...and out.
Thursday, May 27, 2010
Monday, May 24, 2010
Welcome To The Family, Bryce Alexander!
Josh has a new cousin in these parts! Another boy, which evens things out for the handsome boy team...
Not to be left out by her baby brother, Olivia got some play time too. No surprise, Josh found a big fat toad for her to scream and run away from. With a heavy amount of "rock star Josh" influence, she did finally come pat him on the head.
I love these little ones and happily claim them all! (Except the toad).
Not to be left out by her baby brother, Olivia got some play time too. No surprise, Josh found a big fat toad for her to scream and run away from. With a heavy amount of "rock star Josh" influence, she did finally come pat him on the head.
I love these little ones and happily claim them all! (Except the toad).
Friday, May 21, 2010
Happy Birthday!!
Joshua turned 9 a couple weeks ago. As the age goes up, the party size goes down, but seems to be much more fun. This year he just had a few of his best buds (one came later). They're good boys -- and really funny! I feel like I'm getting a little taste of some years to come.... but we won't get there any faster than we have to!!
The Nerf gun Josh got from his friend, Bradley, ended up being snuck away from the stash by Greg. An all out assault ensued! I tried to get more pictures, but every kid is just a blur of bravely running away!
Later, we took the boys for another battle -- this time with laser tag! It looks like Elliot forgot to shave...
The grand finale was what Joshua was dying to do and that was to ride the "adult" go-karts. I think the "adult" really liked it too!
Can't believe my baby is this old. Fortunately, my sister-in-law gave us a REAL baby just a few days later! He'll be headlining next...:)
The Nerf gun Josh got from his friend, Bradley, ended up being snuck away from the stash by Greg. An all out assault ensued! I tried to get more pictures, but every kid is just a blur of bravely running away!
Later, we took the boys for another battle -- this time with laser tag! It looks like Elliot forgot to shave...
The grand finale was what Joshua was dying to do and that was to ride the "adult" go-karts. I think the "adult" really liked it too!
Can't believe my baby is this old. Fortunately, my sister-in-law gave us a REAL baby just a few days later! He'll be headlining next...:)
Wednesday, May 19, 2010
Monday, May 17, 2010
Mrs. Coffee (part III)
Sorry it's taken so long to get this last part up! We've been on vacation. Pics of that to come....
So I thought all was well, relatively speaking. We'd gotten over the initial trauma and even got a little gift to salve the pain. God even taught my son a valuable truth for life. What I didn't know was that He had a little lesson in store for me too.
Josh's last words before leaving for school were, "Mom, I want to keep Mrs. Coffee's shell forever....", right?
Well, I went about my business that day. At lunch, Greg came home and said he'd hired a service to come clean out and mulch our front beds. Great! I was planning to do that and now I didn't have to! They came and I happily let them do their work. They were almost completely done when I realized -- I left Mrs. Coffee out there! I ran outside to see if she might still be in the spot I had placed her. No, of course not. I asked the man if he happened to see it and he said he hadn't. He asked his wife and, no, she hadn't either.
Though he spoke limited English, I asked with lots of motions, "Could you tell me where the debris is that you cleaned out from this spot?"
The man pointed to a large blue tarp covered 2 feet deep in leaves and thorny cuttings. I felt so defeated.
Though it would be next to impossible, I knew I had to try to find that grotesque snail in her beautiful shell, so I got on some gloves and started rummaging. The couple doing my yard must have thought I was crazy so, in limited Spanglish, I did my best to try to convey my situation. Son's pet, died, very sad, must find. They must have kids too because they stopped what they were doing and got down on their knees to help me. They were getting a tip whether we found that shell or not! We searched for what seemed like forever when it hit me that this was not possible. Finding something the size of a half-roll of dimes in a thick pile the square footage of my laundry room (if it was even in there at all), didn't put the odds in my favor. Besides that, I knew this nice couple were done and needed to move on to the next job. My eyes started to sting. I thanked them for trying to help me and told them not to worry about it anymore, but I would search for a couple more minutes. They got up and started loading their equipment on the truck. They would need this tarp too, I knew.
I know, generally speaking, we don't see miracles in the big, physics defying way that are described so many times in the Bible, but I can tell you that I have experienced God putting a non-sensical kind of faith in me that resulted in that kind of miracle twice before in my life. I felt Him doing that in me right then, again, as I stopped and prayed in tears, "Lord, you know how much this ridiculous snail means. You know I have to find it and you know exactly where it is. Please show me where it is."
I looked down and there it was right by my knee.
I grabbed it, ran over to show it to my new yard friends (they were delighted), and hurried into the house. As soon as the door closed behind me, I leaned against it and cried! I felt so overwhelmed with how God made significant something so INsignificant. Again - just because He cares. Someday, I'll know why....
When Josh got home, placed right where he could see it, was displayed an empty, clean and polished shell.
"Thanks, Mom," he said, and gave me a big hug. "I'm going to go put this with my other shells". And it was just that easy. HA! If he only knew...;)
So I thought all was well, relatively speaking. We'd gotten over the initial trauma and even got a little gift to salve the pain. God even taught my son a valuable truth for life. What I didn't know was that He had a little lesson in store for me too.
Josh's last words before leaving for school were, "Mom, I want to keep Mrs. Coffee's shell forever....", right?
Well, I went about my business that day. At lunch, Greg came home and said he'd hired a service to come clean out and mulch our front beds. Great! I was planning to do that and now I didn't have to! They came and I happily let them do their work. They were almost completely done when I realized -- I left Mrs. Coffee out there! I ran outside to see if she might still be in the spot I had placed her. No, of course not. I asked the man if he happened to see it and he said he hadn't. He asked his wife and, no, she hadn't either.
Though he spoke limited English, I asked with lots of motions, "Could you tell me where the debris is that you cleaned out from this spot?"
The man pointed to a large blue tarp covered 2 feet deep in leaves and thorny cuttings. I felt so defeated.
Though it would be next to impossible, I knew I had to try to find that grotesque snail in her beautiful shell, so I got on some gloves and started rummaging. The couple doing my yard must have thought I was crazy so, in limited Spanglish, I did my best to try to convey my situation. Son's pet, died, very sad, must find. They must have kids too because they stopped what they were doing and got down on their knees to help me. They were getting a tip whether we found that shell or not! We searched for what seemed like forever when it hit me that this was not possible. Finding something the size of a half-roll of dimes in a thick pile the square footage of my laundry room (if it was even in there at all), didn't put the odds in my favor. Besides that, I knew this nice couple were done and needed to move on to the next job. My eyes started to sting. I thanked them for trying to help me and told them not to worry about it anymore, but I would search for a couple more minutes. They got up and started loading their equipment on the truck. They would need this tarp too, I knew.
I know, generally speaking, we don't see miracles in the big, physics defying way that are described so many times in the Bible, but I can tell you that I have experienced God putting a non-sensical kind of faith in me that resulted in that kind of miracle twice before in my life. I felt Him doing that in me right then, again, as I stopped and prayed in tears, "Lord, you know how much this ridiculous snail means. You know I have to find it and you know exactly where it is. Please show me where it is."
I looked down and there it was right by my knee.
I grabbed it, ran over to show it to my new yard friends (they were delighted), and hurried into the house. As soon as the door closed behind me, I leaned against it and cried! I felt so overwhelmed with how God made significant something so INsignificant. Again - just because He cares. Someday, I'll know why....
When Josh got home, placed right where he could see it, was displayed an empty, clean and polished shell.
"Thanks, Mom," he said, and gave me a big hug. "I'm going to go put this with my other shells". And it was just that easy. HA! If he only knew...;)
Sunday, May 9, 2010
Mrs. Coffee (partII)
If you haven't read part I of this story then scroll down and read it first.
So, after Josh fell asleep, Greg went out to see if any of his resuscitative efforts had worked. No....it hadn't. He was dead and that was the reality. Accepting this, Greg started to get curious and poked around, examining Mr. Coffee. Then he looked at his hand and noticed that the piece of dirt on his finger started moving. He looked closer at it and realized.... it was a baby snail! We both looked at each other and caught our breath.
You have to know that, as wonderful as all creation is to Josh, anything BABY, is just purely thrilling -- whether it's a puppy, duckling, human, or - in this case, we hoped - a snail. I went to bed relieved of the awful feeling (sort of) and wondered if this was going to be how God answered our prayers.
The next morning, I snuggled with my son and told him that I had bad news and good news. First, I told him that Mr. Coffee was truly dead. God did not bring him back to life. Josh's face fell and he began to cry again. I didn't stop him. I let it sink in and I just held him. After a minute or two, he asked me what the good news was. I looked at him and I said, "I think we were confused about Mr. Coffee. I think he was really Mrs. Coffee."
He looked at me funny and said, "What?".
"Yes," I began. "You'll never guess what your snail had hidden up in her shell -- a baby!"
Oh what joy I felt when his face lit up the way it did! We went over and I showed him where I had kept the little guy for him to see. He couldn't believe it. Mrs. Coffee had left us her baby! Josh cried for a second again with sadness and told me he would always miss Mrs. Coffee and never forget her. But he was so glad we got to have her baby! It was kind of like Charlotte's Web (which he read this year) -- sad, but miraculous at the same time. Then he got excited and said, "Let's name it Miracle!"
"That's fine," I said. "But can we please put Miracle OUTSIDE right now?" I didn't want to go through all this again!
I don't know how to explain it really. Was that Mr./Mrs. Coffee's baby? Only God knows. But I know with absolute certainty that it happened the way it did because God knows. He knows our sorrows, he knows our doubts, and - when we come to Him - he shows up. He gives faith. He comforts. Even over a snail.
As we were leaving for school, Joshua told me that he got something I'd been trying to tell him. That sadness and loss are a part of life and it's ok to feel it. God understands. But, eventually, He brings joy again and makes things better. I was blown away by him reciting this back to me. Thank you, Jesus.
And the final thing he said to me was, "Mom, I do want to keep Mrs. Coffee's shell so I can remember her forever, ok?"
And that leads me to the next disastrous curve in the snail trilogy.....stay tuned!
So, after Josh fell asleep, Greg went out to see if any of his resuscitative efforts had worked. No....it hadn't. He was dead and that was the reality. Accepting this, Greg started to get curious and poked around, examining Mr. Coffee. Then he looked at his hand and noticed that the piece of dirt on his finger started moving. He looked closer at it and realized.... it was a baby snail! We both looked at each other and caught our breath.
You have to know that, as wonderful as all creation is to Josh, anything BABY, is just purely thrilling -- whether it's a puppy, duckling, human, or - in this case, we hoped - a snail. I went to bed relieved of the awful feeling (sort of) and wondered if this was going to be how God answered our prayers.
The next morning, I snuggled with my son and told him that I had bad news and good news. First, I told him that Mr. Coffee was truly dead. God did not bring him back to life. Josh's face fell and he began to cry again. I didn't stop him. I let it sink in and I just held him. After a minute or two, he asked me what the good news was. I looked at him and I said, "I think we were confused about Mr. Coffee. I think he was really Mrs. Coffee."
He looked at me funny and said, "What?".
"Yes," I began. "You'll never guess what your snail had hidden up in her shell -- a baby!"
Oh what joy I felt when his face lit up the way it did! We went over and I showed him where I had kept the little guy for him to see. He couldn't believe it. Mrs. Coffee had left us her baby! Josh cried for a second again with sadness and told me he would always miss Mrs. Coffee and never forget her. But he was so glad we got to have her baby! It was kind of like Charlotte's Web (which he read this year) -- sad, but miraculous at the same time. Then he got excited and said, "Let's name it Miracle!"
"That's fine," I said. "But can we please put Miracle OUTSIDE right now?" I didn't want to go through all this again!
I don't know how to explain it really. Was that Mr./Mrs. Coffee's baby? Only God knows. But I know with absolute certainty that it happened the way it did because God knows. He knows our sorrows, he knows our doubts, and - when we come to Him - he shows up. He gives faith. He comforts. Even over a snail.
As we were leaving for school, Joshua told me that he got something I'd been trying to tell him. That sadness and loss are a part of life and it's ok to feel it. God understands. But, eventually, He brings joy again and makes things better. I was blown away by him reciting this back to me. Thank you, Jesus.
And the final thing he said to me was, "Mom, I do want to keep Mrs. Coffee's shell so I can remember her forever, ok?"
And that leads me to the next disastrous curve in the snail trilogy.....stay tuned!
Saturday, May 8, 2010
Mrs. Coffee
This is one of those stories that makes you think parenthood is something you really should get a college degree in first.
When we visited my Grandma several weeks ago, the biggest treasure Joshua found - hands down - was this very large and beautiful snail. It was unlike anything that had ever been discovered in the Banks backyard. The result: a fast, hard bond between boy and gastropod.
We brought it home to my Mom's house and got him all squared away in a nice little habitat. Josh foraged Grammy's produce drawer in the fridge and set up a banquet for the snail in an airy, moist, roomy container. He seemed very happy that first night when we all went to bed. The next morning, however, a good chunk of spinach was gone but so was the snail. A quick survey of the kitchen counter (where our container was) did not give up the slimy guy, nor any evidence of him. A very upset and anxious Joshua ensued. I tried to explain that he couldn't have gone far, they're not very fast you know, and we would surely find him. Honestly, I secretly worried too, but I couldn't deal with it before my first cup of coffee, so I pulled out the pot from against the wall and started to brew some up. "Aahhh!" I heard Josh scream in delight. Happily climbing up the back of the coffee-maker was our silly snail. What a blessing it turned out to be that Mommy so desperately needs her coffee in the morning! All was well again and now we also had a name for the little guy -- Mr. Coffee.
Over the next few days, Josh faithfully fed and watered Mr. Coffee. He got him out and played with him, letting him crawl all over his hands and arms. Even my Mom's dog, Maggie, kinda liked him.
Now here's where a lack of good judgement begins. The day we're to fly home, Josh asks if we can take Mr. Coffee home with us. "Sure!", I say. We can fix him up in the suitcase, no problem. I could blame that thought process on the fact that my mind was in 100 different directions (which it was), but, as my good friend's pilot husband later put it, "What did you think would happen at 30,000 feet in a non-pressurized compartment?" Oh. I'll tell you what happened. After a day of flying all over the place and then losing our luggage for another 24 hours, what happened was the most tragic sight a boy in love with his snail could ever see. I won't even describe it to you. Joshua was unconsolably crying, I was wanting to take a little trip myself in an un-pressurized cabin, and Greg (bless his heart) was pitifully trying to "revive" Mr. Coffee. I don't know if it was for show for a grieving son or if he just needed to alleviate his own disappointment, but he set him in the dirt, misted him with a spray bottle, and massaged his twisted body. Can you picture it? Now that scene is funny to me, but I assure you, it WASN'T at the time!
Joshua went to bed weeping that night. He talked about how Jesus raised himself from the dead -- wouldn't he raise his snail? Could we please pray for a miracle? Well, I pulled it together and we prayed -- for a miracle. It broke my heart in two as I left his room. I felt so guilty. What was I thinking? I prayed, "God please, intervene somehow. Don't let my lack of judgement be a hindrance to Joshua's faith in you. Would you please make this right and show Yourself to Josh?"
He did. More later.:)
When we visited my Grandma several weeks ago, the biggest treasure Joshua found - hands down - was this very large and beautiful snail. It was unlike anything that had ever been discovered in the Banks backyard. The result: a fast, hard bond between boy and gastropod.
We brought it home to my Mom's house and got him all squared away in a nice little habitat. Josh foraged Grammy's produce drawer in the fridge and set up a banquet for the snail in an airy, moist, roomy container. He seemed very happy that first night when we all went to bed. The next morning, however, a good chunk of spinach was gone but so was the snail. A quick survey of the kitchen counter (where our container was) did not give up the slimy guy, nor any evidence of him. A very upset and anxious Joshua ensued. I tried to explain that he couldn't have gone far, they're not very fast you know, and we would surely find him. Honestly, I secretly worried too, but I couldn't deal with it before my first cup of coffee, so I pulled out the pot from against the wall and started to brew some up. "Aahhh!" I heard Josh scream in delight. Happily climbing up the back of the coffee-maker was our silly snail. What a blessing it turned out to be that Mommy so desperately needs her coffee in the morning! All was well again and now we also had a name for the little guy -- Mr. Coffee.
Over the next few days, Josh faithfully fed and watered Mr. Coffee. He got him out and played with him, letting him crawl all over his hands and arms. Even my Mom's dog, Maggie, kinda liked him.
Now here's where a lack of good judgement begins. The day we're to fly home, Josh asks if we can take Mr. Coffee home with us. "Sure!", I say. We can fix him up in the suitcase, no problem. I could blame that thought process on the fact that my mind was in 100 different directions (which it was), but, as my good friend's pilot husband later put it, "What did you think would happen at 30,000 feet in a non-pressurized compartment?" Oh. I'll tell you what happened. After a day of flying all over the place and then losing our luggage for another 24 hours, what happened was the most tragic sight a boy in love with his snail could ever see. I won't even describe it to you. Joshua was unconsolably crying, I was wanting to take a little trip myself in an un-pressurized cabin, and Greg (bless his heart) was pitifully trying to "revive" Mr. Coffee. I don't know if it was for show for a grieving son or if he just needed to alleviate his own disappointment, but he set him in the dirt, misted him with a spray bottle, and massaged his twisted body. Can you picture it? Now that scene is funny to me, but I assure you, it WASN'T at the time!
Joshua went to bed weeping that night. He talked about how Jesus raised himself from the dead -- wouldn't he raise his snail? Could we please pray for a miracle? Well, I pulled it together and we prayed -- for a miracle. It broke my heart in two as I left his room. I felt so guilty. What was I thinking? I prayed, "God please, intervene somehow. Don't let my lack of judgement be a hindrance to Joshua's faith in you. Would you please make this right and show Yourself to Josh?"
He did. More later.:)
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