nobody reads my blog anyway

Just so you know, there will be no pictures

2012-01-13T14:37:00.002-06:00

Well, helllllllllllo, nobody.

I am typing this from the computer located in the drum room. This room also houses my crafty equipment and Kris' audio whateverwhatever but that's beside the point. The window in this room looks out into our backyard containing a lovely deck, an empty garden bed, and an unbelievably overgrown-with-too-spicy-too-eat-lettuce garden bed. But the lettuce is pretty and green and seems to not really care that it froze last night. I suppose spicy lettuce is the best kind to be--resilient and unpalatable. No wonder it grew so well here.

But the drums. I don't actually mind them. With the door closed, it really isn't as grating as one might think. And they are usually trying to play a certain rhythm so even though they are beginners, they are at least thoughtful beginners. That is the best kind to be. Little Simeon (Simmy Shake, Sim-sam, simarooboo, Simmy Jimmy) is not quite as intentional but I can only hope that starting at 18 months will work in my favor. Eventually.

The Brothers Rives are doing well. Asher is ALMOST FIVE. If you have talked to him at all, you no doubt have been informed of this. He is the child whom, at present, challenges me the most. His natural tendencies are almost always not mine so I am frequently presented with an opportunity to lay aside how I think he should do/handle/process/embrace/respond to any given situation and really think about what he needs. He is sensitive and slow to decide and thoughtful. So I am learning to approach him as he is. Not leave him at the mercy of his sin, but not expect him to be someone he isn't. Namely, Jamie Rives.

He has developed quite the vocabulary now that he is reading. He uses words well, but now the challenge is to introduce the concept of a filter. At the park a few weeks ago he asked a little boy, "How smart do you think you are?" The boy replied, "very smart!." Asher said, "Well, I think you are baby-smart because you are not playing very wisely." He recounted this conversation to me later and I told him that, while I admired his word choice, it probably was not his place to comment on the choices of a total stranger.

Jude. For starters, he has considerably less hair now thanks to an unfortunate incident involving a misunderstanding between me and the clippers. He has taken it all in stride and he still looks adorable, but I miss that beautiful, long, thick sandy brown hair with gorgeous blond highlights. Thank God I have all boys because between their hair and my own, I have all that I can handle in the hair care department.

He is his own man. He knows what he wants. He's not much of a cuddler. Doesn't really give a rip. THIS I can relate to. Don't get me wrong, he can send my head spinning as much as Asher, but usually for the opposite reason.

And Simmy. First of all, any thoughts I had about cutting his hair have disappeared completely. Those precious curls are not going anywhere anytime soon. He is talking so much more--well, communicating so much more, let's say. My favorites are "Asha" and "Tude." Mama, Daddy, Pa (Poppy), Maw (Mamaw), car, ball, kie (cookie), cacka, muh (catchall word for drink. Includes but not limited to milk, water, juice.) his favorite word is of course, "no." He is learning, in a rather slow and painful way, that saying to his parents is not acceptable and not the proper response to "obey quickly."

2012 has been nice so far. We have eliminated most of the TV watching that went on here and the effects have been very pleasing. They play more, they read more, I read more, I get more done. I feel like I use the TV now instead of it using us. They watch one show a day now, sometimes two if I need the time to do something, but it is no longer our default entertainment choice or babysitter. So we dropped cable and resubscribed to Netflix and it seems to have been the right time for that change. I really resisted the idea for a long time, but now that we have all adjusted, I'm glad we just did it.

2011-12-05T20:28:00.001-06:00

Jude prays tonight:
Thank you for all the fings. Thank you for da wunerful day. Thank you for da cross. Thank you for all da promises. In Jesus name, Amen!

Asher prays for "the whole United States of America, even Alabama."

Simeon looks blankly at me as I say a prayer for him to "repeat" until I mention Mamaw and Poppy, which causes him to start barking so I won't forget to give thanks for their dogs, too.

Sometimes their prayers are so precious, I think my heart might break right there. Sometimes, after the 8th or 9th train from the island of Sodor is mentioned, I want to shut it down and tell everyone to just go to sleep.

We got a Christmas tree this weekend. Today, we added lights, 24 plastic balls, and this little gem

It's my favorite.

I sold this toy. It has been a favorite around here for almost 4 years. I bought it off Craig's list for Asher's first birthday.

But it had to go. And I got my $20 back.

My kid can read almost all the words on the "100 Words to know by first grade" list. I'm thrilled!

This little thing just hit the 17 month mark. He's a curly-headed force to be reckoned with.

Thanksgiving 2011

2011-11-25T08:05:00.001-06:00

We watched the parade and attempted to teach the boys how to play checkers.

We went to the park and challenged each other to feats of strength.

We ate a lunch consisting if salad, hot dogs, quinoa, leftover chili, and yogurt because of course I had not been to the grocery store.

The boys took naps. Kris worked on his sermon for Sunday. I watched the new Will Ferrell movie.

We got ready and went to Grammy's house in Friendswood. Jude ate nothing. Asher ate a little real food and a generous serving of pie. Simeon almost everything set before him. And pie.

On our way home, we gave the Hispanic Fran Drescher and her fraternal twin sister a ride to her in laws house after stopping to see if they needed help with their flat tire. She was on the phone the whole way and informed everyone she was in her way to her ( insert FCC-banned slur for black people here)'s house. I am thankful we could help them and also that we will be able to say to each other, "remember the thanksgiving that we have the Hispanic Fran Drescher and her fraternal twin sister a ride...?"

We watched the end of The Game and then about 10 more minutes of a movie we started at the beginning of the week. We keep falling asleep.

2011-11-23T19:07:00.004-06:00

Yes, the blog as I knew it has been tweaked slightly, but I feel WYPW is a staple that should not be kicked to the curb along with my old header. And blog name. And dignity.

So, even though nobody reads my blog anyway, I will continue this tradition. Because I'm SO big on those.

Which, incidentally, leads me to my point, believe it or not. Didn't leave that question dangling out there for long, now did I?

Tomorrow is Thanksgiving Day. President Washington held the first "official" one during his first year in office. A "Day of Publick Thanksgiving and Prayer" he called it, no less. It was a tradition celebrated by most colonies already but this was a first as a nation. And then President Lincoln made it an official holiday to be celebrated the fourth Thursday in November. And then President Roosevelt moved it to the third Thursday. Because that would extend the holiday shopping season. Publick Thanksgiving and Prayer indeed. His best to the Pilgrims, no doubt.

Of course John Piper, on Facebook, has to throw down the gauntlet with this reminder of the very words of Jesus,

"Whenever you give a dinner or a banquet, do not invite your friends or your brothers, or your relatives or your rich neighbors, lest they also invite you in return and it be a repayment for you. But when you give a feast, invite the poor, the maimed, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you. For it will be repaid to you in the resurrection of the just." (Luke 14:12–14)

Jesus really said those words. Why have I never put that in the context of our Thanksgiving meal before?

So if it's not a day of public thanksgiving and prayer (I've never publicly done either on this day) and it's not a feast to which I invite those that could never repay, what is it? My holiday angst. I don't get like this around Halloween. It's all so straightforward (unless you consider the slave labor chocolate issue.) But I struggle (no, not "struggle." That implies much more passion than is really involved.) I brood the issue (over pumpkin pie of course) from now until Easter.

I think I'm thankful. I say "thank you" a lot. Does that count? In prayers. In conversations. I try to express gratitude because I really do see that what I get to partake in are undeserved, yea, ill-deserved, blessings that I absolutely would be lost without. And I know God is the Giver. And I happen to really like a large portion of what he has given and the things I happen not to be so fond of really pale in comparison so thankfulness, while labored at times, is pretty easy to produce. Of course, I've never set sail for a foreign land, watched most of my co-Pilgrims die, struggle through brutal winters, and then come through it all with food and shelter and faith so it's hard to say, really.

We've been teaching the boys "For the Beauty of the Earth" and "We Gather Together." Because they are terribly Thanksgivingy hymns and it just seems appropriate. I really like them both but the words of "We Gather Together" are particularly encouraging.

We gather together to ask the Lord’s blessing;
He chastens and hastens His will to make known;
The wicked oppressing now cease from distressing;
Sing praises to His Name; He forgets not His own.

Beside us to guide us, our God with us joining,
Ordaining, maintaining His kingdom divine;
So from the beginning the fight we were winning;
Thou, Lord, were at our side, all glory be Thine!

We all do extol Thee, Thou Leader triumphant,
And pray that Thou still our Defender will be;
Let Thy congregation escape tribulation;
Thy Name be ever praised! O Lord, make us free!

It's Good For the Soul

2011-11-21T20:43:00.004-06:00

That's what they say anyway. Ooohh...confessions as the first post under my new banner. This might just get interesting. (Probably not.)

I spend way too much time thinking about what I'm going to wear. I'm a 32 year old mom of 3 that drives a minivan for the love of God. But I do. And I'll tell you why. I felt out of place and out of style for a lot of my life. And now, I know what I like and I know what I don't and I lost a lot of baby weight. So getting dressed is kind of fun. But I wish I cared less. It can't be the best use of time. Or brain space. Or soul space. Damn that Ann Taylor and her loft.

I take lame self-portraits. I do. There I said it. I try to get that "I just happen to have this picture of just me where I look AMAZING that someone took without my knowledge and then emailed it to me" look. Then I crop and filter the heck out of it and it still doesn't look how I wish it did.

I hate most pictures of me. But I do love my new necklace. That thing is pure awesome.

I have sewn very few things in the sewing room that I just had to have. A shark costume, (Shark with cute ballerina Meadow)

a pair of pajama pants (ok, I didn't really sew those. I took them in because they were XL ones that I bought from Goodwill and I needed a better fit. See above.) I altered a dress that I've had in my closet for years but hardly ever wore because it hit my legs to low. In a flash of what can only be described as epiphinic, I hemmed it. Problem solved. We went through a lot to make this room possible. We have all of our children crammed into one room so that I can craft and Kris can record. Seems like I should have more to justify overhauling our whole lives. Alas.

It took me 3 months to finish Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. Everyone told me it was the one that would seal the deal for me as a HP fan and there would be no looking back. Well. Let me tell you. It did drag on so. Because I have this thing in my head that compels me to have a different experience than the one I am expected to have--even when I would be perfectly fine having the expected experience. (It's not you, Laura, it's me. Assuming you are reading this. Probably not. No one does.) It's so irritating being me. I get on my own nerves most of the time. What are we talking about? Yes, Harry. I did finish and am planning on borrowing Book 5 from Cheryl when I see her tomorrow. I'm in this far so I might as well.

Tonight as we were finishing dinner, I told Jude that he must eat all his hamburger patty. Not because I am worried about his iron level or growth but because I buy our meat from a co-op and it's expensive. Jude told me, "I did eat it." "No," said I, "there is still meat on your plate." He picked the small uneaten piece up and held it in his fist. "No there isn't, " he said smugly. Jude comes up with these little retorts often which prompts Kris to cast his raised-eyebrow glance toward me and make some veiled accusation about exactly where this propensity Jude has for sass may or may not come from. It was funny. I try really hard (most of the time) to let their need for discipline take precedence over my desire to just laugh off the wrong, but occasionally humorous, behavior. Except this time I didn't. We'll hit that "no back talk" thing hard tomorrow.

Normally, I would be worried about being perceived as a vain, lazy, pitiful excuse for a parent after a post like this. But I'm not now. Nobody reads my blog anyway.

2011-11-20T09:46:00.002-06:00

I'm a firm believer in stopping what you are doing immediately if you find that it is not working. In 2006, I opened up blogger at my computer at school when I probably should have been teaching students and decided to start a blog entitled "Grace Upon Grace." (In my defense, it was the week before school let out. My grades were turned in. I guess maybe some teachers cared enough to use every moment for instruction. I did not. To say the least.)

Here I have recorded our lives (more or less.) But I've struggled more and more to write consistently. I think because I felt like this blog had to be this or that type of blog. And I had to write about this. And I couldn't write about that.

But no more! Because nobody reads this blog anyway! I'm writing for myself. I like to write, yet I've neglected this outlet because of self-imposed restrictions. So with the exception of a few good friends and my mother (whom I mean no disrespect to, of course,) I am moving forward under the assumption that nobody reads this blog anyway. Goodbye stat counter and map. So long trying to make my mark on the blogosphere or trying to be a faithful family journaler. I'll still post about the kids and try to mention things that 80 year old Jamie will enjoy reading when 53 year old Asher, 52 year old Jude, and 51 year old Simeon never call or write. Hopefully 85 year old Kris will be next to me reminding me not to be too hard on them, because that's what he does. And I'll rant and observe and editorialize I'm sure. Who knows! It's just me, a computer, and my words now. I will write whatever I want.

Because nobody reads my blog anyway.

Summer 2011

2011-09-04T15:31:00.001-05:00

Just to ensure the gaps in my blogging are somewhat filled in, I thought I'd go through my phone pictures and post a few from the last few months. My life is both fascinating and amazing so not to include even the most mundane details seems unfair to you all. Please enjoy.

I fell in love with Pinterest and became determined to actually do some of the projects I pinned. Thank goodness for the filters on Instagram because they made these cake balls look way more vibrant than they were in real life. Incidentally, I found cake balls to be way more trouble than they're worth.

My Wimberly girls and I went to one of those painting places (at my suggestion, it must be noted.) Laura and Cheryl's turned out beautifully. My painting was disastrous. I call it "The coffee filter wore panties."

No more painting.

We saw The Civil Wars!

Favorite band ever. It was absolutely the best concert I've ever been to. The Mucky Duck was the perfect venue and I'm so glad we had the chance to see them (and be those nerds that hang around for a picture) because I'm sure next time they're in town, it will be in a huge venue and as much as it pains me to admit, John Paul and Joy will probably not remember me and make a special request for me to join them backstage.

Laura and I trying not to look too giddy about our night as cool urban concert goers.

Little did everyone around us know we were wiping bottoms and cutting up PB and J sandwiches mere hours before.

Simeon turned 1.

Thank goodness for a brother that does not force you to eat your cake alone.

Jude turned 3.

He had a shark party with a few of his little friends here and then a Thomas party (duh) with family at my parents' house. I intend to blog more fully about these special occasions but in case I don't, at least I mentioned it in passing, right?

I finally got all three boys pictures on the wall.

Two of these frames were purchased in 2006 with the express intention of hanging future children's pictures in them. By the time I got them on the wall, I had to go back for one more frame.

I ran a race. The look on my face says it all.

Actually, I look a little more joyful and relaxed here than I was. Ugh. That race. Moving on.

The boys spent a lot of time on Mamaw and Poppy's "sliding down pool" as it has been named by it's primary users.

I caved and let the boys use the face painting crayons at the children's museum.

Simmy got a haircut! No more George Washington, Patti. He's all business now.

Those spots on the carpet behind him are hair. I was so desperate to finish, I drug his high chair to the living room so he could see the tv. It actually required two more venue changes to complete the job. It was like giving a cat a bath. But less peaceful.

Wow. Ok, I've shocked even myself. I better stop before I pull something.

This Will Be About Vomit

2011-09-03T19:03:00.001-05:00

One thing having several small children has taught me is that when one gets sick, I should just go ahead and prepare myself mentally that they all will get sick.
And I probably will too. Particularly if it is of the stomach bug variety.

Asher and Simeon both got sick Wednesday night. It was Simmy's first official vomit. Very special. Simeon didn't ever act like he felt badly but Asher ran fever and was pretty out of it Thursday. Friday morning, Simeon had one final puke, Asher was feeling good, and I was just starting to think that Jude may slide by unscathed.

But that afternoon, I started feeling nauseous. Kris came home to me on the floor in the fetal position with the kids playing around me. We like to kick off Labor Day weekend right.

Kris took over as I dealt with my issues and a few hours later, Jude joined the ranks. Poor little fella had the worst go of it of all of us. He was vomiting all night long. Superdad Kris slept on the floor by him and carried him to the bathroom when he needed to throw up. I was so weak that I could barely stand.

But today, I am pleased to tell you, has been vomit-free. We all feel tremendously better and if we make it until tomorrow morning with no incidents, I am declaring September Sickfest over.

Kris is running sound tonight and in the morning and he is preaching tomorrow night. He feels fine so far but prayers for his health and strength would be much appreciated!

I Never Did Care for the Metric System

2011-08-28T08:28:00.006-05:00

Kilometers. Ten of them.

Honestly, it wasn't that great. I was hot and tired. I hadn't eaten very much the day before which in retrospect was quite the unfortunate oversight. I felt oddly stressed out by the whole ordeal. Obviously, this was not a big deal. A local race. My first race at that. Why would I have any expectations other than just completing it.

But now that I have entered this whole running world, I have one more area to place unrealistic expectations on myself and then more evidence that I'm really not athletic.

See I told you so.

Jr. high volleyball was my first clue. High school tennis was another one. I could go on. Fighting the very genes that make you is exhausting. I'm "be just OK enough to participate but never quite rock it out" Girl.

Where's my cape?

Which then propels me to continue to embark on that challenge just to prove that I'm not as pathetic as I first thought. So the whole thing becomes, not about enjoying the run and being healthy, but about engaging in this weird inner-dialogue in which I simultaneously berate and encourage myself. I have these two needs that seem to be mutually exclusive, yet somehow cohabitate within my head. I need to beat myself down with jeering insults and then I need to prove to myself that I'm really not what I told myself I was. I think healthy people just deal with these things when they present themselves via other people. I just save other people the trouble.

All this to say, I have to run another dadgum 10K. I've entered in to this tolerate/hate realtionship with running and now I can't quit it. I should have seen this coming. I knew better.

On the upside, I did burn 1255 calories. So there's that.

WYPW (Edition: Happy Thursday!)

2011-08-25T08:51:00.002-05:00

I'm running my first race this weekend. I'm still not convinced this is my thing. There are things that I really do love about running. The challenge. The time alone. The fact that all you have to do is walk out your door and you're there. But I've realized that I do need some sort of goal to work towards. But that requires commitment which I do not generally enjoy (the Lord and Kris being the notable exceptions.) And if I commit to another race in a few months that means that the race will occur when it is cold. And the chances of me going outside for extended periods of time while it is cold to train are not good. I know, I know--you warm up quickly but (and this is the part where I realize I have officially become my mother) I HATE being cold. Even really-not-that-cold-compared-to-Maryland-or-Minnesota-cold cold. So that is my dilemma. But maybe I'll love the race experience and I'll be hooked and I won't care if I have to be cold for a little while. I'll let you know.

Let's hear it for school starting! This means that the library, zoo, children's museum, and Chick-fil-a are back to being either way less crowded or crowded with people all about the size of my own children. I like this. While we miss Kris terribly now that he is back at work, we are soothing that pain with outings that do not involve crowds.

I think we are going to begin a modified pre-K/K program here at The Rives School for Higher Learning. Asher, in true firstborn fashion, is ready. He reads pretty well, he writes his name and can figure out how to spell a lot of words, and he is getting a handle on number concepts so I really need to take advantage of his eagerness. I ordered a kindergarten curriculum set a while back that is based on the classical model and I think it will be fairly easy to adapt it for this year. He is only 4 so I don't feel like we need to have an overly structured school day just yet but there is nothing like that youthful zeal to learn!

Do you know about Noonday Collection? There is a very good chance that I will have the opportunity soon to be involved with this amazing organization, Lord willing. I am so supportive of this business-model which the Sseko founder refers to as "not(just)for profit." In this model, businesses are not forced to "pick a side"--either exist to help people and do good OR exist to make money and grow. Noonday Collection, and many businesses like it, embrace the idea that BOTH are possible and preferable! I love it. It's encouraging to see how it is growing and the opportunities it presents to women all over the world.

And now, I will go rescue the pterydactel that is screeching in the other room. Or it might just be Simeon letting me know he is not napping this morning. I'll report back and let you know.

Photo Sin Thesis

2011-08-16T17:13:00.004-05:00

Nowadays, everything must be photographed. Did you hear me? Everything. Especially once you have children. And I don't just mean the milestones--birthdays, first haircuts, opening Christmas presents--I mean, everything. Or else it might as well have never happened at all.

And then (get this,) there are some people who not only do this but then they take those pictures and they EDIT them and make the moment even less like it really was, therefore much more worth remembering. And THEN (don't even get me to lying,) some people take these EDITED photos and glue them to fancy paper and arrange them just so and adhere sparkly stickers to the page and type some endearing quote in some cutesy font and place all this nonsense in a scrapbook.

And not a few of these pictures are taken with a camera that costs more than my car.

And let's not forget to put all these edited pictures on the bloody blog, k?

I am the absolute worst when it comes to taking pictures. I comfort myself often with the thought that we will not take our photos with us to heaven so even if I regret not being a more diligent pictorial historian, at least my sorrow will be not longer than my life. I may or may not have issues.

Thankfully, many people in my life DO have awesome cameras and the desire to use them. So photos of my children's important events do have a good chance of being captured. For example, two of my sisters-in-law have fancypants cameras and Simeon's first birthday pictures are currently on one of their memory cards. This makes me feel better but it has kept me from blogging since then because who blogs about other stuff before blogging about their baby's first birthday? The better option seemed to be to allow the blog to lay dormant for lo, these many months while countless other details of our daily lives go undocumented. My mind is like a silo for logic.

Go and sin no more? I wish. I doubt I'll change. You'll see me (sometimes) get a pic or two on the ol' iPhone, maybe the point-and-shoot if I'm have an exceptional day. I just can't take the pressure of more. My photography skills are sorely lacking. My uploading, editing, and posting skills even more so. So I'm just letting it go. I can't deal with anymore. I gotta be me.

Now that we've gotten that straight, let the blogging resume.

Pinterest Help

2011-06-15T19:44:00.002-05:00

I mentioned in my last post that my newest obsession is a very fun site called Pinterest. It is basically a set of virtual bulletin board that you "pin" images to that you run across online or while perusing other people's boards. It's a really easy way to keep track of fun ideas you want to try to make, wear, see, do, read, photograph, etc.

But it is a little overwhelming to figure out. I found this post very helpful. I think because it is fairly new, there are still several kinks to be worked out, but once you get the hang of it, you will be hooked!

Let me know if you join so I can follow you!

WYPW (edition: head start)

2011-06-14T06:00:00.000-05:00

Let's be honest--major slackage going on here. The latest blogging sensation, our very own WYPW, seems to catch me off guard each week. You want Wednesdays to come and go at the speed of light? Launch what may very well be the biggest thing to hit the blog world and watch them zoom past you. So I'm outsmarting Wednesday and posting on Tuesday. How ya like them apples?

The big boys are at Mamaw and Poppy's house for a few days. Asher says he wants to stay 4 days and Jude says he wants to stay 2 minutes. We'll probably meet somewhere in the middle. I miss my little guys and I'd like to think the feeling is mutual. But Mamaw and Poppy purchased a very large inflatable waterslide and provide ice cream sandwiches for dessert so it's not likely.

I'm meeting some friends in the morning to do a Dirt Bag-inspired workout. Since I've tentatively ventured into the world of running, I've realized how important it is to balance your strength, flexibility, and cardio training. Fauxga was helpful in developing the first two, but I started from scratch building up some cardio endurance. I'm definitely enjoying running more than I thought I would but I still have quite a way to go before I'm where I'd like to be. But using the heart rate monitor strapped to my chest, the ipod strapped to my arm, and the Nike+ chip embedded in my shoe, I think I may just get there one day.

Speaking of Dirt Bag, you know something's legit when you walk away with a t-shirt!

I realize the sling obscures the t-shirt but I had to put Simeon in that sling today. We have been sorting and packing up baby items that we don't plan on using in the near future. Space is at a premium in our home so if it's not being used and it's not a huge pain to borrow or replace should we need it again, it's going to someone who can use it. So my heart has been in a very fragile state realizing that diaper bags and changing tables are not, for the first time in over four years, a part of my life right now. Even my baby is becoming not so much a baby. So, you see, in order to not fall completely apart emotionally, I needed to put him in that sling.

He was not a fan.

And I did not care.

He would give me a little snuggle for a few seconds now and then, but most of our trip to Home Depot involved him throwing himself back in effort to break free. From his mama. Who loves him. Have you ever heard of such a thing?

We were at Home Depot buying paint for our new home office/recording studio/craft room. I'm very excited! The boys are doing well in their room together so it is full steam ahead on reclaiming some space around here for the ones that pay for it in the first place. My living room is a wreck right now with all the stuff that is in transition from one room to another. But soon it will all be organized and all will be well.

I'd like to write a little about Pinterest right now but I HAVE to go to bed since the 5 am wake up call is right around the corner, so I'll save that for another day, but if you are not on it yet, you simply must sign up. Addicting. So addicting.

Six.

2011-06-11T21:23:00.006-05:00

Today is the anniversary of the day when Mr. Rives and I stood before God and spoke holy vows. We covenanted with Him and with one another. We promised to love each other. We promised that the only way we would separate would be if God Himself took one of us away. We promised to walk through life together, holding fast in all sorts of situations implicit in the word "life." We walked in that building two, we left as one.

So how do you commemorate such a sacred day?

You go eat cupcakes. Duh.

Asher was a big fan.

As was Jude.

Simeon really, really enjoyed his as well.

I won't lie. I really, really enjoyed mine, too.

Speaking of cupcakes...does it get any sweeter than that little cupcake right there?

And Simmy's pretty cute, too, isn't he?

Happy anniversary, Kristopher! I wouldn't trade you for all the cupcakes at Sprinkles!

Too much self-editing makes for a quiet blog

2011-06-05T10:02:00.001-05:00

There are a lot of bugs in our yard. We are constantly waging war against these creatures that we tower over by a good million percent. They are our sworn enemies and what they lack in size, they make up for in reputation. The wasps enjoy the curtain portion of our canopy. The mosquitoes, who would have not batted an eye at Jesus' words I'm guessing, feast daily on our blood. And the ants. Oh my word the ants. We are forever spraying down and covering in various substances and squishing and squashing in effort to communicate, in no uncertain terms I feel, that they are not welcome here. Honestly, if I could, I would deliver a speech declaring my utmost respect for their labor and accomplishments. It really is extraordinary. I've read Proverbs. There is a sermon in that ant bed. But you bit my babies. So your ass is out of here.

Yes, I say "ass" sometimes. "Butt" is sort of on my nerves and "behind" doesn't really deliver the punch that I'm going for. I realize some people don't think a nice Christian girl ought to use such language, but for me, it gets the job done. Words really are neutral. You should hear what you can get away with saying in other cultures, even English speaking ones. For something to be sinful, it has to be wrong all the time and for everyone. It is not sin for me to say "ass." But it might be sin for me to call you an ass. Unless you are really being one and then it might be a great kindness on my part. Maybe your assness has been tolerated too long and it's just dragging you down? Maybe you need to snap out of it and enjoy God and life and ice cream again? Search your heart.

Cotton candy ice cream with "m's and m's." That was Jude's choice at Friday night's "boys' night out." Blue #40 running out his ears. I try to strike a balance when dealing with what my kids eat. But I also try to make it a non-issue. I don't want food to be this big thing that they connect their identity to. "I'm a health nut." "I'm a big fat slob." "I'm a crunchy organic monstrosity of a human." "I only eat crap but I give all the extra money I save to orphans." I just want them to eat when they're hungry. And to realize what feels good to eat a lot of and what feels good to eat a little bit of and that those that approach it differently may very well be lovely people that don't need any lip from them.

Well, I did blog. Be careful what you ask for.

What's Your Point? Wednesday (edition: has it been a week already?)

2011-05-18T08:36:00.004-05:00

Of note this past week:

--Dirt Bag Boot Camp continues. Wendy is a fabulous trainer. I get the sense that she is deriving a certain amount of pleasure from seeing our contorted faces as we struggle to complete the exercises, but I guess these boot camps can get rather monotonous for her and she has to throw a few things at us purely for her own amusement.

--Tragic announcement (please sit if you are not already): My iPhone is gone. It apparently fell out of the car in the parking lot as I was getting out Monday evening and surprisingly enough, no one has attempted to return it to its rightful owner. It's frustrating on several levels, but it is, after all, just a phone. A phone that I really, really liked. Perhaps a little too much, so I'm processing that and making sure I "Don't Waste Losing My iPhone." But enough about the phone. Farewell, old friend. May you enjoy your stay on the black market and your new owner.

--Simeon is pulling up on everything now. He tries to stand up on his own by doing a challenging, downward-dogesque move but so far has been unsuccessful.

--Asher is very into sounding out words now. It really surprises me how well he can read most CVC words. Today he told me how to spell Jim, which is his Poppy's name. Then he said, "The place you go to work out is J-I-M, too?" I began to explain how G sometimes makes the same sound as a J, and Y is sometimes used as a vowel and that English is a really frustrating language to master, so that word is really G-Y-M. He said, "Oh, the gym we go to is G-Y-M and the Jim we love is J-I-M!" Exactly.

--Jude was sick last weekend and as I was trying to be really nurturing and comforting by rubbing his back as he was lying in bed, he looked at me and said, "I want you to go." Touching. But I can't blame him. Just leave me alone and let me sleep. Jude and I are cut from the same cloth indeed.

--Asher had his last soccer game on Saturday. It was quite a season for the Yellow Lightening. He was on a team with a bunch of his friends and he had a great coach, so it was a really good experience for him. We aren't playing any sports this summer but this fall, Jude will have turned 3 so they will be able to play on a team together. And he has already informed us that we will watch him play and we will (oh yes we will) yell, "YAY JUDE!!!!!!" when he is on the field. My inner-crazy-sideline-yelling-mom-self started to emerge this season so little does he know, he has nothing to worry about.

WYPW (Edition: Jude)

2011-05-11T08:39:00.006-05:00

Life as we know it continues. This is no small gift, I realize, but it doesn't make for a very active blog. So here we are again at another WYPW, also known as the one day each week I post.

Jude is in the bathroom right now taking full advantage of being in the bathroom by repeating "poo-poo!" over and over again because the bathroom is the one place that, as he is reminded constantly, potty-talk is acceptable. If you are, in fact, poo-pooing on the potty, you may talk about it as much as you please. And so he does.

He is most definitely a "seize the moment" kind of guy. When he sees opportunity, he goes for it. Asher and I were at the gym the other night, Simeon was taking a catnap, Kris was in another room, and Jude was, supposedly, watching Thomas in the living room. Except he wasn't. He got a stool from the bathroom and brought it to the kitchen and proceeded to help himself to my freshly-baked zucchini bread I made for our bible study the next day. He ate the entire top layer, which, incidentally, is my favorite part, too. He did get a spanking for getting a stool and using it to take something off of the oven, but we secretly laughed because that is quintessential Jude.

We have recently convinced him that his name is not Judah-cuda Kristobear Rives. He has several nicknames which have only served to confuse him. Judah Barracuda and Judah Bear mingled with his given name resulted in the hilariously inaccurate moniker above. We think he is clear about it now though.

Yesterday Asher helped him with something and he said, "Thank you, Asher! You're the best big brother in the whole wide world." He also spilled some milk and went right to the towel drawer, got out a towel, and cleaned up his mess. Moments like those are so comforting. He CAN be taught!

My point? I find Jude to be a delightful combination of frustrating and endearing.

Kris might tell you the exact same thing about someone else we all know and love.

So what's YOUR point? Please do share!

WYPW

2011-05-04T08:08:00.003-05:00

Well I'll just go ahead and tell you right now what my point is. My point is I. AM. SORE.

For reasons still unclear to me, I accepted an invitation from my friend, Wendy, to attend Dirt Bag Boot Camp, which she runs. It was on a total whim that I made this decision. I've never wanted to go boot camp. I've never even thought about going to boot camp. And yet, I find myself at boot camp. At 5 o'clock. In the morning. Cheryl accepted the challenge, too. And now we can't quit because we both have this intense need to show the other up...er...I mean, finish what we start. Yeah...that's it.

In all honesty, as painful as these past 3 days have been (only 17 more to go!) it has felt good to try to do something challenging. I have run more in the past three days than in the past three years. I told Cheryl I sort of bragged a little to various people that I lost all my baby weight without doing any cardio (just strength and flexibility training) but I was wishing that first day I would have hit the treadmill a time or two. I wished it the second day, too. And about my fourth time up the 6 story parking garage this morning, I wished it again. It's good to regain a little lung capacity. And all the other stuff besides the cardio--I can't even talk about it right now. It's too soon. I might cry. (My point: I already told you. I'm sore.)

I had a conversation with Asher that went something like this this morning:

A--Mom! There's something BAD happening outside right now!
Me--Oh no! What! (said in my best fake-concerned voice as I could hear Jude playing nicely and as long as that is happening, how bad could whatever it is really be?)
A--There is a FLY on our LETTUCE! And I sang this song to it: "Shoo, fly! Don't bother our lettuce." and it would not go away.
Me--Well maybe it's not familiar with that song. Maybe you need to actually shoo it away. Not all flies pick up on subtle hints in the form of folk songs.
A--I did! And it just went more into the lettuce.

(My point: Four year olds are pretty funny.)

Simeon pulled up on the coffee table today for the first time today! He smiled at me with a "well this is a skill that's going to come in handy" look on his face. (My point: Where did my baby go?)

I'd write more, but I am conserving the rest of my energy for tomorrow. When I will wake up at 5 o'clock. In the morning.

Simeon James the 10 Month Old

2011-04-28T20:38:00.004-05:00

Simeon is 10 months old today! I have yet to do an actual post on him since his birth. This does not surprise me nor does it induce feelings of guilt. I've just decided to not do that whole thing where I bemoan all the documenting I ought to do but don't. I love Simmy and I could not be more thrilled that he is mine. So put that in your scrapbook and smoke it.

I love this picture of Simeon because he is shoving food in his mouth. At Jason's Deli no less. He eats basically whatever we eat now. Occasionally, if he is eating before we do, I'll give him some baby food but it really surprises me that he will still eat it. It's nice to be at the point where we can all eat the same meal.

Simeon stated crawling at about 8.5 months. He is by far the earliest crawler but that's not surprising since he had great motivation to become mobile. Asher and Jude were having way too much fun to just continue to sit there and watch. He hasn't started pulling up to standing yet though. I think because it looks a lot like work and he's not really into that kind of thing.

He just recently dropped his little 3rd cat nap so he's down to just a morning (when we are home) and a good solid 2-3 hour nap in the afternoon. He has 3 bottles a day but barely drinks 6 oz. each time. This may have something to do with all the face-stuffing that goes on during meals. (See picture above.)

I'm not sure how much he weighs (probably in the 23-24 lb. range.) Or how long he is. Or how big his head is. These are important statistics, I'm sure, but I don't really buy that whole "well check-up" thing so it's been...let's just say "a while"...since he has visited the doctor.

He has a lovey. It is a beautiful, knitted baby blanket that was actually made for Asher and since he was 3 or 4 months old, it has been his favorite. I initially used it to cover him because it has spaces between the stitiches so I was never worried about it obstructing his breathing. And now he is obsessed with it. I'm trying to avoid a Jude situation where the lovey is his best friend on the planet so we try to leave it in his bed unless we are going to be gone during nap time or overnight.

Simeon is still such a sweet, sweet baby with a way of looking at you that is sort of entrancing. Even when he was a newborn, he would look intently into my eyes. People often comment about the way he looks at them, too. He really seems to be focusing on you and paying attention to what you say. It is clear already that he has a special quality about him--he draws people in and wins them over so easily. But I'm just his mother--what do I know?

Of course, I must make note of ALL the things he is up to. He is a little doll...most of the time. But he has his moments. Usually when I am trying to change his diaper. And he likes to screech. And growl. It's pretty funny actually but he can get really rough. We call him the little warrior because he will attack. Good thing he has big brothers to keep him in check.

He needs a haircut. My friend Patti refers to his 'do as the "George Washington look." Admittedly, the hair is a little unruly, but you give a baby that first big boy haircut and the next thing you know they are 4 and calling you "mom." I'm not falling for that one again.

I can't believe we are approaching his first birthday! He has been such a welcomed addition to our family and, more importantly, to Asher and Jude's band. We all are quite smitten with this little guy and love getting to spend our days with him.

Sweet Simmy--you are one loved 10 month old.

WYPW (Edition: On Wednesday! Hurray!)

2011-04-27T00:01:00.002-05:00

Oh yes. I'm doing a WYPW post on Wednesday. It's because I've had it on my calendar ALL week and could hardly wait for this day to roll around! (My Point: It's really because Cheryl, in the midst of a text-conversation tonight, asked if I was working on my WYPW post yet.)

Well my Easter post was fun, wasn't it? I hope everyone understands that any comments left that questioned my position were received in the best possible way. I enjoy spirited discussion and realize that my outlook on certain topics needs a little challenging from time to time. I'll either become aware of error in my thinking and make the necessary adjustments or I will receive great satisfaction from realizing just how right I am. It's a win/win. (My Point: I like arguing. Virtue or Vice? Yes.)

Congratulations to Robin, the big winner in my giveaway! I hope she read the fine print, which indicates that, once she receives her loot, she must bombard family, friends, and distant acquaintances with constant praise of Scentsy and unceasing appeals to buy product from me. (My Point: You should really buy something, too.)

Speaking of friends that I met about 6 years ago, Kathy is back in the blogging world! (My Point: It's about time.)

It was one of those days today. Well, one of those afternoon and evenings I should say. The morning was spent playing with friends. Other than the tremendous sink-envy I'm now experiencing from my friend's gorgeous farmhouse sink, the first half of the day was great.

Ok, this isn't her house, but it's darn close. Anyway, fun time with good friends. That part of the day was good.

But then we came home and the realization that it was time to do it all. over. again. kind of got to me. Make lunch. Feed boys. Pray for an uninterrupted hour while they have "rest (in the loosest sense of the word) time." The straightening up of the living room before Kris gets home so it looks like I've done something all day. The cleaning up of the breakfast dishes. And the lunch dishes. At 2 in the afternoon. The laundry baskets that still need to be folded. Not to mention the three young boys that really have no respect for my inner turmoil and still required my attention. Sometimes I feel so energized by restoring order to my house and sometimes it completely frustrates me.

I don't mean I'm not thankful for it or that I don't want to take care of what God has given. But the repetition can be overwhelming at times--I think, "seriously? This is already dirty?" or "Didn't I just get all this picked up?" But the fact is that not every day is going to flow seamlessly. Some days will be more of a struggle. I have 3 kids 4 and under. Nothing about that screams "efficient." So I do what needs to be done and I quit letting how I feel dictate what I do. (My Point: These are the moments I really want to get better at talking to myself instead of listening to myself. )

Need an excuse to have absolutely no overarching theme to your post? Then link up!

And the Scentsy Goes To...

2011-04-25T20:19:00.002-05:00

Robin!

There's a cute video documenting the drawing. But my netbook is not recognizing the QuickTime file. But everything is on the up and up and Asher can vouch for me that he did in fact draw Robin's name.

Robin, I think I have your current address but will you email it to me just in case. Congrats!

Localish (Houston/Beaumont) friends--I'm placing an order this weekend so if there is anything you would like, email me and I can include it in that order and save you the shipping fee.

A Less Controversial Post (unless you have a problem with blatent self-promotion)

2011-04-24T21:20:00.003-05:00

Just wanted to remind you that my giveaway ends tomorrow! If you would like the opportunity to win a little Scentsy swag, please leave me a comment on this post!

I know there are a few guys that read this blog and I would like to point out that women love this stuff! So enter and win some for your wife, mother, or girlfriend. I'm not kidding. Major points to be had here. Am I right, ladies?

As with all giveaways, not all who enter will win. Do not let that get you down! Just order some anyway.

And if you have no clue what the heck Scenty is, go here.

And if you do not care what Scentsy is, go here.

Winner announced tomorrow!

How I Spent My Easter Vacation

2011-04-22T14:55:00.000-05:00

I would love for this to be a really cohesive, articulate post on my thoughts on Easter, the church calendar, hatching chicks, the Resurrection of Christ, and chocolate bunnies. Because my head may be visibly bulging as these thoughts bounce around in there, it will unfortunately fall quite short of that. I can't get a firm enough hold on any of my thoughts long enough to know what category to put them in. I'm hoping that writing some of this down will help me know...ummm...me, I guess? I want to dwell richly on all that Christ came near to accomplish. I want to enjoy fun traditions with my children, too. And Lord knows I want any excuse to buy matching seersucker outfits for the little guys. But I don't feel right about doing any of this.

"Christ has died. Christ has risen. Christ will come again." This is our assurance as believers. This is huge. If any part of that confession were not true, then the whole thing would be worthless. But it is true. And it is glorious! And it is a precious doctrine that we should immerse ourselves in because within it lies immeasurable comfort and hope and security and joy. So if "celebrating Easter" means doing just that, then I'm in.

But in our culture, "celebrating Easter" may include, but is definitely not limited to, those things. There are countless other symbols and ideas that accompany Easter that have nothing to do with the life and death of Jesus. (Not that clever marketers haven't done their level best to change that--Resurrection eggs anyone? Kill me now.) Easter means we get to do LOTS of things...wear pretty new dresses and get candy in our baskets AND meditate on Christ's substitutionary death on the cross and his subsequent victory over death, hell and the grave. Whew! Now that's a lot for one Sunday afternoon.

If it was purely a time where we donned our pastels, hunted for some eggs that a large rabbit hid, and made ourselves sick on Peeps in honor of the coming of Spring or our taxes being filed or some other agreed upon happy occasion, then I'm good. Toss me the ears from your chocolate bunny. But we try to do both. Well, not really try--we do both. We do all of these things that have nothing to do with what we claim to be celebrating and this is why I struggle. Because it creates anomalies like Resurrection eggs. We want to take part in the cultural celebrations but we also want to honor Christ. So we have this weird bastard child of a holiday that combines crosses and Cadbury creme eggs. Shouldn't we pick a focus?

This is all magnified even more to me now that I am a parent. Kris and I are constantly explaining new concepts to these little people who live in our house and that have very limited prior knowledge, vocabulary skills, and attention spans. Weekends like this present particular challenges because there are so many ideas floating around. My inclination is to let it all pass by. Not discuss the resurrection this Sunday nor the cultural traditions that take place. Because one clearly has nothing to do with the other but they are happening together prompting our young pupils to connect the two.

They know God made them. They know this one God exists in three persons, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. They know that God the Son became man and came to this earth. We have told them about Jesus dying in our place--receiving God's wrath on our behalf. We have told them He did not stay dead, but was made alive again. We aren't expecting perfect comprehension and internalization at this point. We are discipling, which is a life-long process. But on a weekend where the church turns its particular attention to this aspect of theology, I find all the other crap on sale at Target right now incredibly confusing for them and irritating for me.

It's Easter weekend, so says the church calendar. I guess the thing about the Church calendar is that it is a tool. And tools can be useful for some jobs, but not for others. According to the church calendar, this weekend we are to think on the crucifixion of Christ (Good Friday) and the resurrection of Christ (Easter Sunday.) But I find it more helpful, in light of where we are at this point in our culture and history, to think of each Sunday, when believers gather, to celebrate Christ's tremendous work on behalf of his Church.

So where am at right now? Well, we're going to gather with other believers tonight and spend time thinking about and praising God for the cross and all that that entails. But I'm not going because it's Good Friday. I'm going because I want to be with other believers whom I love dearly and I want to worship with them and I want to corporately confess to God our gratitude and praise. I would want to do this any Friday night.

On Saturday, we are getting together with our family. We'll share a meal. There will probably not be a lot of discussion of the crucifixion or the resurrection or what went on the day in between (wouldn't that be fun to talk about over deviled eggs?) So I'm not sure what our point in gathering is exactly other than we love them and like spending time with them. I would want to do this any Saturday afternoon.

But then there's the egg thing. Nothing sinful at all about searching for plastic eggs (although I refuse to tell them a magical bunny hides them. Despite all my uncertainty and angst about many things, I feel I can safely declare that LYING to your kids should be avoided.) I guess I can look at it as this is the game we're playing this time. Sometimes we get a bouncy house. Sometimes we play at the park. This Saturday, the game de jour is egg-hunting. Ok. I guess there's no need to have a theological sit-down over that anymore than I would if they were about to play kickball with their cousins.

Then Sunday morning, we are going to my parent's church. We don't normally do this so I guess I will have to concede that we are doing this because it's Easter. But I love the believers at Reformed Presbyterian Church and would be beyond thrilled to gather with them any Sunday of the year. We'll sing, pray, confess, and hear God's word. I'll hug some necks (one of my very favorite Southern expressions) and introduce Simeon to them. I would want to do this any Sunday morning.

We are gathering Sunday--this Sunday, next Sunday, every Sunday--because Jesus did not stay dead. So I could think about it more this week. Or I could think about it a lot next week. Or I could think about it some every week. It's the air we breathe. I am dependent on it regardless.

Christ has died. Christ has risen. Christ will come again. This much, I am sure of.

(I welcome your feedback, questions, and criticisms as I continue to work through all of this.)

What's Your Point? Wednesday (Edition: Missed it AGAIN!)

2011-04-21T08:01:00.004-05:00

Well this is no way to start a blog revolution. No way at all. I'm not sure, but I suppose that Sparking Latest Blog Sensation 101 includes remembering to blog. I do appreciate those that have participated, veiled reference to my own glory-seeking notwithstanding.

First of all--have you entered my Scentsy Giveaway? Your odds of winning are quite favorable at this point so please go check it out! (My Point: I really, really want you to check out my website and then buy things from me.)

Yesterday, as we were finishing up lunch with Becca and her little girl at a local BBQ place, Jude found some boys who spoke his language (Read: wild with a side of mischeif.) These boys were dumping out salt and pepper shakers and throwing paper napkins on the ground. Jude (whose "Go big or go home" attitude towards life will serve him well as soon as we teach him to use his powers for good) decided to one up them all and got the bottle of ketchup and squirted it on one of the little boys shorts. I was horrified. Who actually does that? I mean, we've all wanted to, but my kid DID it. He was scolded and made to apologize. And I apologized to the mother (who was very gracious.) And we left right after that, to Jude's great dismay. Remember my status a few days ago about that middle child? (My Point: While I in no way condone such behavior and gave no indication to Jude that I was amused, I totally was.)

I did in fact find a mustard cardigan. My friend Krista gave me a great recommendation and I found it on sale. (My Point: The color mustard will pretty much change your life. You mark my words.)

I think I may open up my own "fauxga" studio one day. For now, I will be leading hot fauxga classes in my garage. I just back the magical minivan out and voila! 115 degrees of pure bikram bliss. (My Point: I should probably stop paying a gym for what I could get for free.)

p.s. Enter my giveaway!

In Which I Solve One of Your Problems (a GIVEAWAY!)

2011-04-18T08:58:00.007-05:00

You've been here, right? You're driving along, rocking out to The Civil Wars, and the thought hits you, "Did I blow out that candle? Surely I did, right? Wait, no I didn't! No, I think I remember blowing it out. But maybe I didn't..." So annoying. And potentially life-altering.

Candles are dangerous. I know of several women whose firefighter husbands do not allow them to burn candles in their homes at all because of the number of house fires they are called to that begin with a candle left burning.

And we've all heard the horror stories. Lives lost from something as seemingly benign as wanting a nice smelling home.

Some families have ditched candles altogether in favor of those gel-packet plug-in warmers but the truth is they are not much safer. Not only are they usually plugged in at eye-level for a crawling child, but the fragrance is warmed directly by the electricity from the socket. So it gets really hot and the potential for fire is almost equal to that of a candle.

So have a stinky house or have a fire waiting to happen...not great options for those of us that enjoy a fresh, inviting, lovely scented environment. What's a girl to do?

Fret no longer, dear ones. I have just the thing.

Hello, Scentsy!

Scentsy is a fabulous company that makes safe, wickless, flameless warmers and scents that provide all of the fragrance of a high end candle (like ones that shall remain nameless but may possibly rhyme with "Smankee") but without the danger that comes with unattended, open flames.

Pictured above is a full size warmer which stands about 5.5 inches tall. You place up to 3 cubes of scented, food-grade wax into the warmer and a low wattage light bulb gently melts the wax and releases the scent into the air. One bar (which only costs $5!) is comprised of 8 cubes, each which have a 50-80 hour scent life depending on environmental factors. And there are over 80 scents to choose so there is definitely something for everyone!

The warmer itself acts as a small lamp and the wax is melted in the removable upper tray. It never gets hot enough to burn and if you accidentally forget to turn it off before you leave, it presents no more danger than forgetting to turn off a lamp.

The warmers also come in a mid size, which is about 4.5 inches tall, and a plug-in size. Which brings me to my point (yay.)

I am giving away this plug in and one scent bar to one of my readers!

To enter, visit my website and browse the selection and leave me a comment telling me what your favorite warmers and scents are. I know scents are something that you really have to smell for yourself to determine what you like, but read over the descriptions and tell me what sounds most appealing to you!

I will randomly choose one winner next Monday. If you aren't local, I will gladly mail it anywhere within the continental United States.

Now for those of you that are saying to yourselves, "Say no more! I MUST own one, possibly three, of these amazing warmers!" then by all means, head right over here and place your order! Think Mother's Day! Think graduations! Think end-of-year teacher gifts. Think of yourself! Scentsy for everybody! Hurray!

Email me at jamierives at gmail dot com if you have any questions. Oh and p.s.--Prizes, incentives, free stuff, and my undying affection if you book a party with me!

What's Your Point? Wednesday (except it's Thursday)

2011-04-14T12:19:00.002-05:00

I want to make my mark on the world. Everyone does I assume. A legacy of some sort. I have big plans for this actually that I am not at liberty to disclose at this time, but in case those fall through I need something else to rely on. A "Plan B" seems wise to secure in a situation such as this. And I really think the newest blog sensation, "What's Your Point? Wednesday" may very well be just that. But as you must know, today is in fact Thursday. A minor detail that I will not allow to deter me.

I finished off the rest of my Skinnygirl margarita bottle at lunch today. I don't make a habit of this, but I had just a little left and I made some delicious guacamole for myself and really, what goes better with guacamole? I submit to you--NOTHING. And since the next item on the to-do list was to clean the playroom, it was just the thing to get me through. Say what you may about me, but my disposition during that normally maddening activity was considerably more pleasant.

I made cookies using spelt flour yesterday. It was a mistake. It reaffirmed my belief that if you are going to make chocolate chip cookies and derive any sort of satisfaction from eating one (some, a dozen, whatever) you have to use as many refined and/or processed ingredients as you need to. White flour. White sugar. Crisco. Just go for it. Because anything less just doesn't get the job done. There is a time and a place for whole foods and I now firmly believe that chocolate chip cookies are decidedly not it.

I bought a huge, I mean HUGE, bag of pinto beans at the grocery store yesterday. I poured it into a shallow rubbermaid bin and gave the boys come cups, bowls, and spoons and they played with those for a nice long while. Sensory learning, cooperative play, understanding the concept of conservation, blah, blah, blah. They were occupied. If they grew intellectually, then yay. Bonus.

The Civil Wars have still not rescheduled their Houston show. I do not have a good feeling about this.

Lastly, at the suggestion of the new queen of blogging, I will be doing a Scentsy giveaway next week! I sell this stuff because I love this stuff! Check out my website and the enter next week to win some serious Scentsy goodies.

He. Not "it."

2011-04-10T13:47:00.001-05:00

It is legitimate to speak of "receiving grace," and sometimes (although I am somewhat cautious about the possibility of misuing this langauge) we speak of the preaching of the Word, prayer, baptism, and the Lord's Supper as "means of grace."

That is fine, so long as we remember that there isn't a thing, a substance, or a "quasi-substance" called "grace." All there is is the person of the Lord Jesus — "Christ clothed in the gospel," as John Calvin loved to put it.

Grace is the grace of Jesus. --Sinclair Ferguson

What's Your Point? Wednesday

2011-04-06T14:27:00.007-05:00

I really love practicing yoga. Practicing. This is how the cool yoga kids put it. I started about 8 months ago and I'm hooked. Of course, as many of you know, in honor of Dr. Al Mohler, I refer to it as "fauxga" most of the time. There are many who maintain that the spiritual and the physical aspects of yoga should not, nay, CANNOT be divorced. I have not found this to be the case at all. Maybe some of my fellow classmates are thinking about transcending to the next level of inward awareness while breathing in the knowledge of enlightened bliss, but I am thinking "Yay. My thrice c-sectioned stomach pooch looks smaller." I'm sure that would offend the yoga sensibilities of some dedicated students, but I can button my jeans now. So what do I care.

I've been trying out a new smile. I have this gum issue with my original smile. As in, there is way too much of it showing. I feel like a horse that was fed peanut butter. (what?) So here a few pictures of me test-driving the new "cheeeeese."

My pretty friends look great, as usual. Knock that off, Laura and Cheryl. It's getting old.

Or this:

Weird and awkward. Which is actually not what I was going for. So less gums, more teeth. I'm on it.

I took all three kids to the gym this morning for the first time. I wanted to wait until Simeon was older and flu season was behind us. (We did all have the flu, did you hear?) At our gym, there is a big kid area consisting of lots of computers for playing games, a mini basketball court, a toy area, and a large climbing structure, which overlooks the toddler area. Where a certain two year old who daily bemoans the fact that he is not yet three, has to stay while his big brother gets to, as usual, do all the fun, cool stuff.

This is the downside to having kids really close together. In most situations, Asher and Jude are treated like they are the same age. They play with the same toys, have the same friends, and even share the same clothes. But then soccer starts or they go to the gym, and it becomes painfully obvious to Jude that he is the little brother and has to be left behind by his best friend who gets to experience everything sooner than he does. He tries to convince me he has aged by saying, "Mama! I 'free' now!" No Jude, you not three. Not until July. The bloody end of July of course.

But he handled it fairly well. There was, to be sure, bribery involved. Bribery is like blue eye shadow--a little goes a long way and it should only be used on very rare occasions. It definitely should not be the default parenting strategy, but there are times when the promise of a kids meal at Chick-fil-a can be just enough of a balm to take away the sting of being put in with the babies when you are decidedly NOT a baby. And I got to go to my level 3 vinyasa class where I did rock out a headstand for 20 full breaths.

I'm making my own tortillas tonight. I have neither the pedigree nor the lard to do the job properly, but we shall see what I can manage as a gringa with whole wheat flour and organic butter. I also have a chicken cooking in the crockpot that I am going to shred for tacos. But seeing as how I am the sole person in the history of crockpottery that dries out meat as it is cooking in LIQUID, my hopes are not high. But maybe it will all come out splendidly and then Kris will have to go find a gate at which to praise me. It's a toss-up at this point.

I want some mustard color sandals. Is it just me, or does mustard (again, the color, not the condiment) make everything look more trendy? I am absolutely obsessed with that color. I looked, in vain, for a mustard cardigan. They must have all been bought up as the mustard memo circulates. It makes you cool. I don't know why. But it does. Am I right? (Rhetorical question. Of course I am.)

Back to the title. The answer: there isn't one. I just have this hang up about needing a really great title. And when I can't thing of one, then I pretend like there is a real thing that other bloggers do called "What's the Point? Wednesday" so I seem less inept. But there isn't. But I guess there is now. So feel free to use my formerly non-existent but now real thing Wednesday post topic on any Wednesday you like.

Oops I Did It Again

2011-03-30T15:27:00.003-05:00

We were somewhere over Arkansas when I made the discovery. My first thought was that less-than-courteous TSA guy. I bet he did it. He was upset that I was traveling with multiple small bottles of premixed formula, which he had to individually test for bomb ingredients because those Al-Queda guys are notorious for their devious uses of Similac. He must have taken them out in his fury and "accidentally" forgot to put them back.

But then the thought that sometimes even I make mistakes crossed my mind. Could it be? Is it possible?

Did I really just embark on a cross-regional journey and neglect to...pack diapers and wipes? No...surely not.

I check my diaper bag again. Yogurt bites, formula, puffs, hand sanitizer, rubber mat that goes on the table, various other baby items that don't rank nearly as highly in importance as diapers and wipes do? Yes, all there. But no diapers. This could get messy.

Thankfully, Simeon was able to wear the diaper I put on him THAT MORNING until we were able to get to a Target. Let's just say we got our money's worth out of it.

So lesson learned right? Check the diaper bag before you leave and make sure that, even though you put diapers in there 3 days ago, it is not unreasonable to think you might need to restock. Granted, I've been packing a diaper bag for the better part of four years so you'd think I would have mastered this particular skill, but we all have our weaknesses. Remembering crucial details happens to be mine.

Later that night, we were in the car on the way to my cousin's rehearsal dinner. We were almost there and I open the diaper bag to pull out a snack for Simeon. Guess what's not in there. Are you kidding me? Am I the world's most idiotic mother or what? How do you have such a close call mere hours earlier and then not learn your lesson? Not my best day.

But once again, no major crisis ensued. Thank God for the absorbency of the modern-day diaper. And we avoided the situation ,both times, that would make needing a new diaper absolutely essential.

And wouldn't it be great if that were the end of this post.

Kris, the boys, and I went to The Woodlands mall yesterday to exchange my phone after the previous days unfortunate events. I dropped Kris off at the door because we were running late and I parked and was supposed to meet him up at the food court to feed our children a nutritious dinner. I was getting Simeon out of his car seat when I caught a faint whiff of something not-so-fresh. So I begin to change this diaper and I open my bag and I dig around for a replacement.

Well, the good news was I did have wipes.

So in the parking lot of the mall with Thing 1 and Thing 2 as my assistants, and all the efficiency that that implies, I manage to make the diaper "wearable." I decide I just need to clean it as best as I can, line it with wipes, and then get inside and give the big boys to Kris so I can find another diaper. We find Kris. Incidentally, he is receiving excellent customer service at the Apple store and a new iPhone, so at least there was that. I tell him I am going to walk down to Gymboree because I had no clue what to do and a children's store seemed like the right place to start.

I walked towards the store, keeping my eye out for someone I could approach. I spot a mom with a child in a stroller that appeared to be about the same size as Simeon. And I swallowed my pride and asked her if I could have a diaper. Because this is my first baby and I'm still getting the hang of it. I didn't really say that but that's the tone of voice I was going for. She graciously gives me one and we share a laugh about what a moron I am and then I slip into Gymboree and change my poor child's diaper on the floor in the back of the store. And then I fed him a grilled cheese from Sonic for dinner. And then I kept him up way past his bedtime.

And this morning, the sun still came up and Simeon still greeted me with a huge smile. He definitely does not have a mom that has it all together. But he doesn't seem to mind.

But he has requested that I remember diapers from now on.

iCant Believe iDid That

2011-03-28T21:40:00.009-05:00

Simeon and I just got back from a quick trip to Memphis for my cousin Matt's wedding. He married a beautiful girl named Cecily and I was so happy I got to be there. Simmy did great on his first flight (well, he did fly to Oregan when he was about the size of a lemon but I doubt he remembers.) My parents and brother went as well so it was nice to be able to pass him around on the plane. He was his charming self for the majority of the trip. There was one moment on the flight back when he was about to lose it but I asked him if he really wanted to be "that" baby. He said no and went to sleep. True story.

My day started off great today. I was wiped out from the weekend and Asher and Jude slept until 7 and then asked me if they could turn on Sprout. Duh, winning. So I slept a little longer and then got up, made coffee, drank coffee, and then Simeon woke up. He was wiped out too! I had big plans for accomplishing a lot today. We were about to leave to run some errands but Simeon was acting sleepy so I decided to let him have his nap since his schedule had been non-existent the past few days. So the boys went outside to play and I worked on a Scentsy order.

A few minutes later, Asher comes in with a scraped knee and then Jude trips on the back stoop walking inside. So two little boys in URGENT need of medical care (that is, Neosporin and a Toy Story bandaid.) So I take them to the bathroom, apparently with my phone in my hand, and I set it down on a towel that is on the little potty, that is on the counter (why it is there I know not) and proceed to administer first aid to the wounded. I walked out to get a washcloth and I hear this crash.

Asher knocked the little potty off. It fell to the ground and the towel that was on it fell into the toilet. I picked up the towel and spotted something black and glowing in the bowl. Oh yes. My IPHONE!!! I didn't even realize I brought it with me into the bathroom.

A sign of holding it a little to often? Perhaps.

I snatched it out of the mercifully pre-flushed toilet and promptly redirected my first-aid efforts. I poured rice in a bowl and buried the phone. Then I googled "dropped iphone in toilet." (Meanwhile, in the bathroom, 2 confused boys sit waiting for their bandaids. I got them down and told them I would bandage them later.)

I emailed Kris and delivered the news. He, of course, was gracious and loving and told me he would check it out when he got home. It is currently disassembled and drying out. We will turn it on tomorrow and hope for the best. Apple will give us a refurbished one but I'm really hoping this one will be revived because the only pictures I've taken in the last few months are on there. And music I've downloaded and apps I've bought. And basically the entire contents of my brain. We'll find out in the morning if Kris' noble efforts will pay off.

So the take away from all this, kids: back up your phone, put your phone down before dealing with your children, especially if dealing with your children will require a trip to the bathroom, and (for the single ladies out there) marry a man that happily tries to help you rectify really frustrating, potentially expensive mistakes without making you feel badly about it. I have given Kris mulitple opportunities to grow in this particular area and I am pleased to tell you that he handles these situations quite well.

Life is Messy

2011-03-11T00:14:00.009-06:00

I just can't make myself put a bib on my baby. I know I should. I know it would make him look considerably less pitiful not to have dried sweet potato on his collar and yogurt on the front of his shirt, yet I never use them. Occasionally I would stick one on Asher. And then I got lazy. Which caused me to set an intention of using one with Jude. But I didn't. Which led to me vowing I would use one with Simeon. But I don't. One step too many? Ambivalence toward stains? Bucking the trend? IF I could answer these questions, it would probably unlock the answers to many more.

We went to a friend's high school soccer game tonight. Since Asher plays on a real, live soccer team now, we thought it would be fun for him to watch some big boys play. And it was. For about 2 minutes. But what was infinitely more fun was running up and down the bleachers. Asher and Jude thoroughly enjoyed climbing them, swinging from them, and stomping on them. Jude was hanging like a monkey from the handrail at one point and a lady sitting next to it commented on what a big boy he was to do that and asked how old he was. "I two and you spell my name J-U-D-E." The lady was impressed. So was I. But I smiled confidently as if I knew he could do that and had in fact taught him that right after we parsed a few Latin verbs this morning.

Potty training is going well. A few accidents here and there but he has embraced this new phase of life and makes progress each day. What seems to help is a little prune/apple juice cocktail in the morning, limiting liquid intake after dinner, and marshmallows. Lots of marshmallows. Will pee for marshmallows. He seems to have a little timing issue as many accidents happen thisclose to the toilet, but we're heading the right direction. I'm sure these would be avoided more easily if I didn't have an 8 month old and a 4 year old that only require my immediate attention during times when nature calls him. Three kids--it's tricky sometimes.

Cheryl was over yesterday and we talked about what a gift Charlie Sheen has given us. As a nation, we needed something to unify us. We can't agree on politics, religion, or border safety, but we all concur Charlie Sheen is cray-cray. So I guess we can lay off him for a while. But when I sent a text message to Cheryl and asked her if I should make more coffee for us and she responded, "Does Charlie Sheen have tiger blood?" I feel safe in saying we have found the redeeming quality of this whole drama.

Potty Like It's 1999

2011-03-07T13:57:00.004-06:00

Today is the day. Jude Rives has broken off his relationship with diapers. He has been ready for a while I would say, but I had to wait until I was ready. That probably sounds a little self-centered, but I think my penchant for putting my needs above those of my children is not a big secret. But we go cold turkey with potty-training over here. Once the day comes, no more diapers at all. So it is of utmost importance to make sure all parties involved are ready.

Jude has a big advantage in that he has been watching Asher use the potty for quite a while now. Where Asher was a little overwhelmed and intimidated by the whole prospect, Jude has been asking for some time to use the big potty. I can remember physically restraining Asher on the little potty just so he would use it and realize the earth below him would not open up and swallow him. But Jude gets it and has no problem with the process. In fact, Jude was not interested in the little potty at all.

So while there was an elaborate production involving a potty chair, a doll that wets, a potty chair for the doll that wets, special salty snacks, special juice, and special treats for rewards when Asher was potty-trained, Jude, in true second child fashion, got...um...not quite that. His production consisted of a little shot of prune juice in his apple juice this morning and a stern warning not to tee-tee in his Thomas underwear.

And so far so good. We had one accident this morning, but many successful trips to the potty involving ALL desirable potty deeds so I am happy. And Jude is happy because he has secured a trip to Coldstone for ice cream with sprinkles when Daddy gets home. Some may call that bribery. I call it speaking his love language.

I'm not popping the champagne just yet, but we are post-nap with still-dry "Thomas unnerwears." But I will check off Day One as a success.

Changing of the (Shin) Guards

2011-03-04T22:17:00.005-06:00

I am back, baby. Our house has been fever-free for days now and it feels amazing. See, we were all sick with the flu. Sometimes I leave out important details like that and then my readers are left to fill in the blanks as to what exactly has been going on in our lives. I hate it when I do that. So just to make sure there is no ambiguity, we did, in fact, fall victim to the flu. I hate to even bring it up, but it seems like I should at least mention it.

Soccer starts tomorrow (assuming the rain holds off.) Kris took Asher to buy cleats tonight. We have had shin guards for months now in anticipation of the advent of this glorious day but he needed some shorts and shoes so that he can look legit as he and all the other clueless 3 and 4 year olds run around the field aimlessly. He is on a team with four of his buddies, so it should be a lot of fun! More importantly, I think I'm going to make a fabulous soccer mom. I was made for this role. I will shine.

I went to the gym tonight to lift weights for the the first time in over 3 weeks. Ouch. It looks like this whole "soccer" thing may cut into my Saturday morning Ashtanga yoga so I decided to get a workout in tonight. But my kitchen is still a wreck from dinner and I used all my energy doing squats and step-ups. It'll still be there in the morning. Or it won't be and then I'll be glad I didn't waste time tonight cleaning it.

Simeon James is the proud owner of 4 teeth, 2 of which are his top front and have just broken through. He earned those teeth. We all earned those teeth. So I'm hoping this means he will start wanting more of his bottle than he has been. He currently refuses to drink more than 3-4 ounces at a feeding. This has gone on for a while. He weighs 22 pounds and has enough fat for him and a friend stored in his thighs so I'm not concerned about him wasting away. But still it seems as though a baby his size and age would want more. Thoughts?

The other day, I was changing Simeon's diaper and he was being most uncooperative. I turned him back towards me and firmly told him "no, no, Simeon." Jude was sitting next to me and proceeded to inform his little brother, "That not honor God, cheeky Simmy." Cheeky is Jude's favorite adjective (thank you, Thomas the Train.) So he refers to him as that pretty regularly. I had to laugh because even two year olds have that uncanny ability to deal with the speck in their brother's eye without feeling the need to remove their own log.

So Charlie Sheen? Not only is he an incredibly accurate picture of what the Fool in Proverbs is like, but he is also the source of some of my favorite one-liners now. That darn Adonis DNA--it'll get you everytime.

No Retreat, No Surrender

2011-03-02T08:56:00.002-06:00

Last weekend, the women of our church held the first (of many I hope) retreats in beautiful Wimberley, Texas. But as I think I might have possibly mentioned, we have been a little under the weather around here. So when Jude succumbed to the flu the day before I was supposed to leave, I knew I wouldn't get to attend.

But Kris knew how much I wanted to be able to go. Almost every woman in our church would be there and it was a rare chance to spend some time with them in a fun, relaxed environment. So my mom agreed to come over and help Kris so that I could go on the retreat.

I know what you're thinking...Super Mom! Way to leave your kids when they are sick and weak and really need you. Who does that?

Me, apparently. And I'm actually really glad that I did.

Of course, I struggled with the decision. Even though Kris encouraged me to go and even though my mom graciously offered to come stay and help while I was gone, it went against every inclination I had as a mom.

But I was exhausted. After having the flu, (I did mention that already right? I had the flu. Just making sure you got that) I was exhausted. Like "just brought home a newborn" exhausted. I slept in 2 hour increments while I was running fever and then the kids got sick and Simeon was teething so we were up all night with them. I was drained and this was my big chance to rest up, recover, and come back ready to be a fully present wife and mother.

So I went. I knew the kids would be fine. They adore their Mamaw and their Daddy and the two of them are more than capable of doing what needs to be done. It was a sacrifice on their part for sure. Sick kids are whiny and clingy and sleepless and just all round pitiful. But they were willing and I'm so glad they were.

I left Friday afternoon and came back Sunday afternoon rested and refreshed. It was such a joy to get to know the women in my church better and to spend some time alone. And to sleep. I won't lie--that was probably the best part given my stage of life.

I know this was a rare gift. Usually, life doesn't work out that way. The challenging, tiring portions don't normally come with a break in the middle so you can recharge and gather steam to finish well. The next time we are plagued with illnesses, I can't expect a little getaway. So I'm so thankful for the opportunity this time and especially to my husband and mom for making it possible. There were no guilt trips or desperate phone calls. They didn't make me feel like I was abandoning them. They were genuinely supportive and that in itself was such a gift to me.

As I was there reflecting on this opportunity, it struck me what a picture it all was of the gospel in my life. I saw it all as a physical picture of what God has done for me spiritually. I was brought out from a place of despair and weariness to a place of quiet rest. I didn't deserve it. I didn't even ask for it. It was just provided. I did none of the work but received all of the benefit.

The weekend was wonderful. I love the women in my church. We are a diverse group of ladies that have learned a lot about being the body of Christ to one another. So I'm so grateful I was able to go.

I reentered my life with a rested body, a refreshed spirit, and a renewed gratitude for my family.

So basically I'm saying abandoning my children was the best thing I ever did. Nominate me for Mother of the Year, ok?

Don't Waste Your Flu

2011-03-01T09:30:00.004-06:00

It has not been a whole lot of fun around our house for the past week and a half. I got the party started on Friday when what I thought was just another allergy attack quickly turned into a high fever and chills. I spent the next three days in bed, which sounds lovely, but the feeling that death was imminent really sucked the joy out of it. My last day of fever was last Monday and Asher's first day was Tuesday. And then Jude took his turn beginning on Thursday. Simeon got a piece of the action over the weekend. I am here to type these words because of God's abundant grace poured out to me in the form of my husband and my mother. Kris single-parented while I was down and then my mom came during the week to help with the sick boys as I recovered.

I usually tell people I absolutely love having children so close together. It's challenging and very busy, but a small span of stages to contend with normally makes things easier. Exception: when the flu hits. Total game-changer. It's hard. And I had lots of help.

But having Family Flu is what God ordained for us. So obviously there are some things He wanted me to think about and learn from during this process. So taking my cue from this, I decided to write out those things and hopefully, not waste my flu.

1. I am more grateful now for the health and well-being I experience 99% of the time. I forget to give thanks when I wake up in the morning and there is no pain or sickness. But what a blessing. I usually feel great and that is something, in this cursed world, that God gives in his great mercy.

2. I was reminded how much I love my role was a wife and a mother. When I was lying in bed, listening to life go on outside my door, I longed to get up and join them. I wanted to be the one caring for my children and taking care of my house. I wanted to come along side of Kris as he played with the boys and got them what they needed. But I had to isolate myself from them. Before this, the idea of closing my door and getting to rest from my normal duties sounded amazing, but I discovered that being in the middle of their lives is what makes mine joyful.

3. My husband is phenomenal. I already knew this, of course, but he jumped into the role of primary caregiver of us all and he did not miss a beat. We are used to tag-teaming and giving each other breaks, but he was on his own for four days and I could not be more impressed with him. He served us all selflessly and is a true picture of the love that Christ has for His church. I think I may have fallen in love all over again :)

4. The flu is no fun, but it only attacks your body. My real illness is sin--the true sickness from which I need to healed. It is pervasive and it is fatal. Just like the flu knocked me down, sucked the life from my bones and robbed me of energy and rest and ease of mind, sin does the same to my soul. Enter Good News. I have been healed. The deadly soul flu that threatened to consume me has been removed. Christ suffered. He was stricken, smitten, and afflicted so I could be made well. I give him praise for the relief I feel in my body now that the virus is gone, but I fall to my knees and worship for the relief I have from my dead soul being brought to life.

5. There is not enough that can be said about the blessing of healthy children. It's frustrating to have to slow life down and deal with sickness, but I realize that after some medicine and rest, life will go back to normal. But about 30 minutes away from my house is one of the nation's biggest cancer treatment facilities for children. There are parents that are watching their children suffer, some with no promise of them ever recovering. I have been reminded to be so thankful for the health of my boys, to pray for those that face much scarier diseases, and to realize that even if God permits that which I fear most, He will be enough--in the flu, in cancer, in death--he is all we need.

We're still quarantined over here. Asher is fever free today for the first time in a week and Jude is still feeling pretty crummy. If Simeon could just get that second top tooth to break through, he'd be doing much better, too. I'm ready for things to get back to normal.

But I am thankful that God uses the flu to bring out about grateful hearts, the opportunity to serve and care for each other, and (Dear God please) one hell of a souped-up immune system.

Valentine's Day

2011-02-15T09:53:00.007-06:00

It may surprise you to know that we don't really do much for Valentine's Day. Taken aback? Thought so.

This year, we had a Valentine's Day lunch and card exchange with a bunch of our friends the Friday before Valentine's Day (I almost abbreiviated it VD but it seemed kind of inappropriate.) It was very enjoyable for all the kids to give each other little treats and cards. It was simple--no fancy decor, flower arrangements, engraved invitation, bells, and/or whistles (well, as simple as a gathering of 11 or so moms and our 26 children can be.) We do chaos. It's our thing.

That was the major event surrounding this "holiday" so Monday was rather anticlimactic. I did make some heart-shaped pancakes because it seemed like an easy way to appear to be a really good mother. Someone questions my parenting, I just pull up this picture and say, "Do you like apples?"

"Well how you like them apples?"

Would a bad mother make heart-shaped pancakes for VD breakfast? I hardly think so.

I also made a pumpkin pie for my Mr. Rives. It's his favorite. I make the Martha Stewart recipe that has a shortbread crust so it's really easy--just a little time-consuming. He brought home some Pinot Grigio, cheese, and crackers because he knows my well-documented love of appetizer food. I'm thinking that will be dinner tonight. The kids should sleep well.

I'm not anti-Valentine's Day, I have decided. I've said it before and I'll say it again--I'm anti-hassle. There is nothing about receiving roses that have been marked up 150% and some mediocre chocolate and then going on out for dinner at a crowded restaurant that appeals to me. Because it's too much hassle. But easy, inexpensive, meaningful expressions of love for the people in my life that I absolutely adore? I can handle that.

In Which I Rip Off A Friend's Idea

2011-02-08T08:47:00.006-06:00

My friend Shauna has a series of posts on her blog where she writes about something that is going on and then at the end, in parenthesis, she writes one word that sums up the emotion or mindset that it elicits. I haven't asked her permission, but I am going to rip off her idea now. Thank you, Shauna.

Simeon knows how to clap now! He claps for me as I change his diaper. He claps for his brothers as they play. He even clapped for our pastor on Sunday during his sermon. It's pretty cute I have to say. (*smitten)

~~I pump iron now...did you know that? Well I do. Which means I had to start tanning, perming my hair, and wearing black spandex shorts and socks. Ok, maybe not the last three, but I have been lifting weights for several months now. I started because I needed something I could do at the gym that wasn't time-sensitive, like a class would be. So I bought this book and have been working my way through the stages. I like lifting more than I thought I would. I don't get to do it as much as I need to and would like to, but I'm waiting until after cold and flu season to bring Simeon to the childcare center so I go when I can work it in after the kids are down or right after Kris gets home. But all this to say, it's not something I anticipated really enjoying but I do. It is a much more effective means of losing weight because you increase your body's ability to burn calories, even at rest. Paired with yoga, it seems to be a great combination for me. (*empowered)

~~I would like to be the proud owner of a "working closet." By that I mean, I want only stuff that I love and wear to be in there. So when I walk in to get dressed, I'm not bogged down by a bunch of stuff that I never wear or don't really like or that doesn't fit. Of course, my hobby for the past 4 years has been getting pregnant, getting fat, and losing weight so I obviously have quite the array of sizes. So that's a little bit of a problem because there are things I will be able to wear soon (see above) but not quite yet. The other problem is that you have to stay on top of the laundry situation. Many things don't get worn because they are dirty for long periods of time, then buried under layers of clothes on the floor of my closet and then I forget about them. Maybe I should work on being the proud owner of "clean laundry" first. (*realistic)

~~Please tell me you have downloaded this album. I can't stop listening to it. And they are coming to Houston in March. We are so there. (*obsessed)

~~My current list of "projects to make" includes but is not limited to:
>photo book on Kodak.com
>infinity scarf
>personalized messageboards for the boys room
>pillows
>case for Asher's guitar
>about 13 other things
But I just can't seem to make them happen. Maybe because I spend nap time writing insipid lists in attempt to revive my blog instead of doing something productive? (*distracted)

I sell Scentsy. Please see me for all your home-fragrancing needs. No one likes to be somewhere stinky. I can help.(*self-promoting)

Asher

2011-02-04T21:31:00.011-06:00

"And Leah said, 'How happy I am! The women will call me happy!' So she named him Asher." Gen. 30:13

Kris is the one who suggested we name him Asher. I didn't love it immediately. Mainly because it was his idea and I thought the naming of the children should be my role. But something about it resonated with me. And when I learned it meant "happy" I was sold. As long as he would let me use Owen as his middle name because I just loved that name and because all good Reformed Presbyterians name their first born either Owen or Knox or Calvin.

So Asher Owen it was and I cannot think of a name meaning that would suit him better. He is a happy little guy indeed. And on Monday, he will be four.

And I feel the tug-of-war...pulling me into memories of my sweet little baby in one direction and into excited anticipation of all that lies before him as he continues to discover this wonderful, absurd world God has made. I gaze back into the past longing for those early days of simplicity and newness but then I am quickly jerked the other way, and am filled with joy as I watch him explore and learn and become. Happy-sad I am. Being a mom is to learn to embrace the paradox.

Oh Lord, if this is what gets stirred up in my at four, I may have to be checked in at some facility when he turns ten.

Oh, I really am excited. He will be very good at being four. He loves being independent. And as much I miss that chubby-cheeked little cherub of a baby, the big boy that can buckle his own seatbelt and dress himself and turn on the Disney Channel if I'm not quite ready to get up yet (I mean, I guess he could...if that ever were to happen...) is pretty nice to have around.

So go for it, Asher! Live up this whole "being four" business. You are done with "baby." You are big. Be brave and be strong. Ask and try and change. Love God. Serve others. Be thankful.

But stop this "mom" nonsense and let's stick with "mama" a little longer. My heart can only take so much.

The Stars At Night Are Big and Bright...

2011-02-02T08:51:00.004-06:00

Please tell me you mentally clapped four times and then sang, "deep in the heart of Texas!"

There are a few reasons that I live in Texas. One of them is that I was born here and have never bothered to leave. Another is Tex-Mex food. Yet another is the weather. It's not amazing. I don't think you should move here for the balmy temperatures. Summer (and a big chunk of Spring and pretty much all of Fall) is rather hot and humid. But it's what I am used to. What I am not used to is extreme cold. And that is what we have right now. Part of it is that owning proper winter attire is just not practical. Owning lots of tanks and skirts and flip-flops--this is practical. Big puffy coats. Not only not practical, but unflattering as well. I will just stay inside.

In the book that I mentioned a few days ago, Loving the Little Years, Rachel Jankovic describes the state of her house by saying she feels like she is living at the bottom of a toaster. Have you ever heard a more apt description of a house full of small children? The crumbs. The sand. The unidentifiable ick. I'm no neat freak but in my next house I'm having industrial tile with drains spread throughout and we will just hose the floors down every night.

I'm loving this blog right now. I really like her aesthetic and her What I Wore Wednesday series is a lot of fun to look through. It's a great place to get a little inspiration for shopping your closet.

It's Wednesday night. This can only mean one thing. Half-price fajita night at Pappasito's. I will brave the extreme temperatures to go pick up some good Tex-Mex (see first paragraph.)

I am currently saving cereal boxes for this ministry. Will you save yours, too? And then will you either get them to me or mail them yourself. All the info you need is in the post I linked to.

Stay warm, y'all.

The Aftermath

2011-02-01T16:06:00.003-06:00

Today we hosted "Bible Study" at our house today. "Sit on the couch and drink coffee while the children run amok" is really more like it, but I like to sound holy sometimes.

Today we had a small group. Before our group split into two groups, there were 10 moms and over 20 children under the age of 4. We all love each other and did not want to divide ourselves, but logistically, it was just not working out. So last year, we broke up into two smaller groups. Now, sometimes, we hear what the other moms are saying. Occasionally we complete sentences we start. It's great!

But today, just 3 moms and 8 kids. Here at my house. For about 2 hours. And as is the custom of our children regardless of whatever home we are at, there are toys and crumbs and sippy cups strewn from one end of the house to the other. There was laughter, shrieks, tears, and shouts. (The kids were kind of noisy, too.) My floor is no longer swept. I'm out of coffee. The playroom is a wreck.

And I sit here, I'm struck by the reality--I would have it no other way. It's all proof. Undeniable, incontrovertible evidence. We have been among friends. We are loved. Our homes and our things and our food are not just for looks--they are for filling up and using and sharing. I'm so thankful for these women in my life and the fact that we don't let the chaos scare us. We run headlong into it, because we know life may be messy together, but it's far better than lonely order.

So thank you Saige, Meadow, Reed, Cate, Asher, and Jude for the oatmeal raisin cookie crumbs that are everywhere (Evie and Simeon are off the hook for this one.) I needed reminding and it's amazing where reminders can be found.

But now I have to go sweep.

Happy Birthday, my Mr. Rives.

2011-01-30T11:41:00.004-06:00

Don't you love that line in "Emma" where she says, "Now I need not call you Mr. Knightley. I may call you my Mr. Knightley." Mmmhmmm, me too.

So Kristopher is 36 today. I met him just a day or two after his 29th birthday. And I was 24. And now we are an old married couple. And I rather like it that way.

So I would like to wish the very happiest of birthdays to the guy that won the "How Much of Jamie's Crap Will You Put Up With?" contest. First prize: Jamie.

My Mr. Rives is my very favorite person in the whole world. I love him. And I am so thankful for the 36 years he has been given (particularly the last 7.)

It is his birthday. But he is the gift.

"Something." It's kinda like "all," but different.

2011-01-29T23:20:00.003-06:00

So as I opened up the ol' netbook and gave some thought to posting, the tape (CD? mp3?) in my head started playing that song about how I have no good pictures and no clever ideas and no touching insights to share so I might as well not even blog.

But I'm really trying to do that thing where I do SOMETHING as opposed to NOTHING even if that SOMETHING is not EVERYTHING.

So without further ado, I give you...something.

The big boys are at Mamaw and Poppy's right now. When did their house get so fun? I grew up there and do not remember it being the enchanted land that it apparently is. This means that it has been just Simeon and me today because Kris was at his class all day (He is taking a systematic theology class at Reformed Theological Seminary Houston.)

Simeon totally did me a solid and slept until 8:45. I woke up at 8:30 and looked at the clock and panicked of course. I ran into his room and was relieved to hear his sweet little snore. So we ate breakfast and got ready to run a few errands. While running errands with one child seems like it would be easier than running errands with 3 children, if that one child is 7 months old and not, say, 4 years old, it's really not that much easier. Walking, unbuckling on your own, flexible eating schedule: these are the qualities of a good errand-running buddy. Simeon, while utterly adorable, is still rather high maintenance. But its fun to focus on just one kid. I enjoyed my day with him very much indeed.

We got to have dinner tonight with some friends that Kris has known for a long time but that I have only known through blogs and facebook up until now. We talked and laughed and exchanged stories. It was so refreshing and encouraging--exactly what Kris and I needed. They are heading back overseas soon so we are really grateful that we were able to catch up with them. This girl lives in a foreign land, has 5 kids (the youngest of which they adopted from Ethiopia), and homeschools. So she's basically my hero.

Incidentally, I was totally "that mom" tonight--you know the one who has her INFANT out way passed bedtime. The one whom I usually shake my head at and mentally comment on their irresponsible, selfish parenting. So I guess I'll stop that now.

Mamw's birthday was Thursday. Jude wanted to buy her a new train (the one from the Thomas series named "Molly" because that is Mamaw's name, you see.) Asher wanted to buy her a new laptop. But instead, we went to Target and they each picked out a small gift and helped me wrap them up. Asher personalized his:

"It's for Mamaw From Asher"

I tried to seize the teachable moment and discuss the use of apostrophes but I guess we'll work on word orientation first.

Boy Crazy

2011-01-24T13:19:00.007-06:00

So the Masters Rives...it seems as though I should mention them. They are quickly growing and barely giving me time to catch my breath at one phase before we enter another. As at least one person feels compelled to tell me each time we go out, I have my hands full. It is usually said with a smirk or a chuckle or a tone of pity. But I assure you, even on my worst day, the idea of life in the alternative looms heavy over me and I give thanks. "Oh, you should see my heart," I tell them. "You don't even know full."

The youngest manchild I am currently rearing is Simeon James. He will be 7 months in 4 days. Does this completely blow anyone else's mind? Did I not just post about his birth. Granted that was only about 4 posts back, but it still seems unbelievable that he should be so old.

At this writing, he is in the middle of an unfortunate combination of a cold and teething. This means from about midnight to 5 in the morning, he sleeps a total of about an hour. The past two nights have been like this. He sucks his thumb, you see, so a stopped-up nose makes his normal nighttime guilty pleasure impossible. Which makes him MAD. Which makes him even more tired. We're all exhausted over here. But thanks be to God, this is the saddest news I have to report.

He sits up on his own fairly well but is still a little wobbly at times so I put the boppy around him. He loves the Johnny Jump Up and exersaucer. He adores his big brothers and finds them endlessly entertaining. I can eek out a few extra minutes of whatever I am doing by asking the boys to go talk to Simmy or make him laugh. He will do a little inchworm scoot to try to reach a toy but he scoots backwards so he's got a little work to do there. He loves to eat and so far has only turned his nose up at avocados. I cannot blame him because if my avocados aren't salted, cilantroed, and served on a tortilla chip, I don't care for them either.

I have no idea how long he is or how much he weighs. He is bigger than a breadbox. His thigh rolls give him away if his eyes don't--he is definitely a Rives boy!

The past two days not withstanding, he is a happy, smiley little(ish) thing. He babbles on and on. We call him "Simmy" or "Simmy J" or "Simmy Shake"(long story.)

The middle, misunderstood, sweet-as-pie, force-to-be-reckoned-with child is my Judah Kristopher (or Jude as he is called.) He is still inextricably connected to his "lovey" and resists all suggestions that perhaps he should reserve his thumb-sucking for bedtime. He loves trains and drums.

He is two and one half as of this month but has his sights set on three already. He is the most interesting, frustrating, baffling combination of tender and tough. Baby and Big Boy. Meaner than a snake yet first to share what he has or help a brother out. He keeps us on our toes suffice it to say.

His favorite things to say right now are "You pay wif me, Mama?" and "Here, I show you" and "I do it my own self." He still has a sweet "babyness" to his voice and I love to hear it. His favorite song is of course "Hey Jude" and he sings it quite well.

The eldest is Asher Owen. He will be 4 in just two weeks! He is a lot like his daddy--very intentional and sweet and prone to go get his guitar whenever he has a free moment. He is very sensitive I am learning how to best direct this (a challenge indeed.)He loves music (as does Jude) and is always staging concerts for anyone that will listen. He and Jude have constant disputes over the creative direction of their band.

He is typical first born--loves order and routine. Gets very agitated when those can't be found. He can write his name and loves to type notes on the iPod touch. He would prefer to eat every meal out and for friends to join us at these meals. Very social, that one.

Ok, I feel better now. The mom-guilt has been assuaged (as far as blogging goes.)

ALL or nothing

2011-01-21T13:46:00.003-06:00

It's a poisonous way to live life. And yet, it's what I do in so many areas. Because I'm not The Pioneer Woman, I'm not going to even bother blogging. Because I'm not Ina Garten, I'm not going to even bother cooking adventurous meals. Because I'm not John Piper, I'm not going to even bother praying. Because I'm not Sandra McCracken, I'm not going to bother playing my guitar.

It makes sense in my head at the time. Behold, a syllogism:

The goal of everything should be perfection.
If you can't achieve perfection, you shouldn't even bother.
I shouldn't bother with anything hard because there is NO WAY I will be the best, thereby accomplishing my goal AND securing lots of accolades from onlookers (that of course being the secondary goal.)

Now, I'm no Aristotle, but I feel pretty safe in saying that this is not logical.

Why are you writing all this? Can't you just put up a picture of your kids and be done with it?

I could go on and on about this for years probably and never run out of things to say about how truly dysfunctional I am. But the reason this topic is on my mind is because of the book I started today called Loving the Little Years by Rachel Jankovic. Laura recommended it and after reading the sample, I quickly downloaded it. So many thought-provoking ideas have grabbed hold of my mind as I read. I'll save my book report for another post, but this is why I have been examining my "all-or-nothing" mentality today:

In her chapter called "In the Rock Tumbler" she begins be reminiscing about her rich spiritual life when she was in junior high. All the spiritual disciplines came so easily and so joyfully. I think about the time in my life that was like that. Bascially anytime prior to becoming a wife and a mother. Basically when all I had to think about was me. Basically when I lived a self-centered exsistence that naturally lended itself to uninterupted prayer times and painted toenails and meeting up for coffee with friends. I don't mean I never struggled or dealt with lack of desire for the things of God, but I had the luxury of only having to worry about my sin. My problems. My needs.

The author compares this to a rock being refined in a gentle, slow-flowing river. Yeah, the rock is being smoothed out but the change takes a long time. There's not a lot of resistence or struggle, but there's not a lot of growth either. It's sweet. It's refreshing. But it is not where sanctification gets its hands dirty and scoops out that corruption.

But things changed. For me, it happened by God sending a husband and children into my world. When this occurred, I was thrilled of course (and still am!) But, as Mrs. Jankovic puts it, your rock is taken out of the serene, gentle stream and placed into a rock tumbler. It's loud and disorienting and jarring. It's dirty in there. You get hit a lot. But, by God, you are changed!

Seriously, your kids are cute. Just upload a picture of Asher playing his guitar and call it a day.

Here's where I'm going. I spend a great amount of mental energy wishing I was more spiritual, beating myself up for not being more disciplined, and wistfully longing for the days when I could read my bible and have my quiet time, and spend meaningful time in prayer without having to accomodate anyone else's needs or schedules. I am comparing life in a stream to life in a tumbler. And then, in my all-or-nothing fallacy-based mindset, I reason that since life can't be like it was in the stream, then why even bother?

But you know what I forgot? That I don't change me. All the faithful practices in the world will not change me. Of course God uses those means, but if he places me in a stage of life where I have the time and stamina for a few desperate words of prayer and a chapter or two of Scripture, then I can trust that He will do all that needs to be done with that meager offering.

But instead, I blow it off all together most days. Because I can't do the "all" that I have decided I must do. But the reality is, I am being changed. In this season that appears to be the least spiritual, the most removed from time with God, He is actually doing the most in me I think.

And probably, one day, I'll get put back in that peaceful river. Much smoother, much more polished than the young stones around me. And I will let them know that God is here, but He will be even closer in the tumbler.

Why, Hello There.

2011-01-19T14:55:00.005-06:00

**tap, tap, tap**

Is this thing on?

Hello, my beloved readers. I'm assuming you have all been clicking refresh on your browsers since November just praying for a new post to pop up. Well click no longer, dear ones. I refuse to put off the outpouring of verbal creativity that has welled up within my soul, lo, these many weeks.

Or maybe Cheryl has updated her freaking blog three times in the past three days and I don't like to be outdone.

The only problem is...I'm not sure where I want this blog to go. I can't deny the mommy blog-ness that goes on here. I have incredible brilliant children so I must from time to time fill you in on all the terribly impressive things they do and say. But I'm not sure I have found my niche yet.

I'm not a photographer so a hip blog full of my well-edited pictures is out. Most of my craft projects turn out looking like I was drunk and blindfolded while doing them. I do cook, but only out of societal pressure to conform to my gender role. So there goes the crafting and cooking genre. I love Jesus, but dear God, I'm afraid you need to be a little less cynical before you write a weekly devotional blog. I enjoy exercise, particularly yoga, but what's say I drop this last 15 before I try to knock Jillian Michaels off her throne.

So where does this leave me? Not sure. I shall continue to ponder this.

In the meantime, I'll just complain about a few things. This I feel equipped to do.

Let's start off with what must be the biggest thing happening on the planet right now because I swear it's all that was on the news this morning...The Trenta. Yes, 31 ounces is a lot. Yes, it will probably cost $5 after tax. Yes, our population is overweight and we drink too many empty calories and blah, blah, blah. There is a demand and Starbucks is supplying and that's what makes this little system we all enjoy so much go round and round. So if it offends your moral and ethical sensibilities to be in the presence of such blatant gluttony, brew your coffee at home and shut up.

So I really like being in my thirties. I feel more confident and less prone to be affected by the drama that begins in jr. high and never goes away. I think there is a "coming in to yourself" (I don't know what that even means, but go with me here) that happens, slowly but surely, and it's nice. You still envy those people in their twenties that always dress cute and get to do amazing things, like sleep, but on the whole, I wouldn't go back to those days. But for crying out loud, what is up with the dark under-eye circles? I mean, come on! Whatever the switch is that flips and makes weight loss so much more fun in your thirties also controls the pigment of the skin below your eyes apparently. Concealer is no longer optional if I would like to appear, oh I don't know...like I haven't been in a fight? I'm not a fan. Notatall.

My neighbors have a goat. As a pet. That they walk. I think this is weird.

Ok, that's enough complaining for now.

So bear with me as I figure out what this blog is. I've narrowed it down to nothing hip, creative, enviable, or impressive.

And for crying out loud, Cheryl, don't post tomorrow. This is exhausting.

And Now It Is November

2010-11-02T13:58:00.006-05:00

One post for October. Pitiful. I guess if I were keeping a baby book or making some sort of scrapbook, neglecting the blog might not be that big of a deal. Oh the pressure.

Well let's get started, shall we? We've lived a lot of life in these past few weeks and I have some incredibly mediocre pictures to prove it.

We visited Oil Ranch with some friends. Places like that have the potential to be way more trouble than they are worth, but I have to say that it was a really enjoyable experience. Asher and Jude loved getting to ride ponies and feed farm animals and ride the train. Simeon didn't seem to mind it too much either.

First up: The pony rides! I don't want to brag, but look at that form. Textbook. Those boys mounted that saddle and made that relatively small loop with poise and style. Even when the saddle came loose on Jude's pony and he was practically parallel with the ground, Cowboy Jude held on and finished his ride. Giddy up.

Next up:The hay ride: What you would expect up until the driver pulls off to a small area where cows are hanging out waiting to be fed. By the people on the hay ride. These are not bashful cows that don't want to appear too anxious. They know the drill. They stick their enormous heads right in your lap and you give them cow food. Got that? It's been about 15 minutes since the last hay ride came through so don't make them wait either.

The final activity: pumpkin selection. You DO NOT want to make the wrong choice. Thoughtfully peruse each one until the orange squash that God permitted to exist just so it could find its way into your grimy little hands jumps out at you.

Whew. Well done, boys. That was a close one.

That evening, we went to Mamaw and Poppy's so that Asher and Jude could attend their very first football game. Asher had been wanting to go one for a while so we headed out to Hamshire. Where the boys watched clothes dry. Loads of fun (with a wit only matched by her beauty.)

Incidentally, Jude opted out of the football game and stayed at home with Mamaw and Simmy and me. He decided it would be more fun to lie in bed and watch Nick Jr. which was definitely one of my prouder moments as a mother. Asher, Poppy, and Kris went and it was reported that a good time was had by all.

Oh, sweet Simeon. He is adored by us all. He smiles at everybody. He plays contentedly by himself. He eats and sleeps well. And all I can say about that is, "THANK YOU, GOD!"

We took our traditional pumpkin patch pictures. We got there a little late and didn't have enough light left to take the requisite 500 pictures in order to get 1 or 2 good ones. But I think this one does a good job of capturing the moment.

(Thankfully my friend Chris met us out there a few day later and got some cute ones.)

Ok, I'm exhausted now. More blogging later. Pinky swear.

And now for The October Post

2010-10-14T21:14:00.004-05:00

Remember when I blogged more than once a month? Yeah, me neither.

So here is Simeon. He is 3 months now.

He's chunking up. As all Bobbitt/Rives babies are wont to do.

I feel like I should write more. So let's see what happens...

Did you know Blue (the one with the Clues) is a girl? I did not. I saw a cute Blue costume at a consignment store today and it was just Jude's size. They have recently discovered Blue's Clues thanks to Netflix and really like it. So I asked Jude if he wanted to be Blue, and of course, he did. And then Asher said, "And I can be Steve because he takes care of Blue!" Deal Sealed. Coordinating costumes (which is imperative)and thoughtfulness (which is rare.) But then I dicovered Blue is female. Please don't tell Jude. Or Kris.

But now that I think about it, Asher was a fireman last year and Jude was his dalmation. This will probably come up in therapy one day.

I read an incredible book recently--Notes from the Tilt-a-Whirl by N.D. Wilson (son of Doug Wilson.) He places his writing in the genre of "creative non-fiction" and his style really resonated with me. First of all, he is, as a friend of mine put it, "dripping with sarcasm." But since sarcasm happens to be my primary love language, I ate it up. So if dry wit and well-placed foul language is not yor cup of tea, you probably won't love it. He observes the world with wide-eyed wonder and writes about it with a philosophical, yet completely approachable perspective. He moves through the four seasons pointing out the humor, paradoxes, mysteries, and brilliance that are God's trademarks. His writing is very "stream-of-consciouness," but it only adds to the way that the book challenges your preconceived ideas about what God does and how He does it. I loved it.

I do not like fantasy stories. I don't mind reading books where the author creates circumstances that are highly unlikely but possibly realistic, but fairy stories where elves and hobbits (yes, I said it) and vampires are the main characters, I'm just not that in to. But creative non-fiction--that draws me in. And there doesn't seem to be a lot of that.

So...read any good books lately? Hannah Coulter by Wendell Berry is on my nightstand now.

2 months

2010-09-04T22:33:00.002-05:00

Three's A Crowd

2010-08-14T22:26:00.003-05:00

This is one loved little baby! If Simeon is awake, the poor child has someone laying by him (or on him), kissing him, holding him, or dragging him by the foot across the room (Mama was catching up on facebook and perhaps should have glanced up from her computer more frequently.)

We are about to begin week 7 with our youngest and we are finally getting to that "Ok, I think we're going to make it" stage. Simeon is sleeping...um, better shall we say? Nothing to brag about, but enough that I can function. He's napping in his crib and getting his own sweet self to sleep. Sorry kids, but I'm a "a little crying never hurt anybody" kind of mom.

Kris is back at work. I had 6 wonderful weeks of help from my amazing husband. But we like bacon around here so somebody's got to bring it home.

Jude turned 2 a few weeks ago. We had a little family party at my parents' house and Jude kept up the tradition begun by Asher of puking at your 2nd birthday party. Other than that, it was a great party. Lots of Thomas the Train paraphernalia and outside toys were bestowed upon young Jude--a happy little 2 year old that did make.

Kris finished the deck! He outdid himself. He really should think twice about doing such awesome work because all that does it make the little mental list I keep for him in my head grow longer. Oh the plans I have for him now. Pics to come soon! I can't wait for more mild weather so we can really enjoy it.

One last picture of Simmy (as Jude has nicknamed him.)

So sweet!

Simeon James Rives

2010-07-07T12:34:00.010-05:00

Well, it's true what they say--third time is a charm. For this delivery, the baby was breathing and I was conscious. Mission: Accomplished.

Simeon James made his grand entrance at 7:53 on the morning of June 28. He was a whopping 6 lb. 12 oz. and 20 inches--which is how long Big Bro Jude was, but Jude weighed 2 lbs. more.

The anesthesiologist had a little problem finding the right spot for my spinal block, but no where near the trouble the last guy had so I was most grateful for that. She got it going and after a little anti-nausea medicine, I was good to go. Dr. Plummer got to work doing God knows what behind that curtain and a few minutes later, Little Bit came out screaming his little lungs out. Best. sound. ever.

That is the picture I have been wanting...mainly because Kris looks so hot in his shower cap.

Kris went with Simeon to the nursery to get cleaned up and to make sure that they brought him back to me ASAP so I could nurse him. I will say attempting that after major abdominal surgery was a little precarious, but by God's grace, we did it!

While Simeon was back there, he got to meet his very first friend, James. His mom, Laura, and I are very good friends and were so happy to deliver our boys on the same day in the same hospital.

We spent this first day together--just the 3 of us.

We asked that friends and family wait until the second day to come meet our little guy so we could have some time to spend just focusing on Simeon and on getting a good start on nursing.

So the big brothers waited until Tuesday to come up and visit their new baby. They were so excited and looked super cute in their shirts made by my friend Becca at Too Cute Creations (pics of all 3 in their shirts coming soon!)

And although it appears that Jude is about to whack his new brother, he was really just reaching out to touch him. Jude has actually been really gentle with him. If you know Jude at all, you are just as surprised as we are.

Here are a few of Sweet Simeon. I will refrain from making pronouncements about his temperment until he is a little older. Or at least until all the narcotics are out of my breastmilk. But he really is a sweet baby. He has a precious little look with his big eyes and tiny little face.

The day we left the hospital

Daddy and Simeon

After his spongebath

Simeon and me( sporting my "I have a newborn" hairdo)

Check out those guns.

Our little family of five is doing well. Thankfully, it is summer so Daddy is home with us for a few more weeks so I won't feel the full impact of being a mom of three until then. We are enjoying our time together and this way-too-long, way-too-short season.

Photo Shoot

2010-06-19T09:40:00.001-05:00

Click here to see our pictures!

Baby Blessing

2010-06-07T17:47:00.012-05:00

Friday night, my way-too-kind friends threw me a "baby blessing." Unlike a shower, where the focus tends to be the soon-arriving baby and opening gifts, a blessing is more for the mother--a time to honor her and share thoughts, blessings, encouragement, bible verses with her to help her prepare for all the changes that are about to take place. Much like the one I had when I was expecting Jude, this blessing was so special and something that I will always remember and treasure.

Cheryl was our gracious hostess and she did such a great job organizing and planning everything. She knows my love for appetizers as meals, more specifically--DIPS! I am a chips and dip girl all the way so she had several of our friends bring all manner of dips and chips and crackers and veggies. There were sweet dips. There were savory dips. I was in dip heaven!

She even made these cute little signs for each dip. She has a craft room now so I would expect nothing less of her ;)

And check out this cake!

Cutest cake EVER and it tasted just as good as it looked. A delicious cake that incorporates my obsession with monograms--what more could I ask for?

And lest you think the food was the highlight of the evening, rest assured it was my amazing circle of friends that gathered to encourage me and bless me as I prepare for Simeon's arrival. I wish I had my camera out earlier so I could have gotten pictures of everyone! But here are a few of the incredible women in my life...

Me and Cheryl (aka Hostess with the Mostess)

Kathy, Bethany, Me, and Chris. We are all the moms of 3 yr. old boys and are living to tell about it ;)

Laura and I (we are due just 2 days apart!)

Jenny and I (we are having our lovely scheduled c-sections exactly one week apart)

And me and my mom (who my readers probably know better as Mamaw)

Another special aspect of a Baby Blessing is the bracelet. Each woman there strings a pretty bead onto a bracelet and the mother gets to take it home and wear it as a reminder of all the prayers and support that she has, especially during her upcoming delivery. I have one from my Blessing for Jude and was looking forward to the one I would receive at Simeon's and joked with Cheryl that I needed a "retroactive" one for Asher since I didn't have a Blessing for him. So my talented friend from church made a beautiful bracelet for me to represent Asher and then all the women there assembled another really pretty one for Simeon's birth.

The main event at a Baby Blessing is the time set aside to go around the room and share words of blessing and encouragement with the mom. The guests are asked to bring their written blessing as well and they are assembled into a blessing book. This is the cover of mine that Cheryl made.

And here are a few of the pages.

The whole evening was so incredibly special. We have been so blessed in our community to have the opportunity to throw several Blessings lately and each one always ends up being a beautiful reminder of the importance of the circle of women God has placed in each of our lives. As I said that night, the women gathered there (and a few others that couldn't make it) are my "village"--the ones that help me in more ways that I could count as I live out my journey as a believer in Christ, as a wife to Kris, and as a mother to my 3 boys. I can't do it alone. I need these women. And this night made it so clear, once again, that I don't have to. Blessed indeed.

Sneak Peek

2010-06-05T14:37:00.002-05:00

We had family pictures taken last week. The photographer sent me a little sneak peak. Can't wait to see the rest!

Cravings

2010-05-25T12:50:00.004-05:00

I've never really had pregnancy cravings. I just want to eat and eat. Pretty much everything sounds good and I find that the things I really like taste even better when I am pregnant.

To me, a true craving is something that you would typically never eat but that you cannot get enough of during pregnancy. Like turnip greens or spam or garden soil. If you hear a pregnant woman say, "I'm really craving chips and queso!" what she means is "I am in a phase of life in which I intend on eating whatever the heck I want because I am going to get fat anyway so get me some chips and queso right now and don't even think about giving me any lip about it because I am surrendering my body to grow this child so the least you can do is let me enjoy my fried corn and melted cheese in peace." I mean, who doesn't love chips and queso? When do you ever hear "Ugh! Chips and queso sounds like a horrible idea. No thank you!" Uh...you don't.

That being said, I have a current food crush that I am not quite prepared to label a "craving" but that I can honestly say has never appealed to me before and possibly will never appeal to me again.

Meet the Pickle Pack.

Excuse me...pak. It's picklicious.

Allow me to explain. A few weeks ago I was at HEB and I purchased some lunchmeat from the deli. It just so happened that that day, with purchase of lunchmeat, one received some deli cheese and one indivudual picklepak cup free. I'm not a big pickle eater, but it was free so I took it. And a few days later, I saw it in the pantry and decided to eat it with my sandwich.

And I have never looked back! That picklepak was amazing. Little-bitty kosher pickles (served at room temp, never refrigerated I have learned) have become a staple of my diet. Are my hands and feet a little puffy from the extra salt that my new pickle habit has introduced into my diet? Yes. Do I care? No.

So while I don't consider my beloved picklets a craving, I will say that I am glad I was pregnant when I discovered my love for them because it makes it seem so much more acceptable. Regular girl walking around with a little plastic up full of mini-pickles--weird. Pregnant girl doing the same thing--makes total sense. I could even have an ice cream cone in the other hand and no one would think twice.

Pregnancy. You get fat but no one dares question your food choices. I shall enjoy my last few weeks of this.

Lovest Thou Me?

2010-05-24T10:45:00.003-05:00

Me: Judah, do you love Mama?

Jude: mm-hmmm. And Daddy. And Addie.(Asher) And Ninie.(Simeon) And Nonny.(Thomas) And Peh-pee. (Percy)

Project Lemonade

2010-05-13T20:29:00.002-05:00

This is what I have dubbed our backyard beautification project. It's a bit of a lemon back there. But not for long. As I have stated previously, this is the summer of embracing what we have and making it work. As you can tell, Jude is totally on board.

Step one was the planting of our little garden. I am so pleased to report that we have a tiny little pepper on one of the plants and the squash and tomatoes are beginning to flower.

Step 2 is creating some sort of patio or deck. That is still in the works. We're trying to decide what we want and what will be most cost-effective. I'm leaning towards a low wooden deck--a little more visually pleasing than just a plain concrete slab and probably a little less expensive. But since I will not be the one doing the work, it's not really my call. I serve in more of an advisory role.

Step 3 is putting up the canopy/gazebo thing we ordered. This will be placed over our hypothetical deck. Now, I must tell you, I have a very accommodating husband. There is very little the man will not do for me and do for me with a cheerful, willing heart. But I may have found his limit.

This is the hardware that came in the box for the assembly of the canopy.

He is not pleased.

But he gets to work anyway. Because THAT'S the kind of guy he is!

And that's basically it. Project Lemonade is modest in scope. We have the baby pools happening and Kris has the wood to build the sandbox. We have the boys' little picnic table out there and some outside toys. They are already having a blast.

Take this afternoon for example. As Kris was cutting out the canopy from its ridiculous amount of packaging, Asher and Jude were splashing around the baby pool and running through the sprinklers. What could be more fun, right?

Let's hear it for cheap plastic baby pools! Woo-hoo!

Blue Skies/Smiling at me

2010-05-12T11:47:00.001-05:00

Items For Your Consideration

2010-04-26T08:31:00.007-05:00

Item #1: My goals for today (and there are exactly 2 of them)...laundry (including the weeding out of superfluous items that bog down my laundry productivity but might be useful to someone else) and going to the grocery store.

Item #2: When I change Jude's diaper, I always say, "P.U.!" (or is it "pee-yew"? or "pea-you"?) So he has started saying, as soon as I lay him down to change him, "ahhhh-peeee!" I realize this is not that funny to anyone else, but it's one of those little things I want to remember so into the blog it goes. He's hit that point where his vocabulary has exploded. He'll tell me something and all I can think is "when did you learn that word?" My favorite right now though is his "yes sir" which sounds like "yeeehhhhh-shore."

Item #3: I am 30 weeks as of Saturday. When anyone who has children over the age of 15 asks me how far along I am and I give my answer in weeks, they look confused. So I have to quickly divide my weeks by 4 to give them an answer that will make sense to them. So when did that shift occur?

Item #4: I am 30 weeks as of Saturday. This means that in a little over 9 weeks I will, Lord willing, give birth to Simeon James via c-section. Not my preference to say the least, but at least I will be able to sit afterwards. It's sad when that is the only nice thing I can say about it. It's a tough sell--"Hey! Ok, I'm going to cut you open, staple you back together, separate you from your baby during a crucial bonding time, and then expect you to care for 3 kids 3 and under as you recover from major surgery. Sound good?" Perfect.

Item #4: I am 30 weeks as of Saturday. I had an ultrasound this week and from his profile, he looks more like Asher's us pictures. He kicks. A lot. Really hard. Which would make him more like Jude.

Item #5: The term "begs the question"...I feel this is being misused a lot these days. My understanding is that it is a logical fallacy used to describe an argument that is circular in its reasoning or that assumes the conclusion as part of the premise. But I hear people constantly using it as though it means a question that should be asked in response to whatever statement was just made (i.e. The dog got hit by a car which begs the question "Why was the dog not in the backyard?") Is this just one of those usages that has become conventional and accepted or should I start calling people out on it in a really conspicuous and humiliating way?

Item #6: I haven't eaten at Jason's Deli since Thursday and I'm really hoping that Kris will be up for dinner there tonight.

Item #7:

These are the new "Going to Mamaw and Poppy's House" backpacks. I really want to get their names embroidered on them but since the Elmo one will probably become Simeon's within the next year or two I guess I will refrain. Do you think the urge to get your children's names embroidered on everything they own is a sickness?

Jamie, Jamie, Quite Contrary

2010-04-19T13:33:00.005-05:00

Ok, it doesn't really rhyme but it still works, no?

So we have planted a garden. A very small garden. Our garden is currently the cradle of tomatoes, squash, peppers, and I think maybe cucumbers. I can't really remember exactly so it will be a nice surprise when whatever that last plant is bears its fruit, as it were.

Our friend from church, Scott, who is an expert on all things soil, seed, and gardening related helped us plan out everything. So if it all comes to nothing, I will have someone else to blame, which is how I like to live life. Always have someone to point a finger at when things go badly. I may stitch that on a sampler.

So step one was to spend a lot of money on dirt.

Check.

Step two, Kris built 2 boxes--one 6x2 box for the tomato plants and one 4x4 for everything else. Check.

Step three was to prepare the fallow ground.

Kris dug down about 6 inches inside the boxes and then mixed up all the various soils with the dirt that was already there. So we have about 12 inches of growing depth. I would have helped him, but I have really pretty, soft, delicate hands that just aren't cut out for manual labor.

But don't think that I just abandoned him to do all the work alone. That would be so inconseiderate! No, I stepped up to the plate and hired a few workers to help him ge tthe job done.

They worked hard for a while.

But then an impromptu concert broke out and the water hose became a microphone.

I guess you get what you pay for. Oh well. At least he puts on a good show.

So now the little plants are nestled in their new dirt homes. We planted, we are watering, and we are waiting on God to give the increase!

I will blog again one day

2010-04-17T22:08:00.002-05:00

But for now, enjoy my new favorite picture (because Jude is actually SMILING!)

25 Weeks

2010-03-23T21:26:00.002-05:00

Breath-taking, I know. Yeah, and see that little thing on the floor in the background. Not my friend.

Little Simeon James is doing well. I don't have a date yet, but he will most likely be ripped from the comfort of his current home some time during the 39th week. So we're looking at about 14 more weeks, during which I fully anticipate gaining my usual 50 lbs. I had high hopes this time around, but alas, I am who I am. You can't fight genetics. Well, I guess you could by eating totally healthy and continuing to work out but who's got the energy for that?

And the award for "Best Mamaw in the World" goes to...

2010-03-21T10:44:00.007-05:00

Asher and Jude's Mamaw for her work on the Fun Slide! Upon seeing Jude's disappointment as Asher and Daddy made their way up, Mamaw took control of the situation and made sure the little man did not get left out of the fun.

This and much more merriment was made at the Nederland Heritage Festival. Nederland is a small town near where my parents live so when I heard that their festival was going on, we decided to check it out last weekend with Mamaw and Poppy.

I think the boys favorite part was the petting zoo. Dirt and germs--of course they loved it.

I have a policy about avoiding rides that can be set up in a day, but decided to make an exception for the bumble bee ride. It seemed relatively safe and Asher really wanted to ride it. He had a blast of course.

We capped off the day with a ride on the carousel.

Rides, festival food (which included, but was not limited to, funnel cake, various meat on a stick, and fried oreos), and a petting zoo. Do we know how to live it up or what?

Best Friends Since 2008

2010-03-21T10:00:00.005-05:00

As we eagerly await the arrival of the 3rd amigo (I started to write "stooge" but "amigo" sounded more positive) I can't help but reflect on the past 20 months. Asher and Jude have developed the perfect brotherly bond during that time. The are rough with each other, they yell at each other, they play made-up games together, they annoy the heck out of each other, they have to know where the other one is at all times, they laugh together, they play music together. I'm so glad they have each other and I'm so glad Simeon has such sweet brothers to show him the ropes.

They've been playing together all morning. The older they get, the more "reffing" I have to do. I struggle to let them play rough--they are boys after all. They are not wired to sit peacefully all the time and play nice, quiet, orderly games. So I try to let them have their "boy" fun, but rein them in before someone gets injured.

It's a delicate balance.

Judah Kristopher at 19 Months

2010-03-04T03:47:00.004-06:00

My tiny newborn turned 19 months on Feb. 28. It goes without saying that, with Asher, I kept much better track of developmental milestones and what all he was doing at certain ages. So it is high time I jotted down a few things that Jude is up to these days.

--He weighs about 30 lbs. He's a big boy but is getting so tall. I counted 5 arm fat rolls on his 9 month picture and now we are down to just 2. He's wasting away and we are all concerned.

--He's very communicative but is a man of few words. Nodding gets him where he needs to go. He says Mama, Daddy, Asher, Mamaw (Muh-mie), Poppy (Pa),LOVEY (of course), banana (nana), apple, milk (ni), water, cheese, chicken (chih--usualy referring to Chickfila) book, bible, bubble, shoe,fish, yucky (gucky),crackers, cookie, {please, thank you, more, and all done (signs and says a version of the words)} various Sesame Street characters...probably more but that's all that's coming to me now.

--He follows really complex directions which amazes us because Asher did not seem to be able to do this as soon. If we tell him to go find something, even if it is in another room, he will usually go look for it and retreive it.

--A fit thrower! Oh my word. But we don't put up with that foolishness here. I get down on his level and tell him to stop or he is going to his bed. He either a) stops, b) continues the fit and gets put in bed for a few minutes, or c) stops but still asks to get his lovey and go to his bed.

--He loves Thomas the Tank Engine and Percy. Thankfully, he has recently started calling him something that sounds more like "thomas" because for a while he called him "daddy."

--He goes to bed between 7:30 and 8:00 and wakes up between 6:30 and 7:00. And there is no chilling out in his bed for awhile. As soon as he wakes up, he is yelling "MAAAMAAAA" or "DAAAADDDDYYY."

--He loves to wear underwear (Thomas of course--over the dipaer, sometimes over his clothes)and always asks to "tee-tee" in the potty. We've set him on there a few times and he never goes. He just likes the idea. I am in NO RUSH to potty-train him at all. We will stick with the diapers until much closer to 3.

--He answers the first question of the Children's Catechism (Who made you? God.) very clearly and the next 2 somewhat clearly. He loves to sing Doxology just like his brother and adds a very hearty "AAAAA-men" to the end. Amen is is favorite part of prayer to. We usually have to hold hands and do the "amen" part several times during the meal.

--Meals. A little more picky than I would care for. But I'm not wearing a name tag and this is not a diner, so you get what you get. The child weighs 30 lbs. so if he elects to miss a meal ot two, I say it's no biggie. He's a self-preservationist just like this rest of us--he'll eat when he's hungry.

--very into guitars. Whatever he picks up, he first holds it like a guitar and makea a strumming motion. very funny and a little weird.

--plays really well alone. he loves cars and blocks and Little People. Asher was strictly a block knocker-downer at this age but Jude will build towers.

--He and Asher have so much fun together. Asher orders him around and Jude is happy to comply. They get rough and rowdy and loud. There are no calm tea parties here.

Overall, he is a sweet little boy with a fiereceness about him. He is stubborn as the day is long but so lovable. He gives the best kisses that you always have to rub in (wet, but so sweet.) I am so thankful for him and the role he plays in our family. He is a great little brother and I'm sure will slide right into his place as a big brother, too.

My Life is a Concert

2010-02-24T16:14:00.000-06:00

I'm Home

2010-02-23T08:41:00.005-06:00

I have returned home from a lovely visit to Bend, Oregon. My good friend Victoria is days (minutes?) away from giving birth to two little girls! So my other good friend, Angie, and I decided to head up there and spend some time with her before life. changes. forever. (in the best way, of course.)

The day we were scheduled to arrive, Victoria's doctors decided that she should continue her bed rest in the hospital and to to take her off her anti-contraction meds. She was 34 weeks and the babies are both a good size, so we fully expected to be able to actually see the babies during our visit. Everyone was ready, especially this girl...

But alas, no babies yet. But we did get intimately acquainted with the birthing center at St. Charles Hospital and had lots of fun anyway crafting, playing games, and eating--basically what we would have done with her at home, but with lots of beeping and monitors.

The only time the 3 of us have hung out since the college/waiting tables days was for each of our weddings so it was so great to be able to spend some time together without one of us totally stressed out about a wedding! Of course, the stress of not knowing when the babies will come and how it all all go down was there, but other than that...;)

It was good to catch up but it is VERY good to be home. I would love to go back to Oregon because it truly is breathtakingly beautiful, but I think I will bring the whole crew next time!

Whatcha think?

2010-02-18T10:21:00.003-06:00

Should I get these pictures printed out and hung in the living room. I'm thinking it would make a lovely wall collage/conversation piece.

You know--just something different.

My Sweetheart

2010-02-14T22:16:00.002-06:00

I would give up every single thing on that other list for you. Even Jason's Deli.

Let's hope it doesn't come to that though.

things i love

2010-02-13T23:12:00.004-06:00

monogrammed sheets

coffee with heavy whipped cream

red toile

any film based on a jane austen novel

dr. pepper

uninterupted sleep

jason's deli

when Asher says "gotfor"

when Jude holds his lovey and sucks his thumb

anthropologie

dusk

pink pearl earrings

pleasures perfume

matching little boy outfits

robins egg blue/red color combinations

james taylor songs

a washed and vacuumed minivan

eating out

black and white pictures of my kids

wearing a skirt and flip-flops

a fresh haircut

good conversation with good friends

Godiva chocolate cheesecake

the beach in Destin

Peace Like A River by Leif Enger

the bulk section at Whole Foods

my J. Crew peacoat

live music in very small venues

ruffling feathers :) oh yes I do.

Zoo Season

2010-02-12T13:19:00.004-06:00

We love having a membership to the zoo! But Zoo Season does not last long. Zoo Season, as defined by me, runs from about October to December (only on not too cold days) and then from about March to May (only on not too hot days.) Any other time, I find the weather completely objectionable and refuse to be out of doors for any length of time. But occasionally, a pretty day will surprise us in what would normally be considered off-season and I break my rule to take advantage of it.

A few weeks ago, one such day occurred. The weather was amazing--breezy and low humidity, but warm enough to not need a jacket. It was so unbelievably pleasant. Even the animals seemed happier than usual.

The boys are both at a great age for the zoo. Lots of excitement and questions and stamina. I love having two big boys!

Asher Turns 3 Pt. III/Bye-Bye Baby Bed

2010-02-12T12:59:00.006-06:00

Asher's real birthday was Sunday, February 7. But as far as he was concerned, something magical happened at his party on Wednesday and he walked out of Chick-fil-a a fully-fledged three year old. So Sunday would have been kind of anti-climatic had not a major milestone occurred.

I am referring to the taking down of the baby bed. We have been telling him for quite some time that when he turned 3, the baby bed was getting put away and he would start sleeping in his big boy bed. If we brought up this fact from the time between Wednesday and his actual b-day, he would say, "Umm...I think I'm still 2."

But there was no more putting it off. The men of this house got out their tools and went to work packing it up!

I am happy to report he has transitioned somewhat smoothly. He is not thrilled, but he is embracing the change. Nights are better than naps. He has yet to actually goto sleep but I still make him stay in there for 2 hours. I can't make him sleep but I can make him give me some alone time. He usually comes out dressed in a new outfit. Whatever. Just be quiet.

The next day was the day of the big ultrasound so we rolled family birthday party and the big reveal into one celebration. My parents and several of Kris' siblings came over and we went to dinner. Asher got more fun presents and we revealed that we found out that Simeon was a Simeon.

I think we can consider this birthday duly celebrated. The next birthday in our little family will be an actual day of birth this summer. Hopefully I will have recovered from all of this by then.

My Other Birthday Boy

2010-02-11T22:02:00.004-06:00

Before Asherfest 2010 began, we celebrated another very important day. My amazing husband turned 35!

You know its gonna be a good party when the guests are in their underwear before the candles are even lit.

Daddy's helpers were there to lend a lung for ALL. THOSE. CANDLES.

Oh how these boys love cake. From their first birthdays on, these boys have never passed up the opportunity.

This shot was taking by a budding photographer. He's really good but can only really offer an "up the nose" perspective right now. Can you tell this picture was taken by someone about 3 feet tall?

He's booking quickly so don't wait til the last minute.

Asher Turns 3 Pt. II

2010-02-11T18:12:00.003-06:00

Here is Part I.

The same day as the big friend party, we went to dinner with our good friends, The Rowleys. Mrs. Kelli is one of Asher's very favorite people on this earth so it is always a big treat to see her and the rest of her gang!

We went to Pappasitos (half-price fajitas on Wednesday nights--holla!) They ordered Asher the phenomenal tres leches cake and he got to wear the birthday sombrero.

So we sang to him (again) and dug into the cake. We are ringing in 3 for sure!

But, I kid you not, the celebration was not over yet...

My Three Sons

2010-02-11T17:57:00.003-06:00

Lest this child label himself as "The One She Never Blogged About" I will make sure I gush about the newest little Rives who will, Lord willing, join our family in late June/early July.

This is Simeon James Rives. We are so excited about having another boy. Oh the matchy-matchyness that will ensue. I cannot wait!

Asher Turns 3!

2010-02-11T16:33:00.011-06:00

I obviously have a lot of catching up to do so I'm just jumping in. I'll start with the highlight of Asher's life thus far--turning Three. We have talked about this day for about the last 6 months.

If you asked him what he wanted to do when he turned Three, his answer, invariably, was "Go to the gym and play ba-ketball and check my email." At our gym, when you turn 3, you get to go to The Promised Land where there is a big play structure, a mini court, and an array of colorful Macs on which to play games. Asher has tasted the goodness of this place a few times when he figured out if he asks to go to the bathroom, he can sneak into the big kid zone but he is always busted and made to return to the purgatory that is the toddler room.

The irony of it all is that I hardly ever make it to the gym these days. I had lofty goals for this pregnancy which included working out as consistently as I was pre-pregnancy, but alas...I am not That Girl. I tried to be--I really did. But I am Live It Up and Get Fat While You Are Pregnant Girl. Huh--who knew?

Anyway, turning Three. It was a marathon of a celebration. It began with a small party for his friends on the Wednesday morning before his real birthday, which was the following Sunday. He has been hooked on a show that comes on PBS Sprout called "Fireman Sam" which is a kids show from the UK. So I scheduled a tour at a local fire station. Great idea in theory--until the firemen get a call about 15 minutes into the visit and have to leave. Thankfully, we run with a flexible group of friends.

During our breif visit, we did get to explore the fire trucks. First, the boys cut their teeth on the smaller truck--kinda got a feel for how it handles.

Then they moved up to the big rig.

Mamaw (who graciously took the day off to attend the festivities) and Jude (who may the be the hardest child EVER to get a decent picture of.)

Here's the crew all together (minus Isaac, Sadie, and Sophia)

Here you can see the Amazing Mamaw at work. She did such a fabulous job at this party, I am considering renting her out. She did get a big ol' smile out of Jude (not an easy feat) but of course I was shooting from the wrong angle. Did anyone get a shot of the elusive smile of Jude Rives?

Our tour was cut short, but since the next stop on the party route was Chick-Fil-A, no one seemed to mind.

Yum! Hydrogenated oil and refined sugar! Nothing but the best for my boy.

More party fun!

It was the perfect party. Play, eat, go home and take a nap!

But this was only Celebration #1...

A Little Better?

2010-02-11T15:05:00.002-06:00

I'm not in love with it, but it's better. Maybe it will do for now.

You were right, Robin. Simple is better. Glad you are not snowed in. But I think you are supposed to get more snow so feel free to give me some ideas if you get bored again.

I Hate My Blog

2010-02-11T11:14:00.001-06:00

Somebody redesign it for me. Please. I really want to start posting again but until I find a layout I like, I cannot proceed.

Robin, since you are snowed in, I think this would be a nice project for you.

Do You Love the New Layout or What!

2010-01-24T14:21:00.003-06:00

THe blog is getting revamped. I'm changing up the look, the links, and the organization. I need to start blogging again--so much is happening and I hate that I'm not making note of it here.

So hopefully I will be back soon with a better look and more true stories of ill-deserved grace in the lives of Kris, Jamie, Asher, Jude, and an as-yet unnamed third child.

Blog, You Are Still Being Neglected

2010-01-12T20:32:00.003-06:00

Don't get your hopes up that I'm back and ready to blog. I just need to record a few things that I don't want to forget and then I'm out of here again.

Asher's version of Old MacDonald: Traditional words until he gets to "With a oink, oink here. With a oink, oink here. Anywhere, anywhere. Old Mac Donald had a farm e i e i o"

Jude is LOUD and proud. His favorite words are Mama and Daddy which he yells constantly throughout the day. Loudly.

Asher always points with his middle finger. I tell him to use his POINTER finger, but he never does.

Nothing major here--just want to make sure I remember this stuff!

2010

2010-01-01T22:03:00.002-06:00

Kris will turn 35.
Asher will turn 3.
New baby will be born.
Jude will turn 2.
I will turn 31.

Resolution: Don't blink.

For Our Friend Lightning

2009-12-27T21:32:00.001-06:00

We sang the Scooter Duck song tonight and I thought of you.

It's a bird! It's a plane!

2009-12-24T13:28:00.003-06:00

No wait...!

It's SuperJude!

"What seems to be the problem, Elmo? Mom and Dad turned you off again? I'll fix that!"

He gives Elmo some lovin'.

And then he rides off into the sunset on his trusty steed...er...zebra.

Jesus in Genesis

2009-12-20T22:18:00.003-06:00

Here is Andrew Peterson's song, Matthew's Begats, in which he sings the geneology of Christ beginning with Abraham.

And if you, like my good friend Kathy, object to clicking on videos, I urge you to make an exception just this once :)

We Are Not Daily Beggars

2009-12-20T15:37:00.003-06:00

The number of pictures in which my children have no clothes on may lead you to believe otherwise. They actually do own plenty of clothes, but for some reason, tend to lose them if we hang around the house too long.

So when we began making sugar cookies this morning, it seemed pretty natural that Asher should be in his underwear. Not quite a classic Rockwell scene, but still a sweet memory.

But then he decided he would like to wear an apron like I was so he got to wear the companion apron to mine (which of course says "Jamie loves Kris"--wedding gifts that I'm sorry to say we don't use nearly enough)

So as Jude and Daddy recovered from a rough night of coughing and yucky nasal issues, Asher and I made our first batch of sugar cookies ever. Very messy, but very worth it.

And with that, I bid a fond farewell to the December Blog Challenge of 2009. And it has been officially decided that this will be the very last DBC ever. Bittersweet, but it's just time to move on. A Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night.

No Crib For A Bed

2009-12-19T22:40:00.002-06:00

As some of you know, Asher still sleeps in a baby bed. We have the big boy bed all set up and ready to go, but our first attempt at the transition (when he was about 20 months) went horribly, horribly wrong. So we borrowed another crib after about a month of sleepless nights and he has been sleeping like a baby (pun obviously intended) ever since.

But with news of a new baby coming to live with us, Lord willing, this summer, we thought this would be the perfect opportunity for Asher to make the big move, free up a needed baby bed, and be the big brother-hero in the process--sacrificing the comfort and security that I suppose sleeping behind bars offers.

Well...he sees things a little differently. He has informed us that the new baby (who will be a girl says he) may have his big boy bed and he will stay in the crib. So little baby-on-the-way and the little Lord Jesus have something in common.

Through the Years

2009-12-18T22:44:00.002-06:00

I was thumbing through our old workbooks that my pastor had Kris and I use during our pre-marital counseling and one of the items on a questionnaire was "Name your top 3 favorite memories with your partner."

One of Kris' was "Jamie picking me up at the airport as a surprise." I read that and for the life of me could not remember that ever happening. So I asked him about it and he has no recollection of that happening either.

Are we already at that phase of life? Should we be concerned? I mean, it made the "top 3 best memories" list just 5 years ago and now we have no idea what he was talking about.

I guess too many other "best memories" have been made since then that that one had to leave to make room for all the other ones. Yeah, we'll go with that.

A Beautiful Sight

2009-12-17T13:05:00.002-06:00

As previously reported on facebook, the shelves are in and they are spectacular. They are exactly what I wanted. We looked for a long time for shelves and I was so close to settling on some that I didn't love but that would have just been an easy fix.

But I'm so glad I didn't because these are perfect. Kris worked so hard in addition to all the hard-working he already does. He cut and sanded and painted and nailed and glued--not because he particularly loves doing all that--but he does particularly love me.

Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire

2009-12-16T08:42:00.004-06:00

As you may recall, Asher was a fireman for Halloween this year. He still enjoys dressing up in his costume and it is not uncommon for him to walk around the house with some piece of his fireman regalia on.

But we should have known he was up to something when he wanted the whole outfit on AND wanted his Elmo bucket in hand. Kris helped him put everything on as we were still sitting at the table after dinner. He ran off and then we hear the sound of the Christmas candy jar being invaded.

He decided to do a little trick-or-treating on his own. It was a good plan so we let him get a piece for himself and one for Jude.

Speaking of Jude and firemen, I think a certain someone is working on his calendar poses.

Tiny Tots With Their Eyes All Aglow

2009-12-15T13:59:00.002-06:00

First of all--I know what you're thinking..."Hey look! Asher is wearing that truck shirt. Again. For the fourth time."

Yes, we are getting our money's worth out of it. We have a little over a week left to wear them before they are essentially useless to me so we're living it up.

But back to the picture--Meadow and Saige, Asher, and Josiah. We're thankful for our friends! These guys get to play together each week as the moms participate in a bible study. It is loud, slighly chaotic, and usually one mom is up at any given minute checking on a noise (or a lack of noise) coming from where the kids are playing. But those are the signs of life--beautiful reminders of God's grace in our lives.

Shoppers Rush Home With Their Treasures

2009-12-14T07:47:00.001-06:00

I got to leave the house alone yesterday. It's the little things in life, really. Not that I don't love every minute with my guys but sometimes it nice to be able to be able to accomplish my tasks a little more quickly than I'm able to with the little helpers in tow.

So to say I rushed home might be a bit of an overstatement. Took my time and made sure they were in bed before I darkened the door is actually more accurate. I found a gift for Jude that I think he is going to love. And maybe a little something for me. And I ate dinner alone at Cafe Express--a place I knew Kris would not at all mind missing out on. He's not a fan but I love it. I think this is because they offer sun-dried tomoatoes on their little mini condiment bar. I feel that sun-dried tomatoes enhance just about any dish and at Cafe Express, you get to add as much of them as you like.

I came home to boys in bed and an unloaded and reloaded dishwasher. That's right--my man builds shelves AND does dishes. Good call on my part marrying him.

All I Want For Christmas

2009-12-13T20:51:00.002-06:00

is for my brother to respect my personal space.

Mary's Boy Child...

2009-12-12T19:23:00.004-06:00

probably never needed a haircut. She had plenty on her mind as she cared for him, no doubt, but the the fact that he was getting a little shaggy was not an issue.

Not so here. Haircuts were sadly overdue. Asher had a about a 2-3 week window where he was rocking a pretty cool "surfer-musician, I just run my fingers through it and go" style but then it degenerated into "pitiful street urchin" and that's just really not the look we're going for.

So Mamaw and I took the boys today to get haircuts.

The webcam obviously does not do well with moving subjects so this is all I could get without actually getting up and looking for and using the camera. But trust me, they look so sweet. Asher kept saying, "I look pretty." I said, "Yes, you do baby...you get it from your daddy."

Don We Now Our Gay Apparel

2009-12-11T16:36:00.004-06:00

My friend Becca made these adorable shirts for the boys and I just love them! I really wanted cute holiday shirts for them but wanted a design that Kris would not get mad at me for putting on his boys. Cutesy snowmen and reindeer would just not do. We needed somthing that said "Cute, yet overtly manly." So a truck hauling a Christmas tree was the winner! Asher had his doubts at first ("I'm NOT wearing a Chris-a-mus tree shirt!" But he came around...as you can see.

The Cattle Are Lowing

2009-12-10T08:44:00.004-06:00

Does that mean mooing? Mooing quietly perhaps? Eating hay? Who knows.

I can tell you that a good dairy cow (under normal circumstances--meaning not what you find in most American "dairies") can produce up to 17 gallons of milk a day. If you give that cow to a family in a third world country, that family all of a sudden has the means to feed itself and a source of income by selling the surplus. This is exactly what Heifer International makes possible for thousands of families around the world.

An animal can literally change the course of life for a family. In addition to cows, you can give llamas, chicks, goats, even water buffalo! Each gift not only addresses an immediate need but starts a chain reation of need-meeting for the family, the neighborhood, and the entire community. But I'll let Alton tell you more (because who has not learned more from Alton Brown in one episode of Good Eats than in all 4 years of high school science classes?)...

Here is the gift catalog. Do a little holiday shopping!

And Heaven and Nature Sing

2009-12-09T20:06:00.005-06:00

I love hymns, ancient and modern. There is just something about theologically rich, well-written, Christ-exalting music that proclaims the gospel to your soul. Many of the songs we typically think of only around Christmas time are incredible proclamations of the glory of the Incarnation that we would do well to meditate on throughout the year. Some of these songs were written hundreds of years ago. Some were written in the last decade.

Andrew Peterson, one of my very favorite singer/songwriters, has a beautifully done album all about the coming of Christ. He begins in Genesis, which is where we first receive the Promise that God will deliver His people, and follows the promises throughout the Old Testament, culminating, of course, with Christ's birth.

If you have never heard the album I recommend you CLICK HERE and get it! One of my favorite songs on it is called "Labor of Love" and the first line is "It was not a silent night. There was blood all around." Now that's my kind of Christmas song.

So check it out. And listen to it all year long. Because as believers in Christ, his Incarnation is a precious truth that we celebrate all year long.

Making a List--UPDATED

2009-12-08T13:08:00.003-06:00

Before I lie down tonight, here is what I would like to accomplish

1. Make up bed with clean sheets. (update: made bed...same sheets...kids got in made bed and now it is no longer made...story.of.my.life.)
2. Fold and put away all laundry. (update: might still happen)
3. Hang all clothes that go on hangers. (update: DONE)
4. Clean bathroom counter and mirror. (update: not looking good)
5. Paint the rest of the shelves. (update: the Boss told me to wait til he sands them more)
6. Vacuum. (update: not happening)
7. Clean kitchen. (update: almost finished...had to cook dinner which made the job more involved)
8. Clean out magical minivan. (update: still filled up will all manner of books, papers, sippy cups, shoes, and junk mail)
9. Gather all books scattered throughout the house. (update: gathered some)
10. Deposit checks. (update: went to Target for more cleaning supplies and ran out of time...bank closes too early)
11. Print out Jesse Tree stuff. (update: maybe next year)
12. Straighten boys' rooms. (update: what's the point?)

Ok, that should be enough to keep me busy for today. I just put the Brothers Rives down for their naps so I will go get to work.

ps--the shelves are in and they look awesome! I just need to paint the little shelves that go inside because Kris made it to where they are adjustable. After that, I will post pics. My man did an incredeible job!!!

Later On We'll Conspire

2009-12-07T16:41:00.004-06:00

I think the scales at doctors offices (specifically OBs) are not balanced properly. I think all the obstetricians got together and decided to set their scales to weigh you at a good four to five pounds heavier than you really are. They keep you under their thumb better this way. You're defeated and desperate, therefore more inclined to do whatever they tell you.

Well I'm on to them and their evil plot (did I mention I'm pregnant?)

I get on the scale for my first appointment and I weighed--of course--4 pounds more than I did just 30 minutes before on my scale at home (which I know to be highly accurate.) So the nurse asks me my pre-pregnancy weight. So I just added four pounds to what I knew my starting weight to be. Take that. You're gonna have a faulty scale, then I'm gonna make the necessary adjustments. No condescending glances or offers of an appointment with a nutritionist for me, thank you kindly. (maybe I've been down this road before?)

So yeah, July 3. I'll be 10 weeks on Wednesday. Everything looks good. Got to see a sweet little heartbeat. Very happy and thankful indeed.

2009-12-06T14:33:00.002-06:00

I really did try to make it a real button with a real code but, as usual, I couldn't make it work and I gave up. So you have 2 options: figure out how to turn this picture into a button and post the code for the rest of us OR just save this pic to your computer and add it to your blog.

Either way, DBC '09 starts tomorrow. Fa la la la la la!

DBC--Monday--Be There

2009-12-05T17:28:00.002-06:00

2 more days to rest up and then it is ON. And that blog button is coming--pinky swear.

Because what else would I post about today?

2009-12-04T13:33:00.006-06:00

Snow in Houston. If it happens, we make sure everyone hears about it. I'm looking out my window at the downy flakes falling softly and quickly. A beautiful sight no doubt, but to really enjoy it, one needs the proper attire and it seems hard to justify snowsuits for the family when this only happens once a year.

We started the day with a light flurry that we made sure to go out and rejoice in just in case this was The Great Snowfall of '09.

I promise there really are little flakes. Really.

Then we came inside and played for a little while and decorated the Christmas tree, which, it must be said, is no easy feat with Thing 1 and 2 lending a hand. We ate lunch as we watched the flakes grow in size and speed. Excited that it was actually sticking to the ground, we headed back out to enjoy the snow a little more.

But as it turns out, fleece jackets aren't really ideal snow-wear. So back inside, in the very spirit of Tim Gunn, to "make it work!" When we were staying with my aunt and uncle in Memphis about 2 years ago, it snowed and my Aunt Ginny put together an impressive makeshift snowsuit for Asher using grocery sacks, ziplocs, and rubberbands. Using the knowledge I gained then combined with Patti's idea for garbage bag panchos, I whipped together a snow-playing-in ensemble.

Asher's fireman boots came in very handy today while Jude got to sport the ziploc bag/croc snowboot. We played for a while, but their little red and runny noses let me know that it was time to go inside. Plus it was naptime and snow or not, those boys lay down at 1pm.

Stay warm, y'all.