Cleaning.

I was definitely NOT put on this planet to clean. Who came up with the idea anyway???

I DO think that being exhausted and nauseous most of the time has made these feelings greater--but who am I kidding--my house isn't that clean when I'm NOT pregnant! Okay, well, it's usually "clean" meaning uncluttered...but it's never been CLEAN clean. There are some jobs that I have never in my entire life done--washing windows, cleaning mini blinds, wiping down walls and trim, etc. My husband came from a good home where these things were done...he is very good to me and doesn't care that I don't do them! :-)

But here's where I get frustrated--when I sweep the floor, how long does it REALLY stay clean--seriously? With a one year old and a husband who works in red dirt and grass, maybe until they both are home. Don't get me wrong--I'm not blaming them--just making a point. And bathrooms? Sheesh. But I do like the look of a clean bathroom.

Now dusting I like. And vacuuming. Those are both fun and somewhat therapeutic. I think I'll make a top ten list of chores around the house: One is the best job, 10 is my least favorite...let's see, to think of 10 things I do around the house...

(drum roll, please)
1. Dusting
2. Vacuuming
3. Making the bed
4. Sweeping floors
5. Laundry
6. Putting laundry away
7. Cleaning bathrooms
8. Mopping the floors
9. Dishes (without a dishwasher, too!)
10. Cleaning showers. That's Joel's job! :-)

Last night we had a funny conversation. It's a good thing I married Joel, because we sure think alike. While watching the Cubs game, a commercial came on with a lady who was cleaning her stove or oven. I jokingly said, "Hey--that lady--what's she doing with that cloth?" Joel, understanding perfectly said, "You wouldn't understand. It's too complicated." So, as we were brushing teeth, I brought it up again. "Seriously, what was she doing?" Joel says, "It's too hard to explain--it'd be better if she came over and showed you. Or maybe you could google it..."

Okay, I'm laughing again as I write it. You may not get that at all--but it was really fun.

Anyway--after all this--you'll be proud to know that I did just clean two bathrooms, sweep the floor, AND do two sinks of dishes. Yay me.

Bear with me...

Well, contrary to my last post, there shouldn't be any gas in this one. In fact, this may take on a markedly DIFFERENT tone...

I'm just having one of those thinking days. Sometimes I just get those--lost in my thoughts. Our Sunday service prompted this one. We had a guy from World Impact come and talk--fascinating stuff. He started a ministry in the inner city of L.A. way back in the 70's and this has grown to be a nation-wide mission. Anyway--his points were very biblical--that Jesus came to save those who were lost and that God's heart is for the poor, sick, blind, and oppressed. (widows, poor, and orphans) This is something that God continues to bring to my heart.

I get increasingly uncomfortable sometimes with our very comfortable lifestyle. We don't struggle financially. We have excess food on the table. We are surrounded by loving, godly friends. We are involved in an incredible church where we have such wonderful support and opportunities to grow.

But sometimes, I just wonder if this is where God wants us. Joel and I talked after church about something that we're doing with our Young Married's ministry. We just got talking about how little we really rely on God's strength for decisions and everyday stuff. I feel so often like I do much of what I do in my own strength--through my own logic and wisdom. Now don't get me wrong--I believe more and more that God gives us wisdom and logic for a reason. In fact, I really think that God does more "shaping and growing" us over the long run than we ever know. So I know that he probably won't send down neon signs for me--trust me, I've prayed for that many times.

But I just am feeling more and more like, certainly this isn't all. Certainly there's more that God wants to do in this world through his people. And in order for that to happen--we have to know him, and trust him and take wild leaps of faith where he's leading us. Now I don't want to deny that God is working here in Newton, in our church, even in the Young Married's ministry. He is. We see evidence of that so often.

It just makes me reflect on my own life. I haven't leaped in a while. In fact, I don't even know where TO leap. I don't want to get so comfortable with our level of living and trusting God that I miss out on some amazing things that he would love to do in and through me. I want to know for certain that we're where God wants us to be. I want to see God come through in some amazing ways in circumstances that were "impossible" otherwise. I want to be a part of something so much bigger than just me.

Anyone else agree?

Who's the Adult Here?

A typical dinner at our house. (Marc Friesen, don't get ANY IDEAS!!!!)

Garage Sale

Hello. If you live in or near Newton--you should come to our garage sale tomorrow. It's with 12 of us "young marrieds" from our church--and there is usually a TON of stuff! This is our 3rd year in a row having it. This year, we will be in Wheatridge Court--the second cul-de-sac from the west. We will have lots of clothes, and usually have quite an assortment of furniture or larger stuff. We also have a bake sale--which includes lots of delicious yummies! Come starting at 7am tomorrow and Saturday!

Now, today has been spent preparing for that. (In case you can't tell by the sudden flurry of postings, I've been getting my energy back this week--at least somewhat) I have been labeling and pricing stuff we're selling (high quality, I assure you!) and then making cookies for the bake sale. Seriously--I brought in good money from that last year! It's amazing what people will buy for a buck.
Oh, and you're probably expecting that, like other super moms, I'll be posting pictures of Ollie helping me decorate these.....

nope.
I kept him nice and busy in his pack-n-play filled with balls. Thank you Tyler, Erin and Addilyn.



Well, hope to see you this weekend. You won't turn away empty-handed if we can help it!

The Zoo

Today we (5 other moms and their kids, and I) went to the zoo. It was so much fun! It was beautiful weather. Ollie did pretty well, despite not having a nap at all this morning. He did have a fussy period--but that didn't last long. He really seemed to enjoy the day! And getting him out OFTEN helped. Here are some pics from our morning:

Ollie riding the "horse" in the petting zoo

Ollie figuring out his place in the whole "penguin scheme of things"...

Ollie riding a komodo dragon (a fake one, of course)

Ollie and Ava sharing a moment in front of the gorilla.

On a new note...

I just went in to check on Ollie and get him up from his nap....upon opening his door, I found him with his hand in his diaper (not unusual). However, his little boy part was sticking OUT of the SIDE of the diaper. His shirt was soaked with pee. Yuck. We've tried to teach him to keep his hand out of there....I guess he found a way around that.

The upside? His diaper didn't need to be changed...

Some of you suggested...

...so we obliged. Coming January 8, 2009.

Pushing Strollers

Ollie's newest hobby is pushing his stroller around. He doesn't want to RIDE in the stroller--just push it. Last weekend, we got to watch Cora--our good friends Joel and Jess's daughter. Ollie loves playing with her. Actually, he stands by her and says, "nice, nice". (apparently we say that a lot around babies...)

Anyway--here is a video of him pushing Cora. This lasted literally 20 minutes--up and down the driveway!

Summer Days

We've been finding ways to fill our summer days. Honestly, this staying at home all day stuff is hard for me to get used to. It's just a lot of...well, being home. Luckily, we have fun things throughout the week, like playdates Monday morning, women's Bible study Monday nights, story time at the library Tuesday mornings, and then usually other playtimes with friends during the week. But it's hard for me to find enough things to feel like I'm keeping Ollie (and myself) busy. Okay, let me rephrase that: besides cleaning. That gets old. And it all gets dirty anyway!

Anyway, the point of this post was to update you on Ollie. Here are some ways we've spent our time:

Climbing! Ollie loves to climb. He climbs on stationary items, like chairs, stools, and (tries to climb on) tables. As illustrated here, he also likes to climb on not-so-stationary items, like his car. This makes mom a little nervous. Luckily, he seems to have a high pain tolerance!

Trying to fill daddy's shoes. This week Joel hasn't been quite so busy at work which is nice--he gets home a bit earlier. That's also good for me--since I watch the clock like a HAWK at that point in the day!

Cleaning. So we try to do some during the day. At least to keep things from smelling. This is one of Ollie's favorite past times--sweeping the kitchen floor! Hopefully this continues into his older years!
Playing. He has a new-found interest in these old toys of Joel's. They're pretty funny! Especially when he makes his giraffe-dog.

We also play outside lots--Ollie wakes up in the morning and says "aass?" (which means 'outside') and then in the same 'sentence', "bubba?" (which means 'bubbles') He doesn't care that he can't blow bubbles (or neither can mommy, for that matter--these bubbles don't work well!) He just loves to be outside.

Another highlight: Thursday we met mom and dad and they picked up Ollie and kept him for the night. That was so much fun for him, us and I think, them. They had the funniest video of Ollie wrestling with one of those blow up punching bags--you know, with the sand in the bottom. It's hilarious.

We do love these summer days together. We have lots of fun. And I'm still strongly encouraging the two-nap thing!!!

A LIFE-CHANGING book...seriously

So, I admit, I am an avid reader. I LOVE to read. But I read the most incredible book this week, highly recommended, and then bought FOR ME, by my parents (also avid readers). But don't be scared if you're not a reader--well, if you're literally illiterate--this one may be a tough first book--but then again, you're reading my blog, so...anyway...


The book is "The Shack", by William P. Young. It is a novel, and it's written about a horrific tragedy. It deals with the issue 'how can a good God allow such terrible things to happen?' But it's more than that--it shows the incredibly intricate relationship between the Trinity--Father, Son and Holy Spirit--in a way I've never seen before. It also boils down being a Christian to what it really is--a relationship. But I don't want to give too much away--you have to read it for yourself. Seriously. I read it in less than a day, couldn't put it down. If you read one book this year--this HAS TO BE IT!!!!!!