Another Jon-ism...and more!

Jon's not technically employed at the moment, so he's started doing some odd jobs for people. At the moment he's doing a kitchen floor at a friend's house. So, two days ago Jon called me and said, "I was driving away from Sean and Becca's house, and when I turned the corner I heard a sound like metal falling to the ground. I think I might have left the hinges to their door on the hood of the Jeep, but I'm not sure." Turns out, he did just that. Yesterday he decided it was time to replace them, so he hopped in the Jeep to go to Lowes so he correct his very Jon-like mistake...only an $8 mistake. As he was driving to Lowes to replace what had fallen off the hood of the Jeep, he noticed out of the rear-view mirror something fall, then he heard a loud crash. He had left an 8 foot long - that's right, I said 8 FOOT LONG piece of trim on top of the Jeep, and it fell off as he was picking up speed. Fortunately it fell to the side of the road, and didn't injure anyone or any cars. Seriously, though, who wouldn't notice an 8 foot long piece of wood on top of their car - that they had JUST put there??

I mentioned in a prior post how Youngstown is like Kenya in a lot of ways. Well, one way that our home reminds us of our four months in Kenya is that we have no dishwasher - except the one named Angela. Occasionally I let the pile of dishes get kind of out of control...like in this picture. An hour and a half later, all the dishes were clean, though - including the red cups (which we wash to save money - budget's kinda tight these days!). Notice how everything is very strategically stacked. I'm good! :) A few months ago I told a friend of mine that she had a great rack. She looked at me quite puzzled and a little frightened, but I reassured her that all I meant was that I liked her large, and spacious dish rack. I think it's time to upgrade.

Jon and I spent two nights and three days last weekend in Niagara on the Lake in Ontario for our five year anniversary. It was a gorgeous small town - maybe the cutest place we'd ever been to. Our B&B was amazing ('Old Town Country Landing', for those looking for a great get-away.), and the time there was just perfect. We headed to the Falls for one evening, and it was spectacular. We also got in some good people watching, as people come from all over to see the Falls. This is our favorite picture...even the Amish (or Mennonite - not sure which they are) come out to see the Falls. I don't blame them for wanting to see such an incredible view of God's awesome creation!

Johnny and Caleb have been training pretty hard lately to become super heroes. Caleb, in particular, actually thinks he's Spiderman. I think Johnny's Captain America. Either way, they're always on the hunt to destroy the bad guys. Caleb asked me yesterday with a very serious ready-to-save-the-day face if Boobie Trap was here yet. He's a bit confused, but I think his intentions are good.

My Week - Part 2

So, last week ended so well for me – or it was the start of a good week…or both – I’m never sure if Sunday is the beginning of one week or the end of another. Anyway, last Sunday was such a great one.

Jon and I had done music for the Saturday evening gathering, so it was great to be able to go into the 2^nd Sunday gathering just relaxed and ready to be with friends. I felt like I needed to be “doing something”, though, so I found myself helping my good friend out in the kitchen with the coffee stuff. We didn’t get much cleaning done, but we did get a lot of good conversation in. It’s so cool to me that God just works in so many ways. I went to the gathering as a form of worship, and was expecting to take part in singing, listening to the teaching, being in on it all, but my worship came in the form of friendship that morning. It wasn’t planned, but it was so great.

A few hours after that gathering, Jon and I dropped our kids off with a couple of teens (thanks, girls!) and headed to Kingdom Meal Ministry. On the way we saw our very first car chase. It wasn’t as super-speed exciting as I imagined. In fact, the car was going fairly slow – maybe 30 MPH…we thought maybe whoever was in the car was stalling while “things” were being hidden. There were 3 cop cars chasing at first, then 1 more marked car spun around to join the chase, and then an unmarked car turned a quick right to get in on the action. I know it shouldn’t have been cool, ‘cause this is someone’s sad life, but it was kind of cool. Oh, Youngstown, how we love you!

About 30 seconds after we saw this, we saw some girl with her car stuck out in the middle of the busy road waiting to turn out of the booze drive-thru. “Is she EVER gonna go?” I thought. As I pulled up close, it turns out her car was stuck. So, we pulled over and figured out how to get her car out of the middle of the road. She’d run out of gas, and people had been honking, flipping her off and driving past her for 5 minutes, she said. That’s not a long time in actuality, but it must have felt like forever – poor girl. She couldn’t get a hold of her dad and had no idea what to do. So, we left her there, and took a trip to the gas station to get a can, and bring it back to fill her up. She was grateful. I saw myself in her, a bit. Scared – knowing she needed help, but not knowing what to do or who to ask. We were glad we drove by.

Kingdom Meal was great. I talked for a long time with a girl in her early 20’s who is 7 months pregnant with her first (and last, she claims) baby. The baby has some serious problems with his liver, and he’s already on a donor list, and will need a lot of work – and prayer. She was so cool and calm about it all, and I couldn’t quite figure out why or how. She knew that she was doing all she could, and that this child is just not in her hands right now. It seems like she has a good grasp on how life should be as followers of Christ. We do our part, but ultimately, things are in God’s hands, and we just have to trust that He will do His part – and we just trust and obey.

Jon told me that he was talking to one of the other guests, a woman named Renee, and she started quoting scripture for him. She said, “The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want….” She went on a little more, looking to Jon for approval. She paused for a moment, and Jon said, “That’s great!” She said, “Yeah, that’s the shit, right?!” I love that. And she’s right! J

After Kingdom Meal, we went to pick up our kids at New Hope. Youth Group was getting out, and some of the parents and leaders were around, so a big group of people ended up at our house for a fire afterwards. It was spontaneous, and just so much fun. It was what community was all about. My house wasn’t very clean (which stressed Jon out a little), but no one cared. A couple friends and I just stood around and did dishes for the first 25 minutes or so. Then we all shared a meal together, and had s’mores and Coronas (not the teens) around the fire. We even had a marshmallow fight – and it was awesome! It was just plain and simple fun…with friends who feel a lot like family. I guess they are family.

So, Sunday was a great day that ended a great week - or started another great week…I don’t know. I’m gonna say something I never imagined I’d say – I LOVE OHIO! There it is. I said it. I may never say it again, but it’s true.

My Week - Part 1

This past full and exciting week was such a blessing to me in so many ways. It had such a mix of experiences and emotions, and I am so thankful for each one.

It started last Friday when I got to hang out with my oldest brother Mark and his son Christian for the weekend. They stayed at my parents’ house in New Waterford, and it was just so cool to reconnect with them after nine months. I love them both so much (and Cyndi, too, who I was sad wasn’t able to make the trip), and wish they could have stayed longer – maybe forever. We said good-bye to them on Monday afternoon.

After they left, our family and Dave and Betsy and JJ all went blueberry picking at this cool farm. My stomach is still not the same after all the blueberries I ate, but I think it was worth it – YUM! It was great to have a long weekend full of family.

Tuesday was Johnny’s birthday. I still can’t believe he is 2 – and even weirder is that he just turned 2, and we also have one child younger than him. Sometimes I do think we’re crazy to have three kids so close in age. But, it is certainly a blast! And the boys are such great friends now, it’s precious to see them run and laugh and play with each other.

Wednesday was “Mom’s Plus Dave” group at the mall, and it was fun to celebrate Johnny’s birthday with his little friends. They were so cute! Good times! Those moms (and Dave) and their sweet little ones are such a blessing to me. I had Micah Dazet with me that morning, as I did last week, and it was amazing to see the community of parents just surround him with love and each play such a part in helping to care for him.

Wednesday night was so cool. Jon played and sang at Caribou Coffee with Scott Couchenour. He was nervous going in, but did SUCH an incredible job. I know I’m a bit biased, but he was really, really, good. I have such a talented husband. It was awesome to see the place overflowing with people from our community, all out to support a couple guys they love. It was really fun!

Every Thursday we hang out with Scott and Jennie Couchenour, and Paul and Stacy Dazet (although, they’ve sadly been out of commission the past few weeks), and share dinner, conversation, and LOST together. This week we were invited last minute to go to Sean and Becca Ferrier’s house with some others (including Scott and Jennie) to watch the Steelers (boo!) pre-season game. I have no idea if they even won or lost (I think they may have lost), but the community was great! Caleb stayed up the entire time, and it was awesome to watch our friends just love him. He’s so entertaining and full of life. We loved watching him interact with our friends.

Friday evening I hosted a scrapbooking night at the church building. There were 10 of us girls, and we had a blast. It was cool, because everyone was working on their own thing, but sharing what they had, whether it be materials, food, good ideas, and conversation with the others. There were 5 new girls there that I had never met before, and they were so great! I loved making those new connections and learning things about new friends. Jon, too, had the chance to hang out with friends while I was gone. A couple guys came over for awhile and they just hung out in the back yard and talked. He had a great time.

Saturday was our 5 year anniversary. I can’t believe all that has happened in 5 years. At the end of the night, Jon and I were sitting around our fire outside talking about some of those things. In the 5 years, we’ve had 3 kids, lived in 5 different homes, lived on 2 continents, and been in 6 different countries. The path that God has led us on over these years has been an amazing and exciting one.

Sunday was an incredible day in so many ways! Too many, actually, to add to this post…I’ll wait until next time. Anyway, the week was a gift, truly, from God, and I am very thankful for it, and for those who played a part in this gift.

August 12, 2008

HAPPY 2nd BIRTHDAY, JOHNNY!!!

A Big Responsibility

Wow, how time flies! The kids are getting SO big! Caleb’s summer school is almost over, and he’s going to start his first official year of preschool. He’s been telling us about a few choice friends in his class: Francesca, Sophia and Madison. This morning he told us that Augustine (another boy in his class) said he wasn’t allowed to be friends with Sophia, because she was HIS friend. The fight over girls has begun!

Due to some severe diaper rash, Johnny has started potty training. He had his diaper off yesterday from about 5:00pm til bedtime. He peed four times on the floor and zero times in the potty, and he pooped one time on the floor, one time in the grass, and zero times in the potty. It’s a work in progress. He seems so old, though. He climbs on anything and jumps off everything with some height. He’ll be two on the 12^th – I cannot believe it!

And Hannah is nearly 6 months old already! Where did these past months go? And my c-section scar is STILL sensitive! Hannah is sitting up by herself pretty well now, and has gotten her first tooth. I think I was under the impression she’d be a newborn forever. Not true.

I had a small group gathering yesterday with some wonderful lady friends of mine, and we talked some about how what happened to us in the past has affected who we are now. For example, I have clear memories of people saying things to me to make me feel dumb, fat, not good enough, not worth listening to, etc. There are things even my parents said or did that have stuck with me…not always in a positive way. It scares me now to have young children who are incredibly impressionable and who are looking to Jon and I to help mold them into the people they will become. It’s a HUGE job – one I don’t always feel cut out for. I’m scared to say or do that one wrong thing that sticks with them forever and gives them bad self-esteem, or leads them astray. I just pray, pray, pray, that I will have strength from God to do my “job” of being a mom to the best of my ability.

One day this summer we were at the park and overheard one child ask a 5 year old boy what his dad was like. This little boy responded, “If you see a guy who’s angry all the time, that’s my dad.” That blew my mind, and broke my heart. This was the way this poor child viewed his dad – angry all the time. Do my kids think the same of me? I thought about this conversation a lot over the next few days. One night after I’d had a tough day with the kids, and had taken frustrations out on them probably unfairly, I laid in bed with Caleb and asked him what he would say if someone asked him what his Mommy was like. He said, “I would say that she loves me very much.” Phew! I guess a bad day or two isn’t going to ruin my relationship with my kids. I cried out of relief and love at his answer. I asked him the same question again this morning. He responded, “I would say that she’s nice, and fun and nice and Superman, girl.” Funny.

For those who think we stay-at-home parents have it easy, and that we just sit around all day and watch TV or play, think again. We are molding people…physically, mentally, emotionally, spiritually. That’s a big, scary, exciting, rewarding, exhausting, challenging, amazing job – and I love it! (Most days.)

Friends...Community...Life

Normally on Sundays, Jon and I lead music for both the 9:30 and the 11:15 gatherings. Then, we’ll see who’s around, and who wants to either join us out for lunch or, like last week, come over and hang out at our place and share a meal, and a little bit of life together. This week was different. Jon and I went to the 9:30 gathering, and since the gathering was just a video today, we didn’t have to do any music, and therefore didn’t have to stay. Our normal lunch crew wasn’t around yet, so we left…alone…and came home…alone. It was sad. As we were driving away, we were saying that it was weird not leaving with anyone else to go hang out. We’ve really come to love being in community with so many friends, neighbors, family, other moms and dads, etc. It’s been great having 3 or 4 days a week spent with these people, and we miss it when we don’t get the chance to do that. So anyway, thank you, friends, for being our friends. We love you, and cherish our relationships with you…and we miss you when we don’t get to be together.