New Camera Pictures

Funny Story

I just wanted to share a quick story from this morning. Yesterday I talked KJ into buying a pink dress shirt with blue stripes. As he was getting dressed this morning Ella walked in the bathroom and said, "You look crazy. Why are you wearing Mommy's shirt?" To her defense, I do have a pink button-up shirt. When he put on his blazer she said, "You look handsome." KJ said, "Not crazy?" She replied, "A little crazy." That was probably because you could see just a little of his shirt under the blazer. Oh, the delights of my girl!

I'll also add that in describing her dress to B.P. on the phone today Ella said, "It's got flowers and weeds on it." She and her daddy were pulling weeds in the yard yesterday, so I suppose it was natural to mistake the leaves for weeds.

Here's my "crazy handsome" husband and beautiful little girl.

The Medicine I Need

On days like today (that start far too early) I feel like my blog post may be a pep talk to myself. James was doing so well sleeping, and it felt like we were establishing a good routine, and now we are back at square one. Babies are like that. They're always growing and changing and having to learn the sleeping skill all over again after every growth spurt, sickness, or vacation that comes their way. In our case, James is recovering from his first extended exposure to pollen in the air.

So, what gets you through those crazy days? One thing I've found lately is laughter. Doesn't it feel good to laugh? I have fond memories of my 20th birthday part at my grandparents with four or five college girlfriends, and it seemed like we just laughed through the entire meal. I miss that. Sometimes we don't laugh often enough. So, some things that have made me laugh lately?



I happened to catch a couple of episodes recently while I have been rocking James, and they have cracked me up. The episodes I've seen have been of Denise and then Vanessa coming home announcing their marriage and engagement, respectively. I sure hope Ella never pulls a stunt like that. Both episodes resulted in genuine and unrestrained laughter. Something else that made me laugh was reading a church sign my husband's cousin took a picture of last night.



The reasoning behind church's doing stuff like this is beyond me. If they aren't going to use Scripture, there are still a vast array of witty quotes that actually have meaning and don't sound ridiculous. However, such signs are good for a deep belly laugh like I enjoyed last night when I first saw this picture.

A merry heart does good, like medicine. Proverbs 17:22a

I hope the God who created laughter keeps your heart merry today, and that somewhere you find a good dose of medicine.

Moments in Mothering

Ella: Mom, I can make music with my food.

Me: What? How do you do that?

Ella: Like this: (followed by dancing around as she smacks while she eats her goldfish)

That about sums up my day.

Oh, and James sat in the buggy for the first time!

Mornings

Yesterday was a long day because KJ left for work around 9 a.m. and didn't come home until about 8:40 p.m. (I must have been watching the clock) due to teaching at prayer meeting and the college Bible study afterwards. And come to think of it, I haven't been out of the house but twice in the past 4 days, so I'm sure those two things account for some of the weariness I felt by nightfall. What else accounted for the weariness you might ask? Well, it was mainly brought on by Ella's refusal to eat her carrots. That sounds so trivial and makes me laugh to read what I just wrote. However, at the end of a long day, sometimes that's all it takes.

Suddenly, I wondered how I was going to make it through the two hours remaining until bedtime. I normally greatly enjoy all the little tasks that add up to the huge job of mothering, but at the moment all my inspiration was gone, and I waited helplessly until my husband finally came home. He graciously allowed me to read a couple of chapters from "Anne of Avonlea." Here are a couple of my favorite quotes from last night:

"She held over him the unconscious influence that every girl, whose ideals are high and pure, wields over her friends; an influence which would endure as long as she was faithful to those ideals and which she would certainly lose if she were ever false to them." (I remember reading that as a teenager and realizing how true it was, and I pray that Ella will be a young lady of high and pure ideals.)

"It is really almost enough to make one believe in ill-luck, though Mrs. Lynde says there is no such thing, because everything is foreordained." (I've had days where I might believe in ill-luck if I didn't know better, haven't you?)

But I am so thankful for nights of sleep and brand new beginnings. James woke first, and I was able to feed him and myself before Ella awakened. Her first words on my entering her room this morning were, "Where's James?" Then she bounded to the living room to greet him.



Seeing her joyful energy and her hair bouncing on the back of her princess gown brought a renewal of joy to my spirit, and made me glad to be a mother again and so thankful for the grace of mornings.

Through the LORD's mercies we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness. Lamentations 3:22-23

But I will sing of Your power; yes, I will sing aloud of Your mercy in the morning; for You have been my defense and refuge in the day of my trouble. To You, O my Strength, I will sing praises; for God is my defense, my God of mercy. Ps. 59:16-17

Cause me to hear Your lovingkindness in the morning; for in You do I trust; cause me to know the way in which I should walk, for I lift up my soul to You. Ps. 143:8

Isn't Psalm 143:8 the perfect prayer for motherhood (or any other place you are walking through in life)? Oh, how I need the Lord's encouragement, and oh, how I need to know the way in which I should walk.

Link to recipe?

www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/emeril-lagasse/pulled-pork-bbq-pizza-recipe/index.html

I thought I would try again with the recipe link. I am still learning how to do this.

Last Night's LOST Party

Last night's LOST party had an extra fun element because KJ's brother, Kameron, is home for Spring Break and was able to come.



(Photography by KJ)

Monday night we had barbecue pork for dinner that I cooked in the crock pot all day. I've started doing crock pot meals on Monday nights because KJ comes in late because of visitation, and Hillary comes over late after class to watch 24, so that way everyone can eat when they want to, and it stays hot and fresh.

KJ happened to have barbecue at his parents' house for lunch yesterday, too, and I really wanted to use up the rest of the meat without him getting bored with eating barbecue sandwiches, so I was think of another way to serve our pork. (I'm not trying to be overly spiritual, but don't you all pray about the everyday normal things in your life? Besides, preparing meals my husband will enjoy is part of loving him, and I think God cares DEEPLY about that as well as how I run my home, SO I prayed about this, too.)

Then, (light bulb above my head), I thought, "Barbecue Pizza!" It's my husband's absolute favorite and the only thing I ever see him eat more of than he should. I have only ever had Barbecue Chicken pizza, but I figured why not with pork? So I searched online and found a recipe by Emeril, and I already had most of the ingredients. I cheated and just bought a refrigerated pizza crust because this was a last-minute idea, and I had already made my pork, but otherwise we followed the recipe:

So, the kids and I made a quick trip to Winn-Dixie to get pizza dough, cheese, bell pepper, and an onion, and Hillary and I had a blast making what turned out to be absolutely SCRUMPTIOUS pizza.



Ella was helping Hillary pull apart the onion rings and had her first experience with the effects of onions on your eyes. You might be able to see the tear glistening on her cheek.



Ella was a little shy of onions after that.



Grating the Monterey Jack cheese



Homemade barbecue sauce



Oven ready



WOW.