The boy and I have some of our best conversations in the car. We also have some of the strangest. We spend a lot of time in the car, so there's no shortage of words... good or bad.
While driving home from karate a few days ago, he asked me,
"Why do stores have that sign on their doors... the one that says
NO SHIRT, NO SHOES, NO SERVICE?"
I said, "Well, believe it or not, some people would try to go into a business or a restaurant without shoes or a shirt. Gross, isn't it?"
Instead of agreeing with me, (because all 13 year-old boys agree with their mothers) he said,
"The next time I go into a restaurant, I'm going in with no pants on. The sign does NOT say
NO PANTS, NO SERVICE
I want to see if I will be served. They have to serve me."
"You'll be served with an arrest warrant," I said.
"Then they need to be more specific on those signs," he said.
My friend, Y, also has a 13 year-old son. She and I often talk about the strangeness that comes with having 13 year-old sons.
We have no answers; we just hug and pray for each other.
We've promised to call each other if one of us sees the other's son anywhere without clothes.
Mine will be obviously be trying to buy some lunch.
Tuesday, January 15, 2013
Thursday, January 10, 2013
My Word
Lately, I've noticed a trend. At the start of a new year, people are choosing a single word to live by... A word to inspire. A word to motivate. A "word of the year."
Some of the words I've seen are:
"BREATHE" "HOPE" "HEALTHY"
I like the idea of choosing a word to guide me through the year, so I've been thinking and thinking.
All I can come up with is "OVERWHELMED."
Go ahead and laugh; I did.
I really tried to be more positive and creative. But, "OVERWHELMED" keeps coming back to my mind. So I decided to go with it, and here's why.
At the end of 2012, I was overwhelmed with sadness. The tragedy in Newtown, Connecticut made evil glaringly real. I was overwhelmed by the brokenness of humanity.
Between Thanksgiving and New Year's Eve, I was overwhelmed with traveling. Military families don't usually live close to relatives, so when there's a holiday, you either celebrate alone or hit the road. We logged a lot of miles in the car, and it gets old. I was overwhelmed with gas station receipts, cricks in my neck, and a car-sick kid.
When January came, I was overwhelmed at the "things to do" list that hadn't been done. I was drowning in laundry from the trips, we had no groceries in the house, and there were piles of things to be put away. I was overwhelmed with all I needed to accomplish.
I am still overwhelmed at the amount of junk I consumed between December 1 and January 1. If I drink only water until May, my body will be able to live off the stored calories. As the new year started and everyone jumped on the weight loss/fitness bandwagon, I was overwhelmed with my lack of motivation to join them.
To celebrate, I ordered some Girl Scout cookies.
I am currently overwhelmed by the newest addition to our family. We have a new puppy, and I have dark bags under my eyes. She is only 9 weeks old, and she has a bladder the size of a pea. (No pun intended.) When I take her out in the freezing cold 38 times a night, I am overwhelmed. I am also reminded WHY I have only one child. Newborn people and puppies are overwhelming.
So my word for 2013 is OVERWHELMED, but I have decided to turn it around.
Well. I am going to TRY to turn it around. There's another side to "overwhelmed" I like better.
Instead of being overwhelmed by the brokenness of humanity, I want to be overwhelmed with the good I do see. I want to be overwhelmed by God's grace. I am overwhelmed by His love for us.
Instead of being overwhelmed by all the traveling we will do (again) this year, I want to be overwhelmed by the blessing of family. I will be overwhelmed with thankfulness that we all get along and want to spend time together.
I want to be overwhelmed at the abilities I have and the opportunities I have to get things done.
I want be be overwhelmed enough at my good health to not loathe myself. I want to be overwhelmed enough to get healthier.
I will be overwhelmed by gratitude when those cookies arrive.
I don't want "OVERWHELMED" to be a bad thing.
And, as soon as she's totally potty-trained and sleeping though the night, I will be overwhelmed with love for the new puppy. In the meantime, I'll settle for being overwhelmed by her cuteness.
Some of the words I've seen are:
"BREATHE" "HOPE" "HEALTHY"
I like the idea of choosing a word to guide me through the year, so I've been thinking and thinking.
All I can come up with is "OVERWHELMED."
Go ahead and laugh; I did.
I really tried to be more positive and creative. But, "OVERWHELMED" keeps coming back to my mind. So I decided to go with it, and here's why.
At the end of 2012, I was overwhelmed with sadness. The tragedy in Newtown, Connecticut made evil glaringly real. I was overwhelmed by the brokenness of humanity.
Between Thanksgiving and New Year's Eve, I was overwhelmed with traveling. Military families don't usually live close to relatives, so when there's a holiday, you either celebrate alone or hit the road. We logged a lot of miles in the car, and it gets old. I was overwhelmed with gas station receipts, cricks in my neck, and a car-sick kid.
When January came, I was overwhelmed at the "things to do" list that hadn't been done. I was drowning in laundry from the trips, we had no groceries in the house, and there were piles of things to be put away. I was overwhelmed with all I needed to accomplish.
I am still overwhelmed at the amount of junk I consumed between December 1 and January 1. If I drink only water until May, my body will be able to live off the stored calories. As the new year started and everyone jumped on the weight loss/fitness bandwagon, I was overwhelmed with my lack of motivation to join them.
To celebrate, I ordered some Girl Scout cookies.
I am currently overwhelmed by the newest addition to our family. We have a new puppy, and I have dark bags under my eyes. She is only 9 weeks old, and she has a bladder the size of a pea. (No pun intended.) When I take her out in the freezing cold 38 times a night, I am overwhelmed. I am also reminded WHY I have only one child. Newborn people and puppies are overwhelming.
So my word for 2013 is OVERWHELMED, but I have decided to turn it around.
Well. I am going to TRY to turn it around. There's another side to "overwhelmed" I like better.
Instead of being overwhelmed by the brokenness of humanity, I want to be overwhelmed with the good I do see. I want to be overwhelmed by God's grace. I am overwhelmed by His love for us.
Instead of being overwhelmed by all the traveling we will do (again) this year, I want to be overwhelmed by the blessing of family. I will be overwhelmed with thankfulness that we all get along and want to spend time together.
I want to be overwhelmed at the abilities I have and the opportunities I have to get things done.
I want be be overwhelmed enough at my good health to not loathe myself. I want to be overwhelmed enough to get healthier.
I will be overwhelmed by gratitude when those cookies arrive.
I don't want "OVERWHELMED" to be a bad thing.
And, as soon as she's totally potty-trained and sleeping though the night, I will be overwhelmed with love for the new puppy. In the meantime, I'll settle for being overwhelmed by her cuteness.
Tuesday, December 25, 2012
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Wednesday, December 5, 2012
Half-Done Holiday
The last time I checked, it was June.
Christmas is coming whether I'm ready or not. I prefer to be ready, but that feeling of being a little "behind" on things has been taken over by a feeling of "I am a Christmas loser."
I am not lying when I tell you I know folks who've already finished all their shopping. Their Christmas ham is probably in the oven.
I have friends who own those pesky "Elf on a Shelf," and they've been up to their elf shenanigans for weeks now.
I received 3 Christmas cards on November 30. Yep... November.
I just thought about ordering our Christmas cards this week.
We are the most "festive" people on our street, and we usually have lights up outside, but right now, our front porch is coldly dark. The neighbors must think we've died.
I found the garland I like to put on the mantle, but the lights aren't working.
You'd think I could grab a strand of lights at the store. Have you tried to buy Christmas lights lately? There's LED, non-LED, warm LED, cold LED, 60 light strands, 100 light strands, 50 light strands, and lights that hang themselves. Just kidding. If there were lights that hang themselves, my mantle would be lit.
Our tree is up, but the topper is missing. Now that I think about it, the angel quit last year. Quit "working," as in, stopped lighting up. She didn't quit her job. Maybe she did. Maybe she went to live with a family who has their Christmas act together.
There's a song by Amy Grant called "I Need a Silent Night."
I. Love. It.
I'm going to change the words to "I need a silent month."
I understand the song is about the rush and bustle of the holidays; the "chaos and the noise." But, today - as I was listening to it - I realized (for me) it's also about peace within. Peace inside my mind. The ability to stay quiet and calm in my heart... despite what my own voices in my head are saying.
I not only fall victim to comparing myself to others, I fall short of my own ridiculously high standards. Why would I do that to myself when life is stressful enough?
So if you drop by our house, the tree may be barren up top. But this song will be on replay:
I need a silent night, a holy night
To hear an angel voice through the chaos and the noise
I need a midnight clear, a little peace right here
To end this crazy day with a silent night.
Christmas is coming whether I'm ready or not. I prefer to be ready, but that feeling of being a little "behind" on things has been taken over by a feeling of "I am a Christmas loser."
I am not lying when I tell you I know folks who've already finished all their shopping. Their Christmas ham is probably in the oven.
I have friends who own those pesky "Elf on a Shelf," and they've been up to their elf shenanigans for weeks now.
I received 3 Christmas cards on November 30. Yep... November.
I just thought about ordering our Christmas cards this week.
We are the most "festive" people on our street, and we usually have lights up outside, but right now, our front porch is coldly dark. The neighbors must think we've died.
I found the garland I like to put on the mantle, but the lights aren't working.
You'd think I could grab a strand of lights at the store. Have you tried to buy Christmas lights lately? There's LED, non-LED, warm LED, cold LED, 60 light strands, 100 light strands, 50 light strands, and lights that hang themselves. Just kidding. If there were lights that hang themselves, my mantle would be lit.
Our tree is up, but the topper is missing. Now that I think about it, the angel quit last year. Quit "working," as in, stopped lighting up. She didn't quit her job. Maybe she did. Maybe she went to live with a family who has their Christmas act together.
There's a song by Amy Grant called "I Need a Silent Night."
I. Love. It.
I'm going to change the words to "I need a silent month."
I understand the song is about the rush and bustle of the holidays; the "chaos and the noise." But, today - as I was listening to it - I realized (for me) it's also about peace within. Peace inside my mind. The ability to stay quiet and calm in my heart... despite what my own voices in my head are saying.
I not only fall victim to comparing myself to others, I fall short of my own ridiculously high standards. Why would I do that to myself when life is stressful enough?
So if you drop by our house, the tree may be barren up top. But this song will be on replay:
I need a silent night, a holy night
To hear an angel voice through the chaos and the noise
I need a midnight clear, a little peace right here
To end this crazy day with a silent night.
Friday, November 30, 2012
This Is Your Last Day To Be Thankful
I'm kidding, of course. It is the last day of November, but I hope we are all thankful every day. I know it's an area where I could improve.
The last half of our thankful wall included:
16. Noah (the world's most adorable nephew)
17. friends
18. drinks (This one was the boy's, and it makes him seem like an alcoholic. I think he meant drinks like Root Beer and iced tea. I hope.)
19. freedom
20. God
21. love
22. Subway (Our cat, not the restaurant... although I do love a spicy Italian sub.)
23. pj's
24. friends (Yes, it's on the list twice. Obviously someone wasn't paying attention.)
25. funny things
26. Jesus
27. The Holy Spirit (We got all religious-y here at the end, didn't we?)
28. Autumn (Dan/Daddy wrote this one, and I assume he meant he was thankful for me, not the season.)
29. Elijah (OK... who didn't read Day #4? Come on, people.)
30. April & Daniel (I have the best brother and sis-in-law ever.)
In honor of being thankful, we traversed across the Southeast to eat a ridiculous amount of food and to spend time with all these folks we are thankful for.
In Alabama, we gathered with Dan/Daddy's family...
Apparently, in this family, we love food, football, and grandmothers. I think I need to get more aggressive with the picture taking.
I pray your Thanksgiving was full of people and things to be thankful for.
The last half of our thankful wall included:
16. Noah (the world's most adorable nephew)
17. friends
18. drinks (This one was the boy's, and it makes him seem like an alcoholic. I think he meant drinks like Root Beer and iced tea. I hope.)
19. freedom
20. God
21. love
22. Subway (Our cat, not the restaurant... although I do love a spicy Italian sub.)
23. pj's
24. friends (Yes, it's on the list twice. Obviously someone wasn't paying attention.)
25. funny things
26. Jesus
27. The Holy Spirit (We got all religious-y here at the end, didn't we?)
28. Autumn (Dan/Daddy wrote this one, and I assume he meant he was thankful for me, not the season.)
29. Elijah (OK... who didn't read Day #4? Come on, people.)
30. April & Daniel (I have the best brother and sis-in-law ever.)
In honor of being thankful, we traversed across the Southeast to eat a ridiculous amount of food and to spend time with all these folks we are thankful for.
In Alabama, we gathered with Dan/Daddy's family...
There were 20 of us there, but somehow I only have pictures of football and grandmothers. How does this happen?
In South Carolina, there was more football, more food, and another grandmother...
Apparently, in this family, we love food, football, and grandmothers. I think I need to get more aggressive with the picture taking.
I pray your Thanksgiving was full of people and things to be thankful for.
Friday, November 16, 2012
Reign In The Elves, I'm Trying To Be Thankful
Ready or not, the holiday season is upon us.
I was in a store last week, and the Christmas carols were blaring. I am a lover of all things Christmas, and I never feel like it gets here too fast. But OHMYWORD. Can we just put the brakes on a little?
One of my neighbors has a tree up and lights on her house. Meanwhile, at our porch, there's a drippy pumpkin.
I've been enjoying reading all the Facebook posts and blogs about what people are thankful for.
We have a chalkboard wall in the kitchen, and every November, we list our 30 Day of Thankful.
We all take turns writing, and it's fun to look down the wall and see who's thankful for what.
So far, we are thankful for:
1. food
2. grace
3. churchy answers... This is the boy's. He wrote it in response to me telling him to stop giving me "churchy answers" when I ask him what he studied in Sunday School or Youth Group. I say,
"What did y'all talk about?"
He says,
"God, Jesus, and The Holy Spirit."
He's a bit of a smarty pants, and I have no idea where he gets it from.
4. Elijah... That's mine. I had to remind myself to be thankful for the smarty pants.
5. soccer
6. Democracy
7. technology
8. Jack Bauer... We're still deep in the throes of "24," and the world needs a Jack Bauer. Or two.
9. lacrosse
10. family
11. Baba & Papa
12. Nana & Pops
13. Alabama football... Despite that sad sad loss to Texas A&M.
14. Krispy Kreme... Amen.
15.
I don't even know where to start on this. On my turn - the next day - I added
16.
I'm going to need lots of it, apparently.
I was in a store last week, and the Christmas carols were blaring. I am a lover of all things Christmas, and I never feel like it gets here too fast. But OHMYWORD. Can we just put the brakes on a little?
One of my neighbors has a tree up and lights on her house. Meanwhile, at our porch, there's a drippy pumpkin.
I've been enjoying reading all the Facebook posts and blogs about what people are thankful for.
We have a chalkboard wall in the kitchen, and every November, we list our 30 Day of Thankful.
We all take turns writing, and it's fun to look down the wall and see who's thankful for what.
So far, we are thankful for:
1. food
2. grace
3. churchy answers... This is the boy's. He wrote it in response to me telling him to stop giving me "churchy answers" when I ask him what he studied in Sunday School or Youth Group. I say,
"What did y'all talk about?"
He says,
"God, Jesus, and The Holy Spirit."
He's a bit of a smarty pants, and I have no idea where he gets it from.
4. Elijah... That's mine. I had to remind myself to be thankful for the smarty pants.
5. soccer
6. Democracy
7. technology
8. Jack Bauer... We're still deep in the throes of "24," and the world needs a Jack Bauer. Or two.
9. lacrosse
10. family
11. Baba & Papa
12. Nana & Pops
13. Alabama football... Despite that sad sad loss to Texas A&M.
14. Krispy Kreme... Amen.
15.
I don't even know where to start on this. On my turn - the next day - I added
16.
I'm going to need lots of it, apparently.
Tuesday, November 13, 2012
The November Post Where I Force You To Look At Beach Pictures
Fall is zooming on by. I read a blog earlier today, and the blogger said she hates the word "busy." I agree. Everyone is busy, so I don't feel like it's fair to complain about it.
My new word is "chaotic." Life - for us - in the last 4 weeks has been "chaotic." Full to the brim with running here and there and doing this and that.
I have to scroll through my camera to actually remember what's happened.
We went to the beach with Dan/Daddy's parents for the boy's Fall Break. The weather couldn't have been more beautiful.
The boy and I were photo-bombed...
.JPG)
I stepped on this...
And I took lots of pictures of this face. Even if it bugged him.
We took a weekend trip to see my brother, sis-in-law, and nephew... who treated us to the most exciting 4 year-old soccer game I have ever seen.
In the words of my nephew, he was "on FIRE."
.JPG)
He presented his project wearing a swimsuit, goggles, and flippers. Good thing we hadn't packed up the swimwear and accessories yet.
.JPG)
My new word is "chaotic." Life - for us - in the last 4 weeks has been "chaotic." Full to the brim with running here and there and doing this and that.
I have to scroll through my camera to actually remember what's happened.
We went to the beach with Dan/Daddy's parents for the boy's Fall Break. The weather couldn't have been more beautiful.
The boy and I were photo-bombed...
.JPG)
I stepped on this...
And I took lots of pictures of this face. Even if it bugged him.
We took a weekend trip to see my brother, sis-in-law, and nephew... who treated us to the most exciting 4 year-old soccer game I have ever seen.
In the words of my nephew, he was "on FIRE."
.JPG)
In our "spare time," the boy finished a huge research project for one of his classes...
He presented his project wearing a swimsuit, goggles, and flippers. Good thing we hadn't packed up the swimwear and accessories yet.
.JPG)
I would like to think life is going to slow down a little, but I realize I'm only lying to myself. In case you haven't noticed, it's almost the middle of November.
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