Sean & Shey

InstaGlance

As the wife of a youth minister, I'm used to having a busy summer. They usually consist of several weeks of camps, a special Seniors-only trip, pool parties, bonfires and of course, every student's favorite getaway, CIY's MOVE conference.

I love all these activities, except now that I am also a mom, our summer schedule looks a lot different. Mainly, I don't go on as many (or any) trips and the evening activities are relegated by their start time vs. Gia's bedtime. I don't mind this at all for the most part (though I am really sad I'm not going to CIY in Holland, MI next week. The weather will be so beauitful!) but it does make for some long weeks of just me & Gia hanging out. I don't know what its like for any of you other moms out there, but the hours between 3 pm and 6 pm seem to be the most difficult, especially when I know Sean won't be coming home. Its the hottest part of the day, I'm usually worn out by then (even after naptime!) and my creativity for creating something fun is desperately waning. My default is to go shopping but I always wind up spending money, which, obviously is not so good.

So the first week Sean was at Junior High camp, Gia and I went to the Dollar Store. (Yay for an activity we could do between 3 and 6!!) I was on the look-out for any handful of things that I could pull out of the closet when I was at the end of my activity rope and couldn't stand another episode of Dora or Super Why. I spent about $16 total and got enough items that I hope will keep us busy when the long, hot days call for some indoor fun. (The $16 does include a flower mylar balloon for Gia and a package of Smarties for me.) A few days ago, I pulled out the first of our Dollar Store Summer Fun items, and it was really a great time!

Dollar Store Items:

Package of hot-wheels type cars (3 for $1)
One roll of masking tape ($1... self explanatory on the price, right?)

To moms of boys, this is probably nothing new. But Gia hasn't really played much with cars except for when we're at friends' houses. She always loves it and likes to make "tracks" for her cars with the bristle blocks she got for Christmas. The masking tape didn't stick extremely well to the carpet, but the roll of painter's tape I was originally going to buy was about 1/4 the size of the masking tape. As we played on, this track grew and grew... it eventually went under the slide and had several intersections. That's the great part about using this tape... just tear out the section where you want the new track to go! Bonus points: Gia loved pulling up the tape when it was time to clean up!!
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Book Review

Book Review: The Blessed Woman

Saturday, June 29, 2013

I had high hopes for Debbie Morris's book "The Blessed Woman." Just glancing at the table of contents had me a wee bit giddy... The book promised to delve into the lives of some well-known women of the Bible (like Eve, Mary and Esther) but would also examine the examples put forth by some lesser known characters as well (such as Jael and Zipporah). I love gleaning new information on people of the Bible that are not commonly studied.

However, it wasn't very far into the book before I began to bristle with discomfort at Morris's writing. I had no idea who Debbie Morris or her husband were prior to picking up "The Blessed Woman" but by page 6, I had learned about just how "successful" and "blessed" this couple has been with a church attendance averaging over 20,000 per week, a television show, conference and magazine. At the risk of sounding a bit jaded, I'm just not into people like that. I am not trying to pass judgement on someone I don't know, or presume that their ministry is a sham--its obviously ministering to many, many people. However, I have been a part of the whole "mega church" movement (my husband was a pastor) and I'm really honestly over it.

Despite my initial distaste for the way Ms. Morris talked about their ministry, I forged through to the next chapter. Sadly, I found much of the same thing that was in the first chapter-- a lot of chatter about her or her husbands ministry and influential position, and very little about the woman of the Bible the chapter was supposed to be covering. Chapter after chapter, I continued reading. I underlined a few interesting thoughts here and there, but overall, I was sorely disappointed in the content of this book.

Again, I know nothing more of this author than what she has written in this book. And perhaps my discomfort with her personal subject matter has more to do with my own personal experience than anything else. But isn't that what makes something appealing to one person and not so to another? Sadly, I cannot say I would recommend this book to anyone else. If you are looking for a study on women of the Bible, this probably isn't the one for you.

gia

Sugar & Spice & Everything Nice

Thursday, May 16, 2013

Its been a while since I've updated-- my newly-turned 2 year old keeps me hopping! That and a wicked case of bronchitis/URI that kept me under the weather for 3+ weeks. But I just had to pop in for a quick update on Gia.

She is the most adorable thing I've ever seen. Truth be told, when she was a baby, I was scared of the toddler years that were to come. What the heck do you do with a mini person all day long? But now that this stage of life is here, I love it! Well, for the most part. I'm not one of those bloggers (you know, THOSE bloggers) who pretends to love everything about life all the time, 24/7. You know, those bloggers with 2 kids, a full time job where they work nights so they can watch their kids during the day, plan clever crafts and learning times, serve homecooked, organic meals every night, all while getting no sleep and still looking amazing? Yeah, sorry. Not me. But for the most part, I am really loving this stage with Gia.

Sure she has her moments. We all do. She definitely gets her "moments" from me, anyways. Temper tantrums are a daily- sometimes hourly- thing around here. Her latest means of protest is to just fall to her knees wherever she is, if she doesn't agree with my request. More often than not, this happens in the middle of the street or a parking lots. Its loads of fun, especially when I have my hands full of groceries. :) But its just part of the territory.

What I really wanted to write about are the sweet things she's been doing that just blow my mind. I already wrote about her precious prayers. They get cuter & sweeter every night. She's also started praying with us at meal times. She reaches for our hands, hers already coverd with cottage cheese or ketchup, and we grimace & laugh but hold them anyways. Several times a day, she will open her arms up wide and say "Mommy BIG HUG!" My brother was here for her birthday and taught her the art of a fist bump. Now, she'll make a fist, stick it out in front of her and say "hiss hump." She wants to do it over and over again. Its hilarious!

She's also taken to snuggling. She was never a really cuddly baby, but now she's making up for lost time. She always says, "Mommy nuggle?" Its usually when I put her down for a nap (stall tactic) but she'll do it at other times, too.

My two favorite phrases she now repeats to me daily are "Mommy so cute" and "Mommy you're boototiful." She says it was a draw in her voice, dragging out the "cuuuuute" and "boooootootiful." So fun. I love her giggles and squeals and am so thankful for this little girl who calls me Mommy... even if it means never going to the bathroom by myself.