Today was national see you at the pole day, for those of you who don’t know that is were high school students who believe in the Lord gather at the flag pole at school and pray 1 hour before school. It is a time for students to not only take a stand for Christ but to meet others at their school who also are believers, as they come together to pray for their school, teachers and each other.

My twins went to see you at the pole today. I was so impressed; first, they had to be there by 6:30 am which means for high school girls you have to get up really, really early to get ready. As I drove them and two of their friends there, the car was quiet with nerves I could almost here them thinking out loud, “ will anyone else be there?”  It was a very quiet ride, which is unusual for this group. Finally, we came around the corner and saw other kids there and I felt a collective sigh in the car. I dropped them off and as I drove off I stopped and watched for a minute as they walked up and joined the circle and prayed. I was so impressed and proud! “Wow,” I thought to myself, “when did they get so grown up?” Then I thought, would I be so bold to do that if there was a meet you at the mailbox day for moms – would I do it? Would I walk out and pray for all to see not knowing if anyone else would be there? I would like to think yes but… would I? I have been a Christian all my life and still I think, that would cause me to stop and consider, even if only for a moment, about how weird that might be or what if people walk by? What about you? Would you meet at the pole not knowing what others would think or say at work?  I so respect all the kids all over the country who did meet at the pole, it takes a lot of maturity and confidence to go and make a stand. Way to go! Not only that, but prayer changes things and I can’t think of a school in this country that doesn’t need prayer.

So here is to brave teenagers, may you always be as bold in your faith as you were today; I know your heavenly father was there with you at those poles!

One of my dearest friends left me many months ago.  She got on a plane and moved, not just to another state, but to another country!  She did however, leave me something to remember her by…  every day as I load up the kids to do my usual rounds of drop off and pick up for school, I remember her.  She left me her Mazda MPV minivan, and I am so thankful.  We needed a car, and she graciously met that need.  But that is not where the story ends…

Once she was safely on the soil of another continent, my family and I decided we needed to customize the van to fit OUR family.  It was a heavy decision, but we made it non-the-less and in a very non-threatening (or so we thought) way.  Apparently a very small action on our part, was no small action on theirs…  (Truly we were only trying to help S9 out!)  My friend tells her version quite well at Transplantingme, so catch up there…

Admittedly, we did do the scraping.  It was a sorrowful moment, and it did feel weird.  No prayers were spoken, however there was a moment of silence, but only a moment because our son never stops talking…  The BFF did shed a tear, and of course that led to more of us tearing up… She did her best to protect her BFF, but to no avail… 

So tonight, to “Write” a wrong, I headed to the store to replace that which was so cherished.  The thing in question should be set right, and I was going to make sure that all was put back in order before my head hit the sheets.

So here is to you, Transplantingme… I hope these pictures make up for all that was lost, all that was sacred is restored and you are still on our hearts, in our prayers, and in the van!

The work begins…

No little stickers to represent our friends here mind you!

Ode to A11, from your BFF… Life isn’t the same without you here!

Here you are going from here to there…

and here is what we are hoping for someday!

And did we mention, we would gladly give the MPV back if you were here!  Shoe polish and all!

Here is to great friends, who make you laugh, even from far far away… I miss you.

This weekend was the big wedding of my nephew and we had a great time. We left Friday for the rehearsal and dinner and then stayed in a hotel, which for my kids huge treat and for Graham and I it was very nice to get away. It had rained all day Friday and this was to be an outdoor wedding, so we left in pouring rain and were a little nervous. We got 4 inches of rain in Colorado Springs – so it wasn’t just raining a little.

Well, Friday afternoon the rain stopped 2 hours before the rehearsal and was beautiful the rest of the time. There were a lot of wonderful times in the weekend but I thought I would show you some of my favorite shots….

This is my favorite and I know it is not the bride and groom but it is the groom and his mother (my sister). It was such a touching moment. He walked her down the aisle and she looked amazing – it was a neat moment, I decided that is what I will have Jack, my son, do at his wedding.

These are my girls as some of their girl cousins – I love how much fun they are having and they all look gorgeous don’t they?

The pastor (my hubby) and the flower girl – love it!

 My gang on the way home after a long fun weekend!

It was a great wedding and I did not get a shot of the bride and groom, but I am sure someone in the family did so I will get it from them. It was great fun and we hated to see the weekend come to a end. I love weddings! It is this beginning of life for the couple and so much lay ahead of them. I love the look on the groom’s face when he sees his bride for the first time and I love the way their voice quivers as they say their vows. I love everyone dressed up and the bride and groom smashing the cake in each other’s face. I love any chance I get to dance with my husband.

Here is to Justin and Tracie; may you live happily ever after.

Oh my, the house is in much need of cleaning. I am not sure how it happened or what exactly I was doing or not doing when it happened, but, the house needs help! Have you ever had that moment were you walk from room to room and in every room there is a mess!  There is not a room I can escape to, not a room I could hide in to avoid the mess. Except maybe the laundry room – but only because of the lack of laundry I have been doing!

So tonight I am psyching myself up for a clean day, mainly because we have relatives coming in town this weekend that will want to come bye. And did I mention it is bad, not good, really dirty. I am the kind of person, that when there is a big mess I have to clean. I have to get myself all psyched up for it. I plan in my head which room I will start in. I think about how nice it will look when I am done. I warn the kids that all their stuff must be returned to their rooms or it will be gone tomorrow, because I am cleaning in the morning ( I think they are on to me  because their stuff really never disappears). So tonight I will go to bed planning to clean, planning to do laundry, planning to go through the piles. And hopefully in the morning it will go that way, you know how sometimes you wake up and you just don’t “feel” it.

So here is to a clean house.  Maybe one day I will be the women who’s house is always ready for company, but not today.

Today was the second day all my kids were at school; and today my husband, who usually works from home, was gone all morning. So today was the first day in a long time that the house was really empty and quiet. It was so quiet I could hear myself think – which can be scary. While I was cleaning I had a lot of time to think. What will this year bring with the kids, with church, with new friendships? Before I knew it the silence was deafening, it seemed to highlight the fact that I was alone, my mind began to wander, and I started to think about the last 2 years of my life, which are without a doubt the hardest years I have ever had. I spent the morning cleaning, you know the kind of deep cleaning that you do after the kids have been home all summer. As I wiped the dust from the summer away I prayed that God would begin to wipe the hurt of the last years away.  As I cleaned out the messy cabinets I prayed that God would help me clean out the things in me that need to be gone through. As I picked up “stuff” and put it were it was suppose to be, I prayed that God would help me put the past years were they belong – in the past. It was a long morning, but in the end the house looked better and I felt better because my long deafening quiet morning had given me some much needed time to think and spend time with the best friend I have ever had.

It all started with a very quiet and very early breakfast. I knew nerves were high because breakfast was silent and usually we can’t get a word in. Off they went to their first day. Graham took them because I had to get our other ones to their school. I called soon after he dropped them to get all the stuff I missed: did they say anything? Did they look scared? Did they talk to anyone? All the things a mom would look for or notice and that this Dad had not even thought about!  So many questions and all I got was, “I pulled up they got out.” What?  No, “I think they were feeling this,” or, “they said this right before they got out.” Nothing to keep me going for the next 8 hours. Oh, their was one thing he said, “what?” I asked,  “what  did they say?  They were scared?  Did you share with them some of your wisdom?  “Well,” he said, “I told them right before they got out of the car…” I waited impatiently, “yeah what?” He said, “REMEMBER, BOYS ARE BAD!” What a dad thing to say. At least they were laughing on the way in!

Dads, or at least ours, just see things differently.  I am not sure he felt the significance of this moment; our first born twins were off to high school!  So I did what anyone would do – I called my mom and said, “my babies just started high school!” and she did not disappoint me… She asked all the right questions; “what did they wear?” “were they nervous?” She asked all the right questions. I love my mom, she knew that I needed to talk and that I needed to process this mementos occasion.

I do have to say my husband was great in the fact that he offered for me to pick the girls up from high school on their first day,  while he would run and get the younger kids. YES!!!  I may have not got drop them off but, the pick up was all mine! The girls got in the car and we talked all the way home about everything,  they answered all my questions, “how did you feel?”  “Who was nice?”  “How were classes?”  All the good “mom” questions! Thanks honey!

I can’t believe I have 2 freshmen in high school, how old am I?

All in all it was a good day; well as good as your first day of high school can be – Oh and the girls did fine too!

Summer is over – back to making lunches and homework; and all that high school drama!