Disneyland

Jeremiah 9:23-24

"Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom,
Let not the mighty man glory in his might,
Nor let the rich man glory in his riches;
But let him who glories glory in this,
That he understands and knows Me,
That I am the Lord, exercising lovingkindness,
judgment and righteousness in the earth.
For in these I delight," says the Lord.

This Time Two Years Ago

in front of the Arc de Triomphe

Inspired by Er's "Blast from the Past" photo posts, I wanted to start posting some archived photos as well. As the title suggests, this photo was taken around this time in May 2006. It was our second trip to Paris with my sister and brother-in-law. Unfortunately, our other globe-trotting partners, Michelle and Patrick, were unable to join us this time around due to the discovery that Michelle's mom had developed cancer. For nearly a year, Michelle stood by her mom's side as a stalwart support, often flying back and forth from the Midwest to California to act as liaison between her mom's doctors and surgeons, coordinate her mom's appointments and health care, and keep her spirits up. The good news is, by God's great grace, Michelle's mom beat the cancer against all odds. She wasn't supposed to survive past a few days at her initial diagnosis. Shortly afterward, Michelle, along with other supportive family members, took her mom to Paris and Rome as her mom had requested.

September 2007

My Mother

Philippines
circa March 1975

This is a photo of my mom at just 19 years of age.

Happy Mother's Day

Abraham Lincoln
I remember my mother's prayers and they have always followed me. They have clung to me all my life.

Mildred B Vermont
Being a full-time mother is one of the highest salaried jobs... since the payment is pure love.

Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis
If you bungle raising your children, I don't think whatever else you do well matters very much.

Amos Bronson Alcott
Where there is a mother in the home, matters go well.

Proverbs 31:28-29
Her children rise up and call her blessed; Her husband also, and he praises her:
“ Many daughters have done well, but you excel them all.”

Feeling a Little Lightheaded

It's not often that I experience an "airheaded" moment, but it does happen on occasion. This is a record of such a rare occurrence.

My sister-in-law, Marie, came over for a visit one day. She brought homemade banana bread with her. She says, "I made it with half white flour and half whole wheat flour."

I have a weakness for sweets and baked goods, but that day for some reason I was concerned with trying to eat healthier, so I ask, "Which is the whole wheat side?"

She then looks at me with something akin to pity.

I look back at her wondering and confused, and then it slowly dawns on me. "Oh, umm, oops. Never mind."

(If you still don't understand, think about it a little more. Get it now? OK, good.)

The Itsy Bitsy Spider

It's a little unnerving but we've been finding quite a number of spiders around the house lately. Andre has no fear of them and has no problems playing with them either! One evening, I pointed out a spider to Billy. He detests them. He was once bitten by a spider and the bite became infected. He now has a scar from where the doctor had to use a scalpel to drain the bite. Anyhow, Billy grabbed a paper towel and crushed the spider with it.

The following morning, Andre, out of the blue, declared, "Papa took the spider."
I said, "Yes, he did."
He replied, "Papa, took the spider."
I said, "You're right, he did."

Now, I'm wondering about his sudden fixation on this spider. Was he concerned for the spider? Was he traumatized by last night's incident?

Andre repeats, "Papa took the spider."
This time I ask, "Where did papa take the spider?"
He responds, "Papa put the spider in the garbage."

And that was that. He didn't speak of the spider again. I guess he was just looking for some closure. But then again, who knows what goes on in the mind of a toddler?

A Reasonable Conclusion

Each morning for the last few weeks, Andre has been questioning the whereabouts of his father and grandmother. It goes a little something like this:

He asks, "Where's grandma?"
I say, "At work."
Next he asks, "Where's papa?"
I repeat, "At work."

A few mornings ago, Andre came into my bedroom and we both heard the garage door closing, signaling Billy's departure for work. Immediately afterward, he turns to me and says, "Papa's with Grandma." How's that for deductive reasoning from a 2-year old?

Happy Birthday, Sis!

Today is my one and only sister's birthday. She is the younger one, the baby sister. That's why it's hard to believe (gulp) that she is turning 31 today! Marilen is two years my junior but is only two steps behind me! Yeah, she runs fast to keep up! It's funny, we share a lot of common interests--such as a love for things French, fine dining, home decorating, etc., but we're also very different! She tends to be a worrier, while I don't stress much. She's pretty fastidious, while I let things slide a bit. She's great with numbers (call her the human calculator), while I have difficulty just calculating the tip! Some cool things about Len. Her French is amazing! While in France, a frenchman told her that her French was perfect, with no American accent! She is great at building and putting stuff together--from diaper cakes to electronic equipment to large-scale furniture items. We call her the Engineer or the German because of her precision. She is a very good budgeter. Her previous job was as an estimator for a publishing firm. And while in college, she even helped me organize my checkbook when it was a mess! She is an excellent dog trainer. Her dog, Mimi, is one of the best behaved dogs I have ever laid eyes on. The dog whisperer is another title we ought to add to her list. I could go on but I'll just end by saying, "Joyeux anniversaire to my worrisome, fastidious, French-speaking/German engineering/human calculating/dog whispering baby sister!"

Panic at the Potty

Boy, was yesterday a doozy! I think the knowledge that my son will soon be turning three has thrown me into a panic about getting him potty-trained, like right now! After all, he will be "graduating" from the nursery into the preschool ministry, and I know how much they prefer that the little "lions" be potty-trained. In hindsight, I think I was expecting a little too much too soon. Yeah, just a bit. As if putting big boy underwear with his favorite characters on them and reminding him several times to tell mommy when he needs to potty would be enough. Needless to say, he peed in a number of inconvenient areas. (I suppose there are no convenient areas to pee except, say, in the potty). He puddled on our bed, on the living room carpet, on an upholstered bench, on a beautiful silk pillow, and on me! That's not the worst of it. The worst was how I handled the whole thing. I did not laugh hysterically like the time he vomited a fountain of puke all over my new shirt on the airplane. Nor did I run to my room, shut the door and cry as I've done before. No. I'm ashamed to say it, but I was angry and I made sure he knew it. I am grieved even as I think about it now. The poor, little thing. He always told us after the fact that he had used the potty, never before. Why should this time be any different? Of course, I had to (wanted desperately to) repent, which I did. Then I fell on my face and pleaded for the Lord to help me be gracious and patient in this potty-training battle.

For Your Encouragement

Brin's Monday Moment post.

Cinco de Mayo

This time last year, we had some friends over for Mexican food and a viewing of Nacho Libre! Will have to do something similar next year. Cinco de Mayo kind of came up on us too quickly to plan anything this time around. No, we're not Mexican (although Billy's been mistaken as one on more than one occasion!), but any excuse for Mexican fare and some good company!!

The Joys of Summer

photo by Andrew McCaul

These are some of the things that make summers so wonderful to me, and which I am looking forward to. . . .

• blowing bubbles with my little boy (we've already started this one!)
  
• day trips to the beach & quaint seaside towns
  
• long walks at twilight
• trips to the cherry orchard stand for homemade cherry ice cream
• outdoor music concerts & festivals
• Shakespeare in the park
  
• visiting the lavender fields (first discovered last summer)
• making s'mores over an open fire
  
• playing miniature golf
• watching a movie at the drive-in
• watching dragonflies and butterflies, imagining fireflies
• picnics and outdoor cafes
  
• fruit smoothies and lemonade
  
• trips to carnivals, fairs and amusement parks
• backyard barbecues and garden parties

What are some of your favorite things about summer?