My Favorite Things!

Hmmm....I've been thinking about my favorite things today and now I'm going to share just a few of them!

1)  A beautiful barn with pretty colors!  I pass them and think "I'd love to pose someone in front of that barn and take some pictures!"

2)  Pumpkin Donuts from Dunkin Donuts!  Oh my geeeeee....delish!

3)  The Internet - seriously, I can watch movies on Hulu and Netflix.  Surf the web, GOOGLE, keep in touch with friends and family all over the world!  I love it.

4)  Charis' passion and love for the arts and music.  The other day she said "Mommy, I think God has made me for a lot of things not just one...I'm going to be an amazing guitarist, singer, dancer and artist.  You think that he would give me more then just one great thing?!"   My reply "Yup, Charis, I do!"

5)  How Owen isn't afraid of housework and cooking - aww yeah (need I say anything else?)

6)  Cameras!  You can secretly capture the best moments when people aren't looking.  I can't wait for mine.

7)  Music - It speaks a language that I can't always articulate.  It brings peace, hope, joy, energy...tralalalala!!

8)  Lie To Me - I love that show!  The main character is so awkward that it's fabulous.

9)  Aden's snuggles.  I could sit all day with that little man...(insert my heart melting.)

10)  Riesling and cuddles and movies.  Yup, that's on the agenda for tonight!

11) Friends who aren't afraid to say it how it is.  No matter how hard it is to hear it, I'd much rather have a friend who will say it then not say it.

12)  That feeling after I finished a work-out.  Yes, I smell icky and am super sweaty but I savor the feeling that I finished another work-out.  I did it!

13)  Chinese food take-out!

Those are in no particular order just random, I promise!
So what are some of yours?

Oh the Glory of Aden!

This sweet boy just has me falling more and more in love with him lately!  He's really just been cracking me up with his stories and things that he has to say.  He's really hitting a new stage and coming into his personality!  What a joy!

I thought I'd share a couple of funny Aden moments....

The other day I walked into the bathroom and for the 2nd time in the day stepped in a little puddle of liquid.  The liquid was clear but not the kind of clear that I'd prefer to step in....so, I walked out of the bathroom and to the source (since Charis and I never miss and hopefully neither does Owen) and said "Aden, I just stepped in pee-pee for the 2nd time today!"   Charis yells out "Mommy, I did too!"  Aden looks at the both of us in disbelief as if "why are we both looking at him" and he yells "Me too!"  This coming from the child who likes to poke his head out the door while in the process of emptying his bladder...oh my geee.

The other day Aden went on a trip with Uncle Doug to Food Lion to buy skittles.  It was a great male bonding moment for them ;o)  Well, Owen (aka Daddy) took Aden to Food Lion the next day and convinced him to buy...drum roll please...skittles.  After they passed the soup aisle and Aden yelled "Wook, Wightning McWeen Woup!" (Translated into Look, Lightning McQueen Soup!)  Owen picked up the normal, little bag of skittles and Aden says "Daddy, let me show you wumping (something)"  He brings him to an aisle and says "Wook, they have skittles in a box and......" - he now runs down the aisle and says "...and a gigantic bag of skittles!"  As they are walking away (but only after Owen convinced Aden he's not getting the gigantic bag) Aden says "Daddy, Food Lion is a very cool place."  Thank you to Uncle Doug for introducing Aden to the coolness of Food Lion!

Last little story (and a little warning that my kids call body parts by their names!)   I pick up Aden from school and he has a potato with 5 toothpicks stuck in it and each toothpick has a little yellow playdough ball stuck on the end.  All last week they did bumblebee projects so I say "Aden, is that your bumblebee?"  He looks at me as if I'm an absolute idiot and says  "No, Mommy, it's a POTATOE."  Well, o-k then it's a potatoe.  Then his teacher calls out as I'm leaving "I'll let him tell you if it's a boy or a girl" with a little grin on her face.  We get in the car and I say "Tell me about your potato, Aden"  Aden - "Well, it's a potatoe (duh) and it's a boy potatoe, it has an imaginary penis.  Can't you see it?"  Again, he's looking like at me like "Mom, hello?!"

Oh my goodness, how I love this boy!

How Random Are My Thoughts!

Well, I've decided to just go with random tonight!  I love random, don't you?!

Random thought #1 - "I am falling in love with my children more and more every day!"  Yes, even on the not so great days, there are moments that I think "Holy Crap, could I fall any more in love with this little person?"  Tonight, I listened to Aden tell me (after closing his eyes for 15 seconds in bed) about the dream he just had and in the dream he was running fast!  It's always about running fast.  It's funny but so many people meet Aden and think the child is "Wide Open" - and that is true.  He's spunky, energetic, always running but he's also a little lover.  His teacher told me this week that he is the most affectionate in her class.  He rubs her shoulder, sits on her lap and hugs her a lot!  He's so sweet.  That's exactly how he is at home too.  And he doesn't just hand his love away to everyone, he chooses who he's going to shower his affection on.  Ohhhh....how I love him!!

Random thought #2 - "I dream and make plans not based on my lack or weaknesses but based on who I'm becoming, who I want to be and where I want to go!"  Today, I was doing my hair and getting ready for a meeting after a 4 hour search for a buffet to store all the trillion books that we homeschool with and Charis came running in and asked me if I had TWINS, would I still want to adopt another baby?  (Yes, people she's praying for twins and I'm worried considering the Lord answers her prayers!)  I hesitated only a moment and said yes!  But during the hesitation, I thought about the last week which was my first official week of homeschooling and very quickly realized if I had based it on the week, I would not have any more children.

The week was hard.  H-A-R-D!  It's not that 2nd grade is hard.  It's the learning to schedule everything, finding when Charis' best learning time is, learning to manage my business, schooling my daughter, my ministry, my online study program and my home all at the same time while still being a wife, mother, friend and mentor.  The homeschooling had some surprises like all of the preparation or discovering that I'm having to reteach Charis handwriting which is slowing us way down!  If I based my plan for the future based on the last week where I felt like a big, fat failure with a capital F then I would say NO way!  However, that would be basing my decision out of my lack and my weaknesses this last week instead of keeping my eyes on the prize.  It would be basing a decision out of fear and I'm not going down that route anymore.

Instead I will base my decisions on the goals I have for myself.  On seeing who I'm becoming and who I'm capable of being.  I'm trying to fill my mind with that vision and decide from there what I'm capable of.  That whatever comes across my path, I am capable because of what God has put inside of me and who He's made me to be to accomplish that thing and if that means "twins" and adoption, then so be it! But not because someone else wants that for me but because I want that for me and it produces excitement and passion! 

Random thought #3 - "I'm really terrible at roller skating and that's o-k!"  Haha!  Seriously, it's o-k.  Owen can be good at it and he can take the kids and I don't have to :o)

Random thought #4 - "I have a lot to offer."   So true.  I'm stinking adorable, funny and so much fun to be with.  I'm also very humble.....