Life for the living!

I am teaching tomorrow night (as I do most Wednesday nights). The subject is "The Abundant Life". I was so very blessed to be in PTC last Sunday and listen to Aubrey Johnson. He is an incredible minister and a true joy. He talked about the subject and I quickly took notes. Notes so small I had to have my glasses to decipher them! He, at one point, talked about about commitment and said (and I do not quote but paraphrase)

Commitment says, “I know this will be hard, I know this will hurt, but I have to get in the game…”
LIFE….to have the abundant life God promises us we have to be “in the game”.

He then quoted Teddy Roosevelt and this is one of the most wonderful "get in the game" quotes I have ever heard and read. I loved it. To me is spoke loudly of the place we should reside....that place is in the arena:

"It is not the critic who counts: not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles or where the doer of deeds could have done better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly, who errs and comes up short again and again, because there is no effort without error or shortcoming, but who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, who spends himself for a worthy cause; who, at the best, knows, in the end, the triumph of high achievement, and who, at the worst, if he fails, at least he fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who knew neither victory nor defeat."

As I study I am always in awe of the men and women who have gone before us. I am always in awe of the wisdom they leave behind. In those words I found great wisdom and a supreme life lesson. Life is for the living! Thank goodness I just happen to currently be among them:)

school work

While I hate homework, I love school work. I used to think that was surely redundant, but it isn't. There is a huge difference(haha). More specifically I like looking at graded school work, usually. Seth's is always fun. The younger the student the more interesting the papers. It is so easy to see their thoughts and heart.

The letter above is written by Seth and posted for Caleb:) I LOVED seeing it today:) In case you missed the thought Caleb, you and snicker bars are just pretty terrific!

Love it!!

I have so many of these moments everyday, I really do, and I never stop and picture them. This morning Mercedez brought a folder to me and asked me how to say a word...the word was Petroglyph. I said, and talked about it, then she repeated it and walked off. As I walked downstairs to get ready to leave she was sitting on the couch calling out Seth's words to him...and he was spelling "petroglyph". I stopped and said, " I thought that was one of your words Mercedez?" She rolled her eyes and said, 'No, it's Seth's!" The kids all trying to spell the word..... and now all my children can spell it. I laughed....this was a SECOND grade word! I am so glad I am not in second grade:)

Funnies assail me all the time. This morning a squirrel ran out in front of the van, the kids who saw it gasped. I explained that it was very very hard to actually hit a squirrel or a bird, they are just too quick. Then Victoria began telling a story about a dog she saw that looked both ways before it crossed the street. Rosie chimed it that it must be a very smart dog. To which Tasha replied, "It isn't very smart if it's crossing the road". I love being an active listener...my kids (well, all kids) are very funny!

Getting ready for the week.

Scott held down the fort at home, along with Sarah. He and Bella worked on this:

Baseball tryouts were rained out, but teams were picked and the boys begin practice this week! Spring is here:)

Mercedez and Rosie are trying out for cheerleader this week. For High School,9th grade cheerleaders. It is so very hard to imagine them entering High School!!

Yesterday I drove to Memphis and picked up Carlton. He is on Spring Break this week and here.

I spoke to Zack's new counselor and set up a family session next week. He is doing well in his new group home.

I spoke to the mental hospital,even though Sam has Medicaid, since he is not in the State's custody he is considered a private placement and there are no places for private placements, we are seemingly back at square one. Scott and I both bracing as it looks like he will have to come home. Not at all what we planned, we know he will not be successful, in truth I really believe he "can't" be successful. Scott and I talked at length this morning about safety plans. Safety for all being the most resounding issue. As we ended talking I laid my head on the table saying, " I am tired already", Scott understands....he is too. Such is life, seemingly most of it.

Traveling to PTC:)

After leaving John's office we traveled south for about 45 minutes to meet Chelsea. Bo, Chelsea and the youth group had been helping a member move that morning. Chelsea slipped away to have lunch with us. We ate at Applebees:

After wards we stopped to buy groceries to make Chowder for dinner.

The chowder was wonderful, of course:) After dinner Bo took the girls and they rode to golf cart to rent a movie to watch. Chelsea, Michael and I all played bumper pool. It has been many years since I have played but we sure did have fun:)

The kids loved being at Chelsea and Bo's, me too! They were great hosts. Sunday morning they got up and cooked us pancakes and sausage and bacon...yummy!


We were so very lucky to be able to stay and go to worship with Chelsea and Bo. Sunday was their friend's day, how wonderful to be able to there with them.

My funny of the day would have to be Seth. Seth came out of class and as we sat in the auditorium he turned and asked, "Can I go sit with my new best friend?" I smiled and told him no. We have rules even at home about where we sit on Sunday morning. When worship was over Seth's "new best friend" found him. As we talked to people he and his new best friend, whose name happens to be Jaxon (or Jackson) played around us. In perfect 2nd grade boyism they played as if they had been friends for their whole lives. As we sat down Chelsea asked if they had played together at the wedding. Surprised I asked if the little boy was there?

Small small world.... This little boy was at the wedding. He was there with his mother, brother and grandparents. The Grandmother who had actually grown up in Savannah. The little boy was cousin to two of the flower girls in Chelsea's wedding. The boys mother is Emily. I spoke to her at the fellowship dinner. Sadness has been part of Emily and her mother's lives over the last few weeks. Emily's father died suddenly a few days after the wedding. This world is so full of joy and with it sorrow. Equal parts both blooming. The good and the bad. The happy and the sad. In the midst of all the adult feelings, in the middle of our travel Seth, in typical 8 year old fashion, found a friend. A friendship he will enjoy on this earth and hopefully enjoy in eternity and all the time in between! Such a small small world!

Braces:)

This past weekend held a lot of travel for me and my six followers:) I checked out my six kiddos, 5 middle schoolers (Mercedez, Rosie, Tasha, Lita and Michael) along with Seth. Saturday helpd baseball tryouts, although Seth's age group was not trying out this year so he was able to go with us. The lure of cousin Braden was great! Braden is Julie and John's youngest son and one of my little boys most favorite people:)

We arrived at Julie and John's in time for dinner. Julie fixed chicken raviolis (how wonderful!!). We ate and visited until late. I was so glad to be able to have a little time with Julie, we so very rarely have those moments.

Morning brought yummy french toast and my 5 soon-to-be-sporting-braces kids excited. Julie kept Seth with Braden while the rest of us followed John to his office. The following is a slight picture version of our morning.

We arrived and these are the before pictures:







Pictures and x-rays were the beginning....


Three of John's wonderful staff came in to help apply the braces. These ladies volunteered thier own free time to help. They were such a joy to be around and the kids loved them!


Michael was the very first to have his braces on:)







Seth, brought by Julie, joined us at the end of our time. Seth tried (sadly to him) to convince John he too needed braces, not wanting to be left out!


We are so very blessed to have a brother-in-law who provides his incredible services to us for free. We may have to drive to Atlanta to have them adjusted and such, but it is a wonderful excuss to be able to visit with Julie and Johns family as well as now Chelsea and Bo:)

No need to wonder...

Caleb sent me his cell phone number. It's a long line of numbers that sure don't look like a phone number...lol...but are:) I imagine all German numbers look like it. This morning I called our cell phone company and our land line company to see how much it would cost to call Caleb:

Verizon:

$1.68 per minute
or you can add...
$3.99 a month to my phone bill for a value pack and the calls would be:
27 cents a minute......

AT&T:

With a value package of $67.44 a month I can call Germany to Caleb cell phone for"
24 cents a minute.....

I want to write a letter to LAND LINES OF AMERICA and tell them....this is why people have cell phones!! I did expect a difference....but this much? Not really.

I imagine you can figure out which phone I will be calling my Caleb on:)