelyn usually goes right back to sleep after her morning feeding. 

     So far so good with her having only formula.  I am hurting really bad though.  I had forgotten just how sore you get when your milk is drying up.  I hope that it is over soon. 

     I am currently watching the movie "The Machinist".  It is about a man who has insomnia, really bad.  He has not slept in over a year.  Also, he is incredibly skinny.  I don't know if it is due to the insomnia, or what, they haven't said.  But oh my God...he is so skinny.   I am talking skeleton like.  He is the guy who plays the new Batman, Christian Bale.  From what I understand, he had to lose around 5-60 pounds for this movie...and then he had to gain back over 100 pounds for Batman, not to mention having it be a lot of muscle weight.  I can't imagine that getting as sickly thin as he did for this movie was healthy.  I mean who does that, even for a movie?  I don't think I will ever be able to understand people who are anorexic.  It is just so horrible when they get to be that skinny.  All of their ribs showing, their spine.  Awful.  I just don't understand how they can still see themselves as fat.  Oh, there was a twist ending...I should have seen that coming.

True Riches

One day the Reverend John Newton called upon a Christian family who had suffered the loss of all they possessed in a devastating fire.  He greeted the wife and mother of the family by saying, "I give you joy."

The woman seemed surprised at his words--almost offended--and replied, "What! Joy that all my property is consumed?"

"Oh, no," Newton answered, "but joy that you have so much property that fire cannot touch."

His words reminded her of the true riches of her life, those things that she valued beyond measure; her husband, whom she loved very much; her children, the light of her life; the good health they all possessed; their joy in each other; their faith in God; the love of an extended family and friends; and their prayers for a future together. 

None of these riches can be bought, bargained, or appraised.  They come from within the heart and in the joy and peace of mind that comes from our belief in Jesus Christ.  Surely it was His hand that brought her family safely through their ordeal.

What simple words of encouragement can you give to your children?

Encouragement

Psalm 103:17-18
God's love, though, it is ever and always, eternally present to all who fear him, making everything right for them and their children as they follow his covenant ways and remember to do whatever he said.

Psalm 37:3-4
Trust in the Lord instead.  Be kind and good to others;  then you will live safely here in the land and prosper, feeding in safety.  Be delighted with the Lord.  Then he will give you all his hearts desires.

Psalm 69:32
The humble will see their God at work and be glad.  Let all who seek God's help live in joy. 

Hebrews 3:13
Exhort one another daily, while it is called "Today," lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin.   

 

7.19.05
10:33pm

     James is reading my book.  I told him that it is fine, but secretly, when I am done with this, I will be annoyed.  I am really in to it right now, and I want to read it at every chance I get.  VBS was so much better tonight for Isaiah, they changed things around some, and he had a much better time.  I was really glad.  I have been hanging around in the nursery while he is in the classrooms just because I want to be there if he needs me or whatever...but because I am hanging around, people keep asking me to sign papers saying that I am "helper".  It is funny.  I just keep telling them no.  lol

     My friend Lorenda came over with her kids, plus one extra she was watching, and we all went to Costco today.  That was 5 kids.  whew!  But we had fun and I got all the stuff I needed and then some.  It really is like an event when you go to Costco.  I don't know why really, but it is just fun.  Anyway, while we were there I bought Isaiah a couple of video games.  One was for the X-Box, it was Pac Man, and the other was toddler games that help Isaiah to learn his ABC's and 123's.  I think that he will like that one.  Especially since it came with four different game discs. 

     Well, as you may have noticed I put a song on here.  It is right under the Quote of the Day.  I don't know who sings it, and I don't really know the title of the song either....I was just guessing, but it is a really good song and I would recommend you listen to it. I am almost positive you will like it.  There was two other ones that I wanted to put on here too, but since we know who they are by, James said that we shouldn't since they have the copyright and we could get in trouble.  Personally, I highly doubt that anyone affiliated with those songs would ever find out, but I guess it's better to not take the chance.

     Anyway, so I have paid my admission fee to go to the Ladies Retreat and I am excited about it.  And...it should be even easier for James now because tonight we decided that I am not going to breast feed anymore.  I have been pumping it out this whole time, and no matter what I do, no matter how much water I drink, I can't ever get more then 4 oz total out.  And that is only after having slept all night.  If I pump in-between feedings, then I can only get a combined total of 2 oz.  It is just pointless, because she drinks 4oz and I am having to always add formula to her bottle.  So, I am giving up, and just gonna stick to what works.  Obviously I was not meant to breast feed. 

     So...I guess that is all for me.  Oh, my dad was sick today, so I couldn't work out...but tomorrow he says we will no matter what.  I hope so...I need to start. 

 

Contented Regardless

For decades, Grandpa had been stubborn and crabby.  His wife, children, and grandchildren seemed unable to do anything that pleased him.  As far as he was concerned, life was filled with nothing but bad times and big troubles.  Eventually, his family expected nothing but a gruff growl from him. 

Then overnight, Grandpa changed.  Gentleness and optimism marked his new personality.  Positive words and compliments poured from his lips, and he could even be heard giving joyful praise to the Lord.  One of the family members noted, "I think maybe Grandpa found religion."

Another replied, "Maybe so, but maybe it's something else.  I'm going to ask him what has happened."  The young man went to his grandfather and said, "Gramps, what has caused you to change so suddenly?"

Well, son," the old man replied, "I've been striving in the face of incredible problems all my life, and for what?  The hope of a contented mind.  It's done no good, nope, not one bit, so...I've decided to be content without it."

Remind your children to never start counting their troubles until they've counted at least a hundred of their blessings.  By that time, they will have long forgotten what their troubles even were!

Discontentment

Hebrews 13:5
Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.

Philippians 4:11-13
I have learned in whatever state I am, to be content: I know how to be abused, and I know how to be abased, and I know how to abound.   Everywhere and in all things I have learned both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need.  I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. 

Romans 8:28
We know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are called according to his purpose.

2 Corinthians 3:5
Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think any thing as of ourselves; but our sufficiency is of God.   

 

7.18.05
12:09am

     Today was the first day of VBS.  As I said yesterday, this was my first experience with it.  It looked to me like all the kids really enjoyed themselves.  I would say that the only problem was that 3-4 year olds should probably not have an actual curriculum to follow in their class.  First of all, there was a ton of little kids, and so they split them up.  Second, most of them can't read, some, like Isaiah, can't talk so well, and most just wanted to play.  Lupe Harrison did a great job, especially considering that most of the kids were not paying attention.  I thought that she was very brave to take on that job.  It was very chaotic in there, and there was only 3 people in the room to help her with all those kids.  I tried my best to help also, but I had to keep going back to the nursery to check on Evelyn.  I haven't decided yet if I am going to bring Isaiah back tomorrow or not to VBS.  I am thinking that he just might be too young.  But maybe I will give it one more shot, and see how things go.  He did seem to really enjoy all the chaos.  lol

     Before all that though I had my friend Jessica over along with her two twin boys.  She is the one that Tiffany and I are throwing a baby shower for.  Isaiah had a lot of fun playing with them, it was evident by the fact that when they left you really could not walk in his room at all.  Really, not at all.  I think that they must have just been walking on all the toys and books.  Isaiah was so tired that by time I pulled up to the church this evening for VBS he had fallen asleep.  You know what was so cute is that Isaiah really likes hanging out with Andrew, Steve and Lupe's little boy.  He wanted Andrew to be with him for everything tonight.  It was so cute.  I think that they are going to become good buddies.  Actually, Andrew is coming over here for the day on Saturday.  Isaiah will love that.  And maybe Isaiah will see that Andrew is potty trained and will learn from example.  That would be nice.

     Well my foot is feeling better, and so I will start exercising with my dad tomorrow.  It is going to be a big work out, especially considering the heat, and that I will be in the garage.  Lots of water will be needed I am sure. 

     Anyway, besides that I am starting to get really bummed out about seeing the movie Fantastic Four.  Everyone keeps saying that it was either just ok, or that it wasn't good at all.  It is making me less and less excited about it.  Although I do still want to watch it, but I might just wait until I can rent it.  I really hate wasting a lot of money on going to the movies when it isn't even good.  It just feels wrong you know? 

     Well, that's about it I guess.  Unless you want me to go on and discuss the fact that James started work at about 9:00am this morning and only just stopped about 30 minutes ago.  Don't get me wrong, the guy does take breaks so he won't go insane or anything, but still, he is working so hard right now.  Maybe they will give him a thank you bonus, now that would be nice huh?    Bye.

Too Late

In a Los Angeles park, Roy B. Zuck saw a large tree that had grown somewhat crooked.  The oddest thing about the tree was that someone had placed an upright pole near it and tied it to the tree with ropes.  But the tree had grown so far from the place where the trunk came out of the ground that there was a lot of distance between the pole and the tree.  It was too late for this pole to help the tree.

This often happens in the raising of children when parents allow them to run wild for the first fifteen years of their lives.  When the parents realize their mistakes and try to correct or straighten out their children, sometimes they find it's too late without intervention from an outside source. 

Children require regular and consistent discipline.  It creates limits and shows children that someone cares enough about them to set them on the right path.  It is also a part of a loving relationship with your children and is necessary in helping them become responsible adults. 

Proverbs 13:24
He who spares the rod hates his son, but he who loves him is careful to discipline him.

Hebrews 12:10
Our fathers discipline us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in his holiness. 

Proverbs 19:18
Discipline your son, for in that there is hope.

Hebrews 12:7
Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as sons.  For what son is not disciplined by his father?

 

7.17.05
11:25pm

     It took forever to get my little girl to sleep tonight, she was just wide awake.  Even a nice bath didn't help.  But now, finally, she is in bed, and I have finished the cleaning, and now get to do this.  Tomorrow is the first day of Vacation Bible School.  I am taking Isaiah to it, although I will admit that I am a little worried about weather or not he will like it.   When something isn't exciting enough to him, he tends to just walk away and say he is done.  But hopefully he will enjoy himself.  It will also be a new experience for me, as I never went to VBS.  I know...you would think so since I have been at our church since I was like 8 or 9 years old, but I guess that nobody ever took me.  Or maybe our church just didn't do it back then.  I don't know.  Either way though it will be fun for me to see what actually goes on during it.

     Isaiah came home today from my mom's house at around 2pm.  He had a good time there and even woke up at around 6am which is extremely out of character.  He hasn't done that in months.  And even when he does, we make him go back to sleep.  Actually, he generally wakes up at 9am. But, because he woke up so early, when 8pm came tonight, he was laying underneath the coffee table watching TV and he fell asleep.  It was pretty cute.  We got him up and asked if he was ready for bed, he had no problem saying yes and went right into his room.  It is kind of strange right now in his room because we have the futon opened up to be a bed right now because he likes to sleep on it, so every night he gets to pick which bed he wants.  This kid has got it made. 

     Today my in-laws came over and Patty finished the mural in Evelyn's room.  Everything looks so great.  I will hopefully put some pictures up soon of it.  I can't wait until she is actually old enough to realize what it is and really enjoy it.  Patty is going to take a break for a while I think and then she said that she would start on Isaiah's wall.  I am excited about his, because it will be all super hero's. 

     James has been working almost all day and night.  It kind of stinks, but I am used to it.  He has a really big project due at the end of this week, and so it is crunch time I guess.  Basically that means that he won't be doing much around here.  Example:  I mowed the back yard today.  lol  Oh well.  The nice thing is that doing that didn't hurt my foot.  I think that I am 80% better and I am going to start exercising this Tuesday.  Which I desperately need to do.  I have gained back 5 pounds already.  I haven't been as active because of all the heat.  Who wants to go out in this nasty weather. 

     Anyway...that's all for me.  I better write out the little lesson for the day and hit the sack.  I am tired.  Bye.

A Non Squawking Flight

On a recent flight, two small children who were not happy about being on an airplane disrupted everyone else's peace.  Their cries and complaints filled the cabin as they climbed all over the seats and ran up and down the aisle.  The parents did everything they could to calm the children down, but nothing worked.  Finally, they just gave up and let the children run wild.  It was obvious from the behavior of the little boy and his sister that they were not used to being disciplined. 

Just before take off, a flight attendant stopped next to them and said with a big smile, "What is all this squawking up here?"  After charming the fussy three year old and his older sister for a few minutes, the flight attendant bent down and whispered seriously, "I must remind you that this is a non squawking flight." 

The little ones became unbelievably quiet and remained that way during the entire flight, much to the relief of the rest of the passengers. 

Your children's behavior affects everyone around them.  Teach them to respect others by making everyday a non-squawking journey.

Discipline

Proverbs 23:13
Do not withhold discipline from a child; if you punish him with the rod, he will not die.

Hebrews 12:11
No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful.  Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it. 

Hebrews 12:5-6
My son, do not make light of the Lord's discipline, and do not lose heart when he rebukes you, because the Lord disciplines those he loves, and he punishes everyone he accepts as a son. 

Proverbs 22:15
Folly is bound up in the heart of a child, but the rod of discipline will drive it far from him. 

 

7.16.05
10:53pm

     Today was a good day.  My dad and I got a lot done in the nursery during the short time we were there.  It is really coming along.  After next weekend we should be all done with the main painting, and then we get to start on the stencils.  It really makes me excited.  My dad also made the comment that it feels really good to be doing something for all the kids in there. 

     Isaiah is staying the night at my parents house tonight, they are taking him to see the movie The Fantastic Four tomorrow.  He is going to love that.  Anything with with good guys fighting a bad guy he loves.  And also any type of intense action.  It is so funny how bored he gets with kid movies that have no action.  He will walk away from the TV until he hears suspenseful music come on, then he runs back to look and see what bad thing is happening.  It is really funny.

     Ok, so I was doing a google search for bible quotes, and the 5th website down was www.evilbible.com .  Now, I thought that was kind of strange, so I checked it out, they are nuts!!!!  I don't know if it's just good for a laugh, or one of those things where you are just shocked that they feel that way about God.  Obviously these people who run the website have been badly wronged in life, and are taking it ALL out on God.  And I mean ALL.  Here is a line from there home page. 

  "This God, according to the Bible, is directly responsible for many mass-murders, rapes, pillage, plunder, slavery, child abuse and killing, not to mention the killing of unborn children."

     Now, they say they provide you with the areas of the bible where all of  this is...and I am sure that they do...but I am almost 100% sure that they are taking most of that and interpreting it to suit there own needs. And you know...yea, God did command people to be killed sometimes, he did cause a flood and kill the whole world except Noah and his family...he did do a bunch of other things too that I can't remember at the moment, but I think that they are just seeing death, and not seeing the big picture.  Ugh, I am going to pray for them tonight, I hope you do too, these people need some serious help, and the fact that this website is out there is not good, it is probably going to lead a lot of people down the wrong path. 

     Anyway, enough of that stupidity, I can only handle so much. 

The Courage To Risk

* To laugh is to risk appearing the fool.
* To weep is to risk appearing sentimental.
* To reach out to another is to risk involvement.
* To expose  your feelings is to risk revealing your inner self.
* To place your dreams before the crowd is to risk loss.
* To love is to risk not being loved in return.
* To hope is to risk despair.
* To try is to risk failure.
* To live is to risk dying.
* Not to risk is the greatest risk of all.

"The paradox of courage, " G.K. Chesterton once wrote, "is that a person must be a little careless of life in order to survive."  Teach your children the difference between careless risk and the kind of risk that produces greatness."

Courage

Luke 1:74
That he would grant unto us, that we being delivered out of the hand of our enemies might serve him without fear. 

Deuteronomy 31:6
Be strong and courageous.  Do not be afraid or terrified for the Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.

Philippians 4:13
Christ gives me strength to face anything.

Hebrews 13:6
We say with confidence, "The Lord is my helper; I will not  be afraid.  What can man do to me?"

 

7.15.05
10:04pm

     Well, today was good.  As far as good goes I guess.  Nothing special, but nothing bad either.  Woke up, got dressed, and started my day.  I was going to go visit my friend, but  she didn't call until it was almost dinner time, and by then I was not feeling like going out.  But, that is probably for the best.  Basically though I didn't do much.  We wanted to go to the movies, but we couldn't find anyone to baby sit.  So...we will have to do that some other time.  Tomorrow I am going with my dad to hopefully finish painting the nursery.  I bought the red paint for moldings, and I think that will look really great with the yellow and dark blue. 

     Last night I watched the movie Boogeyman.  I actually thought that was kind of scary.  It made me nervous is what I should say.  Right now we are watching Be Cool.  So far it is good.  I love The Rock.  You know, the wrestler turned movie star.  First of all, he is gorgeous, second he has a wife and cute kids.  Third, he is actually a good actor.  And, he seems like a really nice guy.  What is there to not like? 

     John Travolta of course is also in this movie, and I like him a lot too, but it seems like over the years he has gotten old.  Not age wise, but just that him in movies, isn't exciting anymore.  And it isn't his fault, I think that sometimes it just happens. 

     I couldn't believe something that I read in the news today.  Shocked me so bad.  Here is how the article starts. 

(AP) A youth tee-ball coach paid one of his players to throw a baseball at the head of a mentally disabled, 8-year-old teammate so the boy wouldn't be able to play in a game, police said Friday.

Mark R. Downs Jr., 27, of Dunbar, offered one of his players $25 to hit the boy in the head, police said. The player hit the boy in both the head and the groin.

Witnesses told police Downs didn't want the boy to play in the game because of his disability.

     Wow, that is such a disturbing thing.  People are insane.  What kind of human being not only wants to have another child hurt, but, will pay another kid to do it.  I feel like the whole world is nuts.  I feel like there are people out there who have forgotten right from wrong.  It's like they don't know anything about morality anymore.  It is so sad, and then, you think about the fact that millions of babies are aborted every year, you think about all the kids that are abused, molested, kidnapped, murdered, and quite frankly, you end up feeling hopeless, scared, and terrified for your own children.  Really, just terrified.  When I think about all that stuff, I just have to close my eyes, and pray, pray that everything will work out for the good, like I know God says it will. 

Never Too Late

Stewart decided to visit his twenty year old son at college.  He asked the young man what it had been like growing up with him as a father.  "Well, Dad," he said, "I don't want to hurt your feelings, but you were never there."

"What do you mean?"  Stewart asked.  I was home every evening.  I never went anywhere!" 

His son said, "I know, Dad, but if you were ever sad, I never knew it.  You never seemed happy.  I didn't know who you were.  Most of the time," his voice began to crack, "I felt like I didn't have a father."

Stewart broke down and sobbed uncontrollably.  "Can you believe it?"  he said through his tears.  "I was right there, right in front of you, all that time, and yet you felt I was invisible." 

He and his son decided to change things. They joined an outdoor club together, and on a deep-sea fishing trip he told his son, "I'm so angry at myself - and what I really regret is that I've hurt you so much - not by doing something mean, but because I failed to let you get to know me."

"Dad, I forgive you."

It's never too late to become a parent to your child! Don't let the fear of facing conflict keep you from reaping the benefits of relationship.

Conflict

Psalm 133:1
How good and pleasant it is when brothers live together in unity!

Proverbs 18:19
It's harder to make amends with an offended friend than to capture a fortified city. Arguments separate friends like a gate locked with iron bars.

Malachi 4:6
He will lead children and parents to love each other more, so that when I come, I won't bring doom to the land.

Matthew 5:23-24
Therefore if you are presenting your offering at the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your offering there before the altar, and go; first be reconciled to your brother, and then come and present your offering.

 

7.14.05
7:09pm

     Both my kids are here, yet somehow I am typing this early, I guess miracles do happen.  Evelyn is napping, and Isaiah hasn't played a video game yet today, so he is using the Game Boy Advance.  The perfect chance for me to write this out.  I double booked myself on the 20th of August.  I have two big events that day to attend, and they were too close together in time.  One of them, the baby shower I am throwing for my best friend Jessica, was scheduled for 2pm, that was cutting it close since I would want to be here an hour early at least to set up, but I talked to her and Tiffany, who is helping to throw the party, and we settled on 4pm instead.  That makes me feel much better.  And she is supposed to bring me the guest list Monday too.  So I need to get started on the invitations.  I am making those myself.  I imagine that day will be a very full one.  And it will also be pretty full for James too, since he will most likely have the kids the whole time. 

     I couldn't believe that I got so much sleep this morning, both kids slept in really late.  Isaiah till 9:30am, and Evelyn till 10:00am.  I woke up in shock, especially since James had left for work and I didn't even know it.  Luckily I had made his lunch around 6am when Evelyn woke up briefly to eat. 

     Two more days, just two more days till the new Harry Potter book comes out.  I am so jazzed about it.  Now, I am not some sick obsessed fan, but, I do really enjoy it, a lot.  Every time a new one comes out, I read all the old ones first again just so I can be sure that I remember everything that has happened.  This might seem strange to you, but I am sure that if there are any avid readers out there most of you would be able to understand.  I mean usually, if you have a favorite book, you read it more than once, usually quite a few times.  I have a two other book series that I have also read 4-5 times.  One is called The Last Vampire, which is excellent and I got it when I was a freshmen in high school.  The other is a book about a witch, called The Banned and the Banished.  Actually I think that I have mentioned that book on here before...it really is great, it's by James Clemmens. 

     But, back to Harry Potter, I just read that the Pope is completely against the book, and even said that he thinks Harry Potter is the literary Lucifer. Oh My Gosh!!!  What a bunch of stupidity.  (That's not quite the word I wanted to use, but whatever) I am so sick of people, especially those that are using religion as their ammo, saying that Harry Potter is bad.  Anyone ever heard of fiction?  I mean I didn't see the Pope banning the Lord of the Rings, which I might add has a wizard in it.  Or what about other kid movies....lets see, I think that X-Men is a good example, here is a movie that young kids love, but it deals with evolution, mutations, and other sorts of ideas that the church's might not agree with, yet this one did not stir up any controversy that I am aware of.  And if you were going to be picky about it, I would think that one would be more of a concern.  I mean most kids know that magic is fake, just like they know that the other movies, games, and shows they watch are fake.  Do they really think that one of these kids who reads the books is going to all of a sudden decide that they have magical powers and "pretend", the key word here, that they can make things happen with a wand?  Even if they did, they are pretending, something that all kids do and is also a healthy thing to do.  This kind of stupidity bugs the heck out of me.  It gives me a headache, no really, I now have a headache. 

     Well, the time is now 9:09pm.  James is home, and Isaiah and I are done playing outside.  Evelyn actually went 4 hours between eating, which is abnormal during the day, and now I am going to make James something to eat....so I will be right back. 

     Ok, so basically I am done with everything except cleaning the kitchen up.  And even that isn't too much to do.  Anyway, that's all for me I guess...tomorrow is another day and I will be going out to do buy some paint, visit a friend, and hopefully not die from the heat in the process.  I'll let you know.  lol.  Bye. 

Just Five More Minutes

A man sat on a park bench next to a woman looking out at the playground.  "That's my daughter," she said, pointing to a little girl gliding down the slide.  Then, looking at her watch, she called to her daughter, "What do you say we go, Samantha?" 

Samantha pleaded, "Just five more minutes more, Mom.  Please?  Just five more minutes."  The woman nodded, so the child continued to play to her heart's content.  Minutes later the mother stood and called, "Time to go now."

Again the girl pleaded, "Five more minutes, Mom, just five more minutes."

Her mother smiled and said "Okay."

"My, you certainly are a patient mother," the man responded.

"Last year," the woman said, "our son Tommy was killed by a drunk driver while riding his bike near here.  I never spent much time with Tommy, and now I'd give anything for just five more minutes with him.  I vowed I wouldn't make the same mistake with Samantha.  She thinks she has five more minutes to swing.  Truth is, I get five more minutes with her."

There will be plenty of opportunity for our child to experience disappointment in life without you being the cause of it.  Next time you become impatient with your child, ask yourself:  Would I really be in such a rush if this were my child's last day on earth?

Proverbs 22:6
Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it.

Proverbs 13:24
He who spares the rod hates his son, but he who loves him is diligent to discipline him.

Proverbs 19:18
Discipline your son, for in that there is hope; do not be a willing party to his death.

Proverbs 23:24-25
The father of a righteous man has great joy; he who has a wise son delights in him.

     

7.13.05
10:54pm

     I have discovered that as long as I am wearing my ankle brace I feel pretty good, but as soon as it comes off I am hurting again.  This is not encouraging.  Not to mention that I hardly ever have time to put ice on it like I am supposed to.  Actually, I don't think I did it at all today.  And, I have been drinking tons of water like I am supposed too, but am producing hardly any breast milk.  I am able to get out like maybe 2-3 ounces every 3 hours.  I am beginning to wonder if I should just give it up and do all formula.  As it is I have to supplement for her just so she can have enough to eat.  I don't know why I can't get more than that out.  The same thing happened with Isaiah too, and I ended up having to just do formula with him as well.

     I watched an excellent new show tonight.  It is called Brat Camp.  Now, from the title alone you are probably thinking something along the line of what you would see on Maury Povich or something, but let me tell you that title is not even good enough.  It is so good.  I highly recommend that you watch it, whether you have kids who have problems, or are just an adult that needs to see what is going on with teens these days.  It is just an excellent show.  The people who run this camp, and really it is camp, are so wonderful, and they are all highly trained individuals.  Plus, there are therapists that see the kids twice a week.  I won't want to go into all of it, but there is so much stuff that they make these kids do, that right now seems annoying and pointless to them, but will later really help them. 

     I had a good day though.  I had the house clean and ready to be closed down for the night pretty early.  I would have normally been writing this earlier because of that, but Isaiah was watching the Justice League on my computer, and I didn't have the heart to tell him to turn it off early.   He has been so good to his sister.  I am really a fortunate woman to have two great kids.   I really hope that this trend continues.  James and I recently had a discussion one night about that very thing.  About how you don't know what your kid will be like 10 years down the road.  We talked about the differences in how we were both raised, and the similarities that might have contributed to us both being drug and alcohol free.  But that is just one side of things, and there are so many other things to look at.  But one thing we both agreed on was that you need to not only tell your kids you love them, but show them, and you need to not just live with them, but allow them to be a part of your life, not just you being a part of theirs.  Those two things, and also listening, really hearing what your kids are saying, and staying calm when you hear something you didn't want to hear, I think all can add up to have a pretty descent young adult.  But, even then, bad things can happen.  So who knows. 

The Worry Table

A military chaplain once drew up a "Worry Table" based upon the problems men and women had brought to him through his years of service.  He found their worries fit into the following categories:

* Worries about things that never happened - 40 percent
* Worries about the past, unchangeable decisions - 30 percent
* Worries about illness that never happened - 12 percent
* Worries about adults, children, and friends (who were able to take care of themselves) - 10 percent
* Worries about real problems - 8 percent

According to his chart, 92% of all our worries are about things we can't control - things which are better left to God.  The truth is, anxiety is rooted in a failure to trust God.

Our worries show that we simply don't believe He is big enough or that He cares enough to help with our problems, give us the desires of our hearts, and keep us - and our loved ones - from harm.

Once your children know Gods character, they will easily see that they worry for nothing most of the time.  Remind them that God is more than big enough and cares more than enough to help them, bless them, and protect them.  Teach them to give their worries to Him, and he will replace those worries with His Peace.

Psalm 55:22
Cast they burden upon the Lord, and he shall sustain thee.

Matthew 11:28-30
"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.  Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  For my yoke is easy and my burden is light. 

1 Peter 5:6-7
Humble yourselves, therefore, under God's mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time.  Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.

Galatians 6:2
Carry each others burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.

    

7.12.05
10:28pm

     Hot hot hot.  I could not imagine it being an worse.  I wish so badly that I could have some free time to go swimming...of course I would also need a swimming pool to do that in.  But whatever.  Today was pretty boring.  I spent most of my day waiting for the guy to come install my new windshield, but he was running late, so he didn't even get here until after 6pm.  He was supposed to be here between 1-4. Before that though I went a head and did something very stupid.  I took Isaiah for a walk.  Dumb dumb dumb.  My foot was hurting so bad half way through.  I am not doing that again until this thing is healed up all the way.  As it is right now it is hurting quite a bit, and that is probably due to the fact that I have not been able to put any ice on it for a while.  I have been too busy with the kids and cleaning up the house.  And forget about the dogs, they are lucky if I remember to pet them at all.  Too bad for them.

     The new windshield does look nice though.  It will be good to finally be able to look out of it and see clearly.  Anyway, I don't really have much else to write about concerning me...I mean I could I guess, but it is all mainly personal stuff involving friends and such, so I won't be writing about that.  But hey...tomorrow is another day, and I am sure there will be some horrific tragedy to write about on the news. 

Good from A to Z

Rachel and Jim owned a commercial building, half of which Jim used for his dental practice. For fifteen years, they had encountered no difficulty in renting out the other half.  Then they lost their renter.  They usually counted on his extra income to help pay their bills, so they began to worry when a real estate agent told them, "Forget about advertising for a while.  Absolutely no one is renting."

To ease her financial stress, Rachel started swimming laps at the YMCA pool.  One day when she was feeling especially anxious, she decided to pray as she swam, using the alphabet to keep track of the number of laps.  She focused on adjectives that described God, starting with the letter A.  By the time she had completed twenty six laps, an hour had passed, and her fears were gone.  She knew God would provide.

A short time later, a physical therapist called to say she had seen the "For Rent" sign in the window, and she asked to se the office.  It was exactly what she wanted, so she and her partner rented the space. 

Explain to your children that when they take their eyes off their problems and focus on God and his incredible attributes, their worries will fade away.  Remind them that God's goodness stretches from A-Z.

Philippians 4:6-7
Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Psalms 116:6-8
The Lord preserveth the simple: I was brought low, and he helped me. Return unto thy rest, O my soul; for the Lord hath dealt bountifully with thee. For thou hast delivered my soul from death, mine eyes from tears, and my feet from falling.

Isaiah 41:13
For I, the Lord your God, hold your right hand; it is I who say to you, "Fear not, I will help you."

John 16:33
"These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world."

 

7.11.05
5:30pm

     I went to the doctor today about the pain I have been having in my foot and knee.  It turns out that I twisted my foot somehow and just didn't know it.  My knee is hurting because it has been having to make up for the extra support needed from my foot  being hurt.  Normally, this could be quickly taken care of by taking some ibuprofen but since I am breast feeding right now I can't take that.  Instead I have to take Tylenol and put ice on it every two hours.  This really stinks because I was supposed to start exercising with my dad tomorrow.  I am pretty bummed.  Hopefully this will not take forever to heal.  But until then I am supposed to start cutting my meals in half and drink lots more water.  I have a hard time drinking water, because I pretty much can't stand it. 

     Anyway, while I was at the doctors office James was working from home, and so I had to ask my friend Lorenda to come watch the kids.  Her son and Isaiah had a great time playing together and I even let him stay longer while she went to Wal-Mart.  They tore the heck out of his bedroom, but I don't care as long as they are having fun.

     Anyway, right now James and Isaiah have gone on a walk, they took Evelyn with them.  It is nice to have such silence in the house.  I asked James about going to the Ladies Retreat this year.  Last year he didn't want me to go because he would miss me too much and he didn't want to be alone with Isaiah.  Well, now we have a baby and Isaiah and I know that he doesn't want to be left alone with both.  As it is when I leave for a few hours he calls me to see when I am coming home.  So...after talking to him about it, we decided to ask James' mom if she will take Isaiah over night from Friday-Sunday, and then James can just have Evelyn all to himself.  And since we already supplement formula with  the breast milk sometimes, it won't be a problem just giving her all formula while I am gone.  I am excited to go this year, one reason being that the other girls my age and I stay up very late into the night playing a card game called spoons.  We have a blast every time.  Of course, we are usually very tired in the morning too. 

     Well, I still need to go to the grocery store tonight and buy some cereal and milk.  And maybe some other snacks too.  So I better end this quick.  After all, by the time I finish typing out the stuff from that book, it will probably be 30 minutes later.  Oh, by the way, incase anyone wants to buy the book themselves, it is called God's Little Lessons for Parents. 

Hammering on Others

One of the most common expressions used to describe losing your temper is to "fly off the handle."  This phrase refers to the head of a hammer coming loose from it's handle as the carpenter attempts to use it.  Several things can happen as a result:

First the hammer becomes useless-no longer good for work.  When you lose your temper, you often lose your effectiveness.  Anything you say may not be taken seriously and is likely to be unproductive. 

Second, the hammerhead -twirling out of control-is likely to cause some type of damage to anything in it's path.  When you lose your temper you cause damage even if you don't realize it-perhaps physically to people or objects in your way, and nearly always emotionally to those who feel they are the victims of this uncontrolled wrath. 

Third, the repair of both the hammer and the resulting damage takes time.  When you lose your temper, you may recover quickly, but the victim of a hot temper rarely recovers as quickly.

So, as you can see, losing your temper with your children is not the best way to handle conflict in life.  Keep your temper today, your children do not want it.

Proverbs 29:22
An angry man stirs up strife, and a hot-tempered man abounds in transgression.

Proverbs 22:24-25
Do not associate with one easily angered, or you may learn his ways and get yourself ensnared.

Proverbs 16:32
He that is slow to anger is better than the mighty; and he that ruleth his spirit than he that taketh a city.

Proverbs 14:29
If you stay calm you are wise, but if you have a hot temper, you only show how stupid you are.

    

7.10.04
8:07pm

     Church service was ok today.  I did like the new sign in front of the church though.  It looks really good.  Right now my knee and foot are really bothering me.  They are in pain all the time.  I don't know what I did to them...but by the end of the day it hurts pretty bad no matter what position I put them in.  I finally decided to try some Tylenol, I hope that it will help me, I took that about 40 minutes ago, so far nothing is happening.  So I will just have to wait and see. 

     I went by my grandma's house after church as usual, but I also went by my aunt's house to visit her for what will be the last time for quite a while.  She is moving to Arizona either tomorrow or the next day.  Her house is virtually empty from all the stuff that she has gotten rid of.  So, anyway, I was there for a while and then we came home.  But, I then left again to go where?  Back to church...that's right.  I decided to go a head and paint some more in the nursery.  But, I didn't feel like being alone, so I called up Mary Patterson and she came over with me.  We actually got quite a bit done in the two hours that we were there.  I need to go buy a small can of red pain to do the molding and the door frame, but after that I will have completed 2 more walls.  I am going to wait for my dad to help me though when it comes to painting around all the cabinets.  I know that I won't be able to do it as good or as quick. 

     Also...tomorrow I might be going to the doctor.  My foot and knee are not getting any better, and it is going on two weeks now.  I have been hoping that it would just go away, but with no such luck.  And I know that since I am going to be working out soon that I need to get it taken care of.  After the painting I did today it really hurt on the way home while I was driving. 

     So anyway, that is about it from me, nothing too exciting to tell.  But I will write in another one of those stories and the bible verses that it relates to. 

     Crying Over Spilled Eggs

A mother remembers one summer day when her nine year old son and a friend were getting a bottle of juice from the refrigerator. She had spent hours that morning scrubbing, waxing, and polishing the kitchen floor, so she cautioned the boys not to spill anything. They tried so hard to be careful that they accidentally bumped a tray of eggs on the door shelf, splattering eggs all over her clean floor.

The boys' eyes widened with alarm as she exploded angrily. "Get out of here now!" she shouted as they headed for the door.

By the time she had finished cleaning up the mess, she had calmed down. To make amends, she set a tray of cookies on the table along with the juice and some glasses. But when she called the boys, there was no answer. They had gone somewhere else to play, some place where her angry voice couldn't reach them.

Sometimes we forget how devastating our angry words can be to a child. Anger separates us from those we love. It shatters that intimate relationship that all of us desire to share with our families. Ask for God's help in keeping your anger under control.

James 1:19-20
Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath: for the wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God.

Proverbs 15:1
A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.

Colossians 3:8
You yourselves are to put off all these: anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy language out of your mouth.

Psalms 37:8
Cease from anger, and forsake wrath: fret not thyself in any wise to do evil.

Now, to me that last verse doesn't sound right, but I swear that is what it says.  Anyway, bye.

7.9.05
10:56pm

What a long day. First of all, by the time my dad and I left Lowes, went back to his house to get something, then got to the church, finished talking to people, it was already after 11:30am. We had planned on leaving around noon. Luckily my dad kicks butt at painting so we were able to get quite a bit done. Next week my dad will be busy on Saturday, so I might have James help me out while my mom baby sits, or I might ask my mother in law Patty. She was also here today working on the mural. The main part is done, as you can see in the picture...but there are other smaller characters scattered around the room and she still needs to work on those. But it is looking awesome. I was telling her that the kind of murals she does people would pay her for. She is a very good artist.

James put together that computer desk today. So I had to empty out our Hutch and set it outside to get sold. No body bought it today, but we will put it back out tomorrow. It is really nice considering that it kind of old. It has two big drawers along the bottom, and the two big doors that open and there is another drawer, and then a spot for a TV. I want to say that it is all Oak, but it could be Pine too. Anyway, if you are interested email me. ecm1980@comcast.net We are selling it for $20.00 I don't want to ask a lot, since I really just need it gone.

Also...we tried to go see a movie tonight, The Fantastic Four, but it was sold out. Which was really a big bummer since we had already dropped off the kids, and all their junk, at my mom and dads house. I am telling you it was upsetting having to go back there just to put it all back in the car.

I have a book that Tara Zeller gave me when I was pregnant with Isaiah. It has many good stories in it and bible verses to go along with them...they are all about different topics, like Patience, Anger, Love...etc. It is mostly to help parents, but the verses from the bible can help anyone. So I am going to share these for awhile, to see if it helps any of you moms out there.

Little Monica

A man noticed a woman in the grocery store with a three year old girl in her basket. As they passed the cookie section, the little girl asked for cookies, and her mother told her no. The little started to whine and fuss, and the mother said quietly, "Now, Monica, don't get upset. We half the aisles left to go through. It won't be long."

Soon they came to the candy aisle, where the little girl began to shout for candy. When told she couldn't have any, she began to scream. The mother said, "There there, Monica, don't cry--only two more aisles to go, and then we'll be checking out."

When they got to the check out stand, the little girl immediately clamored for gum. She burst into a terrible tantrum upon discovering there'd be no gum purchased. The mother patiently said, "Monica, we'll be through this check out stand in five minutes, and then you can go home and have a nice nap."

The man followed them out to the parking lot and stopped the woman to commend her. "I couldn't help noticing how patient you were with little Monica," he said.

At that time the mother said, "I'm Monica. My little girl's name is Tammy."

Sometimes the only way to make it through the day is to talk yourself through it!

Psalm 37:7
Be patient and wait for the Lord to act; don't be worried about those who prosper or those who succeed in their evil plans.

Ecclesiastes 7:8-9
It is better to be patient than to be proud. Don't become angry quickly, because getting angry is foolish.

Galatians 5:22
When the Holy Spirit controls our lives he will produce this kind of fruit in us: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness.

Ephesians 4:2
Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love.

I hope you liked that. I did. I will try to write one of those every night. Anyway, talk to you all later. Bye.

 

7.8.05
10:16pm

     This morning I woke up and started my day yet again.  I had to hurry because I needed to get everyone going, get breakfast, and then get out of here in time for my doctors appointment.  My friend Lorenda got here in time to baby sit and so I took off.  I must say that it always feels nice to be driving in my car alone.  I know that sounds strange, but I don't get to be alone very often, and I am an only child, I need my alone time.  So I enjoyed the drive, even though it was only 15 minutes, and I went in to have my appt.  Now, everything went fine, I am doing good, and I can start exercising right away.  But, when I went to the pharmacy to get my birth control pills I was kind of surprised that my name wasn't already up there, after all, it is a simple prescription.  So I sat down to wait, 10 minutes goes by, then 20, then 30....I am starting to wonder.  So I get up and go ask them how much longer it is going to be.  Turns out that my doctor accidentally sent my prescription to the South Sac Kaiser!  So, now I have to wait another 15-20 minutes.  That kind of stuff really bugs me.  Although actually a lot of things really bug me.  Probably too many things to be honest. For instance, I don't like annoying kids.  There are some kids who live a couple houses down from me, and also across the street, and they are annoying.  Just tonight James had to walk outside and tell them to get off our yard.  They were wrestling on our lawn. They are lucky that it was James instead of me, I would have walked right up to the little punks and let them know what's up.  I have no problem at all with sounding slightly threatening to them and scaring them a little bit.  Kids like that need to have adults tell them how it should be and how it is going to be when it comes to how they act.  Obviously the parents aren't doing it anyway.  So someone should. 

     Anyway, so my appointment did go well and I will start exercising this Tuesday.  So....that just means I will be eating some candy this week since I won't get to after that.

     I also went to a dinner/bridal shower for Mellissa at a restaurant called Casa Azteca.  It was pretty good.  I wish that they didn't have such small portions though of the rice and beans.  The presents she got were good, and at one point while discussing her wedding I found out that she didn't really have anyone to take pictures.  So, I offered and she accepted.  My digital camera is excellent, 8 mega pixels.  It takes amazing pictures.  My printer is also great.  So all she will have to do is pay for the ink and paper and I can print them all up for her.  Although she is going to first see how much Wal-Mart charges too.  Just incase it would cost her less.  I am really excited though to be able to help and it will be fun to see her wedding too. 

     So tomorrow morning I will be going to my parents house at 9:30am to go to Lowe's, buy some paint, and then head over to the nursery to paint.  I can't wait to get started on it.  And, I bought a clock to hang up too, it drives me nuts not to be able to look up to a clock when I am in there.  I keep thinking that there are so many other things that I want to buy for the nursery, but I have to wait until there is more money in the budget.  Right now it is about empty. 

     I also really want to get some new toys.  I want to buy some cool cars for the boys, and trucks, and then for the girls some dolls and maybe even My Little Pony.  Things like that.  It seems like there isn't anything like that in the nursery.  All the actual toys are so out of date. 

     There was one other thing I wanted to write.  A verse from Psalms that I think is a good one to remember whenever you are feeling frustrated or losing hope. 

Psalms 138:7-8
Though I walk in the midst of trouble, you will revive me; you will stretch out your hand against the wrath of my enemies, and your right hand will save me.  The Lord will perfect that which concerns me.

 

7.7.05
9:33pm

     Lately Isaiah has been very loud.  He likes to yell instead of  a lot.  It is driving me insane.  I end up having to get loud just so I can be heard above him and get his attention.  I need to get him out of this and quick.  I realize he thinks that it is funny, but it is not.  Luckily it isn't an all the time thing, but it is enough that I get really annoyed.

     Anyway, so today was good.  Evelyn once again slept all night long.  I am just so excited about that.  I mean she is barely a month and a half old and she is doing it all on her own.  Right this very second she is is sitting in her little baby chair and she is finally falling asleep for the night I think. 

     This morning around 10:30am I took Isaiah to the park.  We must have only been there for a maximum of 20 minutes when Isaiah came up to me and told me he was done.  His exact words were, "Mama, I"m done."  I asked him if he was sure, and he pointed to the street and said, "Mama I wanna go that way."  I couldn't believe that he actually wanted to go home.  What kid actually wants to leave the park after only 20 minutes?   A lady looked over at me when he said it and did a small laugh.  I couldn't blame her.  Most kids just don't do that you know. 

     I am watching the movie The Aviator right now while writing this.  Wow, was this guy Howard Hughes nuts.  I mean he has some serious problems.  And you know what is strange to me....here this guy is very famous, did all this amazing stuff, and I can honestly say that I had never heard of him before until this movie came out.  Now, maybe it's just me, but shouldn't I have learned something about him and what he did in school?  I mean I am sitting here feeling dumb as heck because here is this guy that most people should know about, but I don't.  I wonder of anyone else from my generation and younger feels the same way I do.  I really don't think that the schools do a good enough job any more.  I don't blame James for wanting to send our kids to a private school. 

     Anyway,  I am gonna go, tomorrow is my first doctors appointment to check up on how I am doing since my cesarean.  I have noticed that this time around my scar is a lot more noticeable.  It feels more bumpy.  Anyway, that's all for now, I will let you know tomorrow how it goes.  Bye.

    

 

7.6.05
10:27pm

     I cried today.  I was watching Oprah just for the heck of it, and the topic today was about far away countries and all the horrible stuff going.  One country, I forget the name, is the most dangerous in the world, and what happens to the women there, well, it was bad, so bad that I had to turn it off and pray, and when I tried to pray, I cried more.  It can be so easy to dismiss the fact that we get to live here in America where there are laws set down to protect us, where we can go to law enforcement with the hope of finding justice.  These women have these horrible things happen to them, and they have no one.  I won't dare say what things have occurred to the ladies there, but if you imagine the worst, then multiple that by 20, you might come close.   It was just so sad.  Then...they started talking about how in some countries the children are sold to pedophiles.  Evidently this is happening where the tsunami hit.  He told of one man who spent $10,000 to molest a young baby.  Very young, I think he said 10 months.  This just made me sick to my stomach and in my heart.  I really truly in the depths of my being do not understand why someone would do that.  I don't know why a person would think that is ok.  Anytime I see a kid in pain, it rips at my soul, so I just don't see how someone could do the hurting.  I know that there is evil in the world, but I feel like it should be restricted to only those who adults.  Children are just to precious, trusting, innocent, and pure, to be experiencing such horror.  I don't know what I would do if that happened to one of my kids.  How do you explain something like that to them?  How do you tell them why it was them, how do you explain that it isn't there fault?  I was thinking that it is so important to explain to your kids about strangers, and how you don't ever let a stranger touch you in your private spots, but it's not just strangers anymore.  It could be family, friends, anyone.  And so how do you tell a kid when it is ok and when it isn't?  It's ok for a doctor to do it, but then again, sometimes it isn't if he is acting inappropriately.  But how, how do you explain these things to say, a six year old?  Anyone could be a predator, anyone, and that makes this world utterly terrifying. 

     Anyway, enough of that depressing stuff.  I was starting to feel the tears coming again.  Sometimes it just feels like bringing a child into this world is a bad thing to do.  Honestly, I feel scared. 

Ugh, I better stop actually, I can't write while I am thinking about stuff like this.  Maybe we should all take some time out of our day to pray for the millions of kids who are suffering in this world.  I know I will. 

 

7.5.05
10:35pm

     Evelyn has just been sleeping so good lately.  I feel so lucky.  I really should not be getting this much sleep at this stage.  But that doesn't mean that I'm not incredibly glad.  lol   We took some pictures tonight and I have posted them on here to the right of this page. I put a picture of the mural in Evelyn's room on here too so you could all see it. They turned out pretty cute.  I will be glad though when I start working out and can lose some more of this weight.  I don't like taking pictures too much because I feel like the bottom half of me is just too big still.  But I will work on it.  Also, I have gotten rid of The Question of the Day.  Yes yes I am sure you will all be very sad...yea right...but I was getting sick and tired of having to do that everyday and since I doubt it will be missed, I chucked it.  Also, incase you didn't know you can email me by clicking on the Email Eva link in the top right hand corner.  If you have a comment about something I have written, maybe you disagree with something, or just want to say that your husband can't close cupboard doors either go ahead and email me.  I can then post your email on here for others to read.  Although I don't have too of course, you can just say somewhere in your email that it is not for posting.  This is just something new that I thought of tonight...I thought it might make this page more interesting. 

     So anyway, as for my day, that was about it.  I didn't do much.  Cleaned a whole lot, and I don't even feel like I am done.  Laundry is still going.  I did however read the most ridiculous thing tonight.  Ok so you know how NASA sent that probe to collide with that comet?  Ok, so a fortune teller in Russia is suing them because they messed with the natural alignment of the universe and it has caused her moral suffering.  She is also an astrologist so evidently she knows what she is talking about.  LOL  What a crack pot!  I have never heard of something so obviously being done just to get money.  Oh, and guess how much she is suing for....$300 million!!!  UGH!!!  I can't stand the fact that we the people are actually able to sue companies for this kind of stupid stuff.  Because yea, them doing this, has caused her immense pain and suffering.  I hope who ever the judge on that one ends up being that he or she just throws it out right away. 

     Pretty soon I will be very busy reading.  July 16th is the day that the new Harry Potter book comes out.  I am so excited that I can barely contain it.  There is so much stuff that I want to read about.  I know that I will end up ignoring Isaiah a little bit too much during that time.  Luckily, I read really fast, so it should only take a couple days.  Anyway...I need to go to sleep now, I think Evelyn is going to have another excellent nights sleep.  Bye.

    

 

7.4.05
11:40pm

     Happy Fourth of July!!!  We had a great time tonight at my uncles house.  Wow did he have a great home too.  It was beautiful.  We got to go swimming in their heated pool and Isaiah loved that.  We were trying to teach him how to hold his breath and go under water, but he kept opening his mouth, so he swallowed a lot of water.  While he was in bed tonight it must have gotten to him finally because he threw up quite a few times, it was hurting his stomach pretty bad and he just kept wanting me to hold him, which equaled me getting puked on, but hey, that's what being a mom is all about.  He is ok now, I think that he just needed to clear his system.  Poor kid is so tired too, I baby sat my nephew today, so they played quite a bit, then the whole swimming thing...he was in there for at least 2 hours almost.  Maybe he will sleep in till 10am.  lol 
     James gets to drive his new car to work tomorrow.  I think that most people seem to be worried that he is going to drive really fast now, but he isn't that bad like he used to be.  Before we had Isaiah he as just plain scary to drive with.  He drove like he was in a video game, and he would pretend that it was all a race and he had to get in front of the other players.  This included weaving around cars at a speed that made me very nervous.  But really, he doesn't do that anymore thank God.  It's one thing to risk your own life, it's a whole different thing when you have kids in the car. 
     Well, nobody emailed me about writing in more letters from James to me, so I will not be including more of those...I guess the world, or at least my cyber audience, lol, is not interested in such things.  Can't say I blame you.  :-)  But I will write in some more from that other thing tonight at the end of this. 
     James went to Staples today and bought a small computer desk for our room.  We just need something to put the printer on, papers, the router and cable modem.  The thing that it is sitting on right now just looks stupid with all that stuff on it.  When he had picked out the one he wanted and asked for it though I guess they didn't have it in stock, so they had to order it.  And, because it was a inconvenience, they are shipping it to us for free.  I like anything that is free.  Especially at restaurants,  I love free bread the most.  But my favorite restaurant, Chevy's, is the best, they give out free chips and salsa, and free tortillas.  You can't get better than that, and they make the tortillas fresh right there. 
     Anyway, the thing on love that I am going to write down for you is actually pretty good so I am going to get to that right now.  I hope you like all this stuff on love.  I think that it is all important stuff to read and implement.  But if you don't like it, fear not, this is the last installment.  Bye.

In what other ways can we define mature love?

* Mature love is energizing.  It means that you have more energy to give in all aspects of your life: your studies, your friendships, your family relationships, your special interests, as well as your love relationship.  All are enhanced by your good feelings, rather than ceasing to be important. 

* Mature love is accepting.  You allow one another space to be yourselves and don't feel compelled to transform one another,  You learn to accept yourselves as you are, to recognize that you are responsible for yourselves as individuals, and to forgive what you are not, instead of criticizing and blaming one another.

* Mature love can survive joy and pain.  Your strong enough, and trust each other enough, to be vulnerable, to cry together together as well as laugh together.  You can take the risk of being honest with each other.  

* Mature love means that there is more to your relationship than physical attraction.  You can get just as excited talking and sharing feelings as you can about sex.

* Mature love is enhanced by time.  You know that time will mean growth, that time will only make your relationship better, so who needs to rush anything?

* Mature love means neither instant fulfillment nor diminishment of who you are.  You have found fulfillment in yourself as an individual .  You feel that your partner is wonderful, but realize that you are special too.  You have the security of knowing that if, for some reason, your love for each other would die, you could survive.

* Mature love means that you are best friends. 

     It isn't easy to reach this stage of loving and trusting another person.  Such a relationship takes time to build.....something we often forget in our era of instant everything.  Attraction at first sight is possible.  Real love takes time-and growing. 
     "Intimacy is knowing what you and your partner are about," says Dr. Newburger.  "This involves trusting one another enough to take a chance of revealing yourself.  It takes time to develop that kind of trust where you know that a personal revelation will neither embarrass the other person nor be thrown back at you.  The sharing that this intimacy involves provides the opportunity to let your feelings grow into love."
     Mutual commitment to each other's growth as independent people is, perhaps, the most important element of this kind of love.
     "This love is an overflow of our own fulfillment," says Dr. Newburger.  Love means finding joy in each other's growth and happiness, whether the other person finds this happiness with or without us...."
     

7.3.05
8:20pm

Today was pretty good.  We had a good time at church today.  I really do enjoy that guy who preached again today.  James' brother did join us and that was nice too.  It felt good to have some family there with us.  The sermon was excellent though.  It was basically about death, and how we all should live as if tomorrow was our last day on earth.  Personally, I always try my best to live that way in regards to people in my life. I always make sure that the people I love know that I love them.  I have a big fear of dying before I am ready, so I take every precaution I can to make sure that if I should die young, or I should say, while my kids are young, that they will still be able to know who I am and in a sense feel close to me.  I accomplish this by writing letters to my kids, Evelyn only has one so far, after all, she is pretty new around here.  And Isaiah has at least 15.  I write about a little bit of everything in them.  James and I, them, I give advice on multiple things such as drugs, alcohol, smoking, love, sex, God, friends.  Anything and everything that I can think of.  I always make sure to include in every letter though that no matter what they do, no matter what happens to them in life, I will always love them, and I will never stay mad.  I want them to have something of me incase I die before they can really know me.  I want them to know that my hand was right there writing that letter out.  I truly believe that letters are some of the best forms of communication.  You can get everything off your chest without being interrupted, and usually instead of getting too angry at something, the reader has time to ponder on what you wrote. 
I have also found writing letters to someone to be of great help when apologizing.  You can get it all out, say everything, and unlike talking, if you write something down you don't like, you can just erase it.  You can't rewind when you are talking.  And I am sure that almost all of us have had the experience where we wish we could just rewind and delete what we said.  And who doesn't like love letters.  OH!  I just got an idea.  I will type out a couple things that James has written me.  If you are a guy reading this, you won't care, but, if you are a girl, you will think that they are really sweet.  Ok, I picked one out, a really good one.  Keep in mind that this is from when we were a couple and already in love.  At that time I was still trying to learn how to handle the fact that a lot of his friends were girls.  ( Which of course I got over and it hasn't bothered me for years) 

Eva,
     I love you sooo much!  You make every area of my heart excited whenever we are having fun.  Since we have been in love, all I have ever known is that I'm sure that we will always be together.  I know that during the recent days it's seemed kind of difficult to put up with me.  I know that I can make you happy, and I know that I can make you sad.  The only problem is that I always know what makes you happy, but I don't always know what makes you sad. I'm sorry.  It's just that to me, it seems like the rules keep changing.  It's difficult to keep up when I'm used to having  only a couple rules in my head.

1.) You must love her
2.) You must trust her
3.) You must do whatever it takes to make her happy.

Those are my rules, and to me, nothing else matters.  I love you so much.  There is not enough room in my heart for jealousy or worry.  There's barley enough room for all this love!  I'm leaving this letter because I want you to know how dear you are to me, and how much it means to me that you are trying to change.  I also want you to know that you don't need to.  I've always known that you were jealous, and didn't I fall in love with you anyway?  I believe that right now, for the past few weeks, and probably for a few more weeks, stress will be causing this irritability that you have.  It bothers me.  It bothers me because it puts you in a bad mood more of ten than not.  I want you to know that I will be here if you need someone to talk to.  I will be here if you need someone to complain to, and I will be here to love you-and I always will....

I love you from the very depths of my being!

"me"

 

What did you think?  Pretty cool huh?  He always wrote beautiful stuff to me.  He as even written me some poems.  I think that since that is a love letter technically, and it does show some wonderful aspects of what true love is, I will skip writing that other thing tonight.  I also realize that girls like to read love letters sometimes.  So, if you like them, and would like to read another one, email me and let me know.  But you have to actually email me because I will only do it if I get 5 emails at the minimum.  I don't want to be writing stuff that no one is interested in.  And men, if you don't want to read them then you can just scroll down and skip it.  Anyway, so like I said, if you really do want to read another one, just email me and let me know...otherwise I won't do it.  My email is ecm1980@comcast.net
I guess that's all for now.  Bye folks.

 

7.2.05
11:00pm

We are now a two car family.  I am so excited.  James was gone most of the day today with his dad shopping for a car, and finally James came home around 8:30pm.  He got a 2004 Mustang GT fully loaded.  It is silver and man is it beautiful.  So sleek and gorgeous.  Tomorrow we are going to take both cars when we go to church so that way we can show it off to his brothers when we go to his mom and dads house for a BBQ.  I mean really, it is such a pretty car.  It only cost $15,000  too.  Wait till you see it, I might take a picture and post it on here.  Who knows?

Today I was supposed to go to the church nursery to paint, but my dad was so tired after helping my grandma that we are going to do it next weekend instead.  And Evelyn’s mural is basically done, my mother in law just has to do some small animal characters around the walls and then she will be done.  It looks really good. 

I had so much fun having Mary here.  And she really is great with kids.  I think that she is going to be a wonderful mom someday.  She is supposed to wear the new outfit that I got for her to church tomorrow.  It looks amazing on her.  Wait till you see her in it. 

We invited James' brother to join us tomorrow at church.  My sister in law can't make it because she is sick, but he will be coming and so will his little boy.  We invited them because last Sunday's sermon was so good, and since that guy is preaching again, I thought that it was a good opportunity.  I really don't like inviting people to church unless I know that there is a good chance that they are going to enjoy it.  That is especially hard to do when your pastor is gone on sabbatical and all you have is guest speakers.  But I am pretty confident that he will like it.  I guess the music will be a maybe though, since Dan Malloy is gone sunning it up in Hawaii.  Lucky guy. 

I have been watching some of the new Justice League episodes and they are so good.  I love the whole good verses evil thing.  And Batman, well he is the very best.  How can you not love a guy with no super powers at all who always kicks major butt and is the best detective around.   Not to mention the fact that he has a dark bad side.  The bad guys are scared of him, and he makes sure that they are. 

Anyway, I don't really have anything else from my day to talk about.  But,  I should say that the "All About Love" stuff I was writing is done, yesterday's was the last one.  But I do have something else to show you that is also about love.  I hope that you like it, I can't type it all out at once though because it is way too much.  So I will have to cut it off at different points.  Anyway, here it is...hope you enjoy it. 

 

Valid-and deep-feelings have no age limits. However, the character of love may change, depending not so much on your chronological age as on your emotional maturity and feelings about yourself.  Infatuation is a term applied to being "in love with love" - when being in love is more important that loving and giving to someone. This can happen often with people (of all ages) who are emotionally immature.  Immature love of this type can take over your life and make you unable to function in other areas. You constantly think and fantasize about the other person. You feel a need to cling to one another and are very needy. Yet your mutual neediness keeps you from finding lasting happiness or fulfillment. You may feel a lot of anger and fear in the relationship because you don't have the security you need (yet only YOU can give yourself this security you are looking for in the other person). People who are emotionally immature concentrate more on getting than giving. They may fall in love with idealized images rather than people, and when the real person doesn't live up to this vision, disillusionment quickly sets in.

 "These people have not given much thought to themselves as individuals and how they want to grow individually." says New York psychologist Dr. Howard Newburger.

 "They have huge gaps in their self-esteem and try to borrow from each other. In a sense, they're like two lame people clinging together. They also idealize each other's strengths, not really seeing each other as people. When one discovers that the other is simply human, it may be cause for bitterness and hostility."

This is a sharp contrast to a mature, growing love, which is possible only when you love and value yourself and are able to share, and to enjoy life separately and together.

 "I see real love as being aware of each other as individuals," says Dr. Newburger. "You are aware of the needs and wants of one another (not just your own). You realize that we all need space to grow. You are kind to one another. Your love is dynamic. You are independent and fulfilled individuals whose lives are worthwhile to begin with. Life together is simply more enjoyable, perhaps. Yet, even while together, you see each other as free, unique and independent people.

 

7.01.05
9:18pm

Evelyn slept from 1am till 7:30am last night.  I woke up feeling well rested.  What a good baby.  I must have been pretty tired too because I didn't even realize that Isaiah had come into our room at some point and gotten into bed with us.  Lots of stuff is going on tomorrow.  James is going with my dad to help my Grandma Sheila move some furniture, and then after that my dad and I are going to paint at the church nursery.  My mom will be watching the kids for me.  While that is going on two other things should be happening.  One, my mother in law should be painting Evelyn's mural.  Second, I hope that James will be buying his new car at some point tomorrow.  He wants to have his dad go with him to help get the price down some, hopefully he can, James says that he is good at it.  Mary and I took Isaiah to Some Place Fun today.  It was so hot in there.  They have all those big industrial fans going in there, but it was still really sticky feeling.  Isaiah was all sweaty. 

So anyway...I was looking back at some more old papers and came across some family stuff that my Grandma Eva Arredondo (My dad's mom, I am named after her) wrote down for me.  I had asked her to write down our family history.  She wrote down everyone's name for me, and then wrote down how we came to California.  I think that it is quite interesting.  I thought I would share it.  Here is what my grandmother wrote down, exactly.

-My Fathers Father-

My grandfather came from Monterey Mexico.  This was back in the old days when people just walked across the border lines to this country without charge or any green I/D card.  He was born on or about 1882.  Grandpa was a landlord back in Mexico (Monterey).  As far as I understand, in these days he used gold coins for money to buy all their needs.  Food, land, labor, ect.  He came to Texas when the Mexican government took his land or be killed.  So he took his family across to Texas for their safety.  They traveled by covered wagon pulled by mules.  Grandpa was killed by gringos (whites) and robbed of his gold money.  The robbers didn't know he had other bags of gold hidden in their wagon, or all the family would have been killed.  Most of the family.  Most of the family migrated to the state of Texas, around the city of Sequin, and San Antonio areas in or about the 1880's.  My grandpa had a scroll seal, which was used for all his legal documents.  This seal or scroll was used to Identify all the boundaries of his estate and water rights.  Up to this date the Arredondo Scroll is still in existence, back in Monterey, his water rights, dams, ect.    

Pretty cool huh?  I have that kept in a nice sheet protector so it won't get ruined.  A long time ago I had given her a grandmothers book to fill out.  It was all about her, her family, everything.  I kept asking her to write in it for me, but she always put it off, saying she had plenty of time.  She died before she ever got around to it. 

                     Love Has No Room For Jealousy

We should never subscribe to the idea that we are only loved when we are loved exclusively.  To the contrary, we are all capable of loving any number of people at the same time-lovers, family and friends.  A person who can care for only for a single individual usually has a problem with caring in general.  Love is not a quality that is diluted when given freely and often.  Rather it is enriched and intensified. 
To require that someone exist for us alone is an egocentric illusion which should have been left behind in childhood.  It is demeaning to be regarded as a thing which can be possessed and controlled. 
If we are so insecure in our relationships that they must be constantly protected and guarded, it might be well to call up that little child within us and help him or her to grow up.  Absolute control over another person is neither possible, desirable nor loving.  Instead it destroys what it sets out to protect. 

                     The bird of paradise alights only upon
                           the hand that does not grasp.

                                      By:  John Berry