Five-Minute Friday: Wonder

November 30, 2012 by · 2 Comments

Today I’m linking up with Lisa-Jo at The Gypsy Mama for Five-Minute Friday.

Join me!

The rules: Write for five minutes. No editing, revising, overthinking, or backtracking. Just write.

Today’s Topic: Wonder

Sometimes I wish I could see life through the eyes of my daughter.

Because, to her, everything is wonder.

She walks outside and sees a blanket of snow covering the ground, and there is nothing more magical.

She randomly stops whatever activity she is doing, stands up and spins…around and around, arms full-on-stretched. Embracing the fullness of life around her…simply because she can.

We’ll be out for a walk in the neighborhood, and she’ll break into her toddler-sprint. Nowhere to go, just simply taking her boundless energy and letting herself fly because, well, why not?

Or, tonight, we were at a Christmas tree lighting. Happy choir music, pretty lights, people all around…and she decides to do backflips.

Hers is a world filled with wonder.

At times, I’m jealous. A little.

It feels like when I grew up (sorta, anyway!) I lost my sense of finding the wonder in all that surrounds me.

I forget that the beauty outside my window screams of my Creator.

I forget that the beautiful girl I am so incredibly privileged to spend my days with is wonder.

And in the hustle and bustle and busy and crazy of all that surrounds Christmas, I sometimes forget about the

True Wonder.

That baby who, so long ago, was born in a stable.

He was the picture of wonder that would captivate the world…and change the hearts and lives of multitudes…

One of those being me.

May I always, always remember that wonder…and pass it on to my daughter, too.

Five Minute Friday

Sig

Filed Under: being mommy, Five Minute Friday, just life, Maelie, where I am

For the Love of Hot Cocoa…

November 25, 2012 by · 4 Comments

Somehow I think it was a winner. :)

Sig

Filed Under: being mommy, just life, Maelie

Little Blessings (Pt. 54)

November 20, 2012 by · Leave a Comment

:) Two consecutive days of naps. (For the girl. I took one yesterday. :))

:) Beautiful weather for late November…I really love sweater weather.

:) Two awesome mornings for running.

:) Visits from friends.

:) Baking pies.

:) Storytime with Mae. I read her my favorite Max Lucado book tonight. She loved it. :)

:) Anticipating reunions with people I love.

:) Awesome news that made my heart SO happy!

:) My little family. I just love them so much!

:) Giving thanks…I am so extremely blessed.

Sig

Filed Under: blessings, family, friends, just life, Maelie, where I am

Something Fun

November 19, 2012 by · 2 Comments

So I’ve been having an I-miss-Indo month.

Lots of reminders here and there, I guess.

Anyway, I decided to look back through pictures, and I had totally forgotten about this.

In September ’09 we took a day trip to Jatiluhur, a lake that was about an hour from our house. (Lakes that are used for recreation are pretty uncommon in Indonesia.) It was a fun trip, and potentially the highlight (?) of the day was this.

A pedal-yourself roller coaster.

Seriously. You literally pedal yourself around on this teeny-tiny (really) track that wobbles a little too much for it’s own good.

Here we are…right before we started pedaling. I was convinced we might die. And had I known that Maelie was in my belly at the time (’cause she totally was!) I may have never done it.

This one is my favorite. See that group of people in the bottom right corner of the picture that seem fascinated with the coaster?

They’re really not.

They are, in fact, fascinated with the shrieking bule (white girl) who is convinced that this may be her last moment on earth, as she teetered helplessly far too high in the air. (Ok, so maybe I’m a tiny bit over-dramatic. ;))

At any rate, it sure made me smile to see these tonight…and say a thank-you prayer to God that I’m still alive. 😉

Sig

Filed Under: adventures, culture shock, Indonesia, Maelie, remembering

I Smile…

November 15, 2012 by · 2 Comments

…but not because I’ve had the flu for 24 hours now. No, that doesn’t bring smiles.

But, it is true…even on the most difficult days, there are always reasons to smile.

Like, right now. Tobin is upstairs giving Mae her bath. The two of them spent the day together. Out of necessity…I didn’t want to give her this at all, but also because I think daddies should do that once in awhile.They wrestled, went to lunch, played at the mall playground, stopped at the dollar store for puzzles, came home, brought me a present (B&BW Christmas hand soap!) played some more, had pancakes. I smile because they had a good day together.

I’m currently being guarded by two golden retrievers. Andre and Sammy know, and they protect. I love knowing I’m being taken care of by everyone in the house. :)

I smile, too, because we’re that good of friends with our neighbors that I can text and ask for some Sprite. :)

I smile because I’m keeping water down. That is huge, folks, though I will spare you the details. Let’s just say that never have I had a flu bug where I threw up so much with absolutely nothing in my stomach. UGH. The fact that I’ve kept water down for going-on-seven hours is most certainly a reason to rejoice.

I smile, too, because I got some amazingly AWESOME news yesterday, news that I really want to splash out onto the blog right now, but I need to wait. I have some details right now but am waiting on more AND I have a dear friend who deserves to hear it in person, and I want to wait for the chance to tell her. I love it when God moves BIG…really, really excited about some future opportunities!

I smile because next week promises a reunion with some dear friends. And pie. Though friends definitely come first on the list. But let’s face it…pie at Thanksgiving is SO good, isn’t it?! :)

I smile because I am loved, and that has been shown to me in countless ways this week.

What about you? What made you smile today?

Sig

Filed Under: blessings, dogs, friends, just life, Maelie, Tobin, where I am

Scattered Musings

November 13, 2012 by · Leave a Comment

Ever have an extremely contemplative, yet scattered, day?

That’s me tonight.

I’m currently munching on a really bad protein bar. I told myself I had to eat all the ones in the house before I bought more. This current one I, unfortunately, purchased a large box of without considering the possibility that they might be bad.

Shudder.

It’s kind of funny how certain things start to clutter the pantry after awhile…for me, it’s protein bars and random boxes of crackers. I have no less than five different brands and probably ten flavors scattered throughout the kitchen. Oh, weird me.

So I put Mae to bed tonight and was all excited to run on the treadmill. Having one in our basement is a perk on evenings when Tobin is gone and I want to get a few miles in. So I resurrected the thing from it’s 8ish-month storage, hopped on, started running at the highest level it will go…and golly, this thing is shakin’! Feels like an earthquake!

After a couple attempts to stop/start it again, I realized an important little piece that holds the base together had popped out and was g.o.n.e.

No running for me.

I did some strength/cardio stuff instead. Not nearly as fun or as sweaty as running. (Did I really just say that?!)

At any rate, I’m sending hubby to the basement to hopefully fix the thing for me. Some days it’s just easier to run on the treadmill than run in the cold.

Though I have unofficially promised no one…ok, ok, myself…that I’ll do one day a week outside.

Ask me how I’m doing with that in the middle of January. :)

Tomorrow is a pretty crazy day for us. Gymnastics, a meeting, family pictures. Plus, my Bible study is SO lucky…I’m baking them my favorite cake. :) That, too, needs to be done tomorrow.

Yikes.

It occurred to me a few days ago that last year, I spent the entire month of November writing about the things I was (am) thankful for…and I (obviously) haven’t been doing that this year. It was almost a convicting realization.

It’s not that I’m NOT thankful…I guess I’ve just chosen to express that thanks in different ways this year…though I’m sure I will officially post something at some point.

I was talking to God about that, trying to explain that I really AM so thankful for all He’s given and blessed us with. In the middle of that explanation, it hit me…

Duh, Mel…He knows.

Perhaps because true gratitude is a reflection of the heart. Though that can be shown on the outside, and should be, the fact that I haven’t been talking doesn’t make me ungrateful.

It gave me something to think about for sure. :)

I can’t believe Thanksgiving is nine days away. We’re heading to Minnesota to see Tobin’s family and a few friends, too. It should be an eventful trip with an ever-wiggly, active toddler and two rambunctious golden retrievers. Yay for family bonding at it’s finest? 😉

Thankfully, I thought ahead this time. I got a steal of a deal on this, and while it has the potential to ensure that Tobin and I are singing Veggie Tales songs for the entire weekend, it will keep a certain little girl entertained during the 12-14 hours we will spend in the van. :)

Between that and her A-B-C Turtle, which is a favorite toy on long trips, and coloring, I’m hoping it’s an enjoyable trip.

And, hey, if it’s not, at least we’ll have grandma and grandpa to provide us with the sanity we lost on the way there. :)

P.S. If you have any tips for long road trips with two year-olds, I’m all ears. Please. Talk.

:)

Well, I’m about out of words (yeah, right, like that ever happens!) and morning is coming way too soon. Off to bed I go so I can (hopefully) run on my non-earthquak-ing treadmill bright and early.

Happy almost-Wednesday, friends!

Sig

Filed Under: being mommy, blessings, family, just life, Maelie, random, running, travel, where I am

Five-Minute Friday: Quiet

November 9, 2012 by · 6 Comments

Today I’m linking up with Lisa-Jo at The Gypsy Mama for Five-Minute Friday.

Join me!

The rules: Write for five minutes. No editing, revising, overthinking, or backtracking. Just write.

Today’s Topic: Quiet

Tonight I took my girl on a “date”, and we went to a movie night for preK-junior high students.

It was free, it was our time together, there were lots of great friends to hang out with.

But I noticed something as the movie started.

There were So. Many. People.

So. Much. Chaos.

SO. MUCH. NOISE.

As time went by, it became clear that it was going to be impossible to pick up on any kind of story line much less actually watch the movie. We lasted maybe halfway through the movie before she became restless and it was clearly time to go.

There was just so much noise, it didn’t work.

I’m not angry or upset. It was fun, for the most part. But, watch the movie?

We did not.

I thought about that during the drive home while my overly-tired daughter, for once, sat quietly in her seat, fighting sleep.

About how I often live my moments and my days in the chaotic instead of the quiet.

I almost-purposely surround myself with things that keep me busy and going, determined that I won’t need to think if I don’t stop and be still.

There ARE those quiet moments, though.

The ones when He almost forces stillness and silence. Perhaps because He wants me to listen?

I think so. No, I know so.

And I always walk away from those moments of quiet with something. A piece of Truth. An encouraged heart. A smile in the reminder of His goodness. A glimpse of Grace.

And as I take those steps from the moment, ready to dive headfirst back into the chaos of life, and there’s nothing wrong with that sometimes, may I always remember

that He moves deepest in the quiet.

May I always be willing to stop and listen.

Five Minute Friday

Sig

Filed Under: Five Minute Friday, friends, just life, Maelie, what I'm learning, where I am

Death by Dum-Dum?

November 6, 2012 by · 1 Comment

Ok, so I’m in kind of a quirky mood…potentially to curb some of the nerves these election results are bringing tonight?

Ugh.

Definitely a nail biter.

Anyway, so I was driving home from my hair appointment tonight, eating a dum-dum. (Thank you to my favorite hair stylist for letting me be a kid and take one. Or two. ;))

Then I suddenly had a really freaky thought. Something like, Man, it would be a bad time to get in an accident and have my airbag deploy. I’d choke on my dum-dum, and that would be the end.

Ok, ok, I admit that my brain can get extremely imaginative at times. :)

But it was enough for me to crunch the rest of my sucker in about half a second and get that stick out of my mouth. No more driving with dum-dums for me!

Now that you know for certain that I’m really quirky…

Tonight is that one night every four years that is such a strange paradox. I detest the way the news stations report election results and yet I’m glued to the tv…and feeling insanely sick to my stomach but eating some form of chocolate anyway.

But I promised not to talk politics, didn’t I?

So Mae and I spent the day at home today, and it was a long one. Darn time change…seriously, her eyes pop open with the sun…hellooo early mornings. For now, anyway. Thankfully I had a moment of genius when I remembered the “gift” my mom gave her several months ago. “Gift”=100+ piece plastic food set for her kitchen.

Gift for Maelie. I-will-injure-myself-by-stepping-on-all-these-tiny-pieces, non-gift for Mel.

I hid it in the garage…until today.

I can’t believe how many hours that kept her occupied.

She loved having new toys so much that I didn’t mind having to pick up that 100+ piece set a dozen times in an afternoon.

It was fun watching her “cook” all kinds of different food for me. She had fun, and for a moment, I felt guilty about not giving it to her for…ahem…about six months. Well, I felt guilty until I stepped on one of the plastic pieces and reminded myself exactly why I’d hidden the thing.

Oh, well. She’s not likely to forget about it anytime soon, so I’ll have to be extra careful about where I walk. :)

Well, it’s getting late…and I’m seriously thinking about turning off election results and watching a chick flick.

Sounds way more fun. :)

G’nite, friends.

Sig

Filed Under: being mommy, hair, just life, Maelie, random, where I am

So I Will Dance With Cinderella…

November 1, 2012 by · 6 Comments

Oh, she was beautiful.

Absolutely.

She sat perfectly still while I did her Cinderella hair. Just for the record, that never happens, but she barely moved a muscle as I twisted her hair into a bun, doing what I could with her limited amount of hair. (Cinderella must have had a lot of hair…of course, it seems to work that way in fairy tales. No fair. At least she didn’t want to be Rapunzel!)

And she loved it anyway. :)

Tobin and I looked at each other, almost in disbelief at how fast she is growing up. Dressing like Cinderella. Old enough to know what it means to dance.

And perhaps the most heart-melting moment of the day was when she took her daddy’s hands and they twirled in a circle.

Danced.

I seriously couldn’t resist it…I had to sing. So I sang through part of the chorus before a lump formed in my throat and I couldn’t continue.

You see, there’s this place of honesty in my heart that I haven’t let find its place on my blog just yet.

That place where I truly ask myself, as the days slip by, if this is the only time we’ll experience this. If this time of dancing is only going to be with her.

Don’t get me wrong…she’s enough. More than that.

God poured his blessings into our lives on that Monday morning in June 2010. And He continues to do so.

I have never forgotten how wonderful it was to hear her cry, see her face, hold her for the first time. I remember thinking how tiny she was and how I felt certain that those moments would last forever.

Though they didn’t, it was a nice dream.

And as each day happens and as we soak up the wonderful and the terrible and the happy and the sad and the joyous and the frustrating and the completely blessed…well, we just do our best to make memories out of what we’re given.

Like those memories made yesterday as my sweet little Cinderella twirled with her daddy.

I don’t want to spend my days wondering; I’d rather just live them.

Live them fully as I let my little girl be Cinderella for as long as she wants to be. I’ll watch her twirl and sing and dance and be the wonderful Mae that God has created her to be.

And soak up the blessings of now.

So I will dance with Cinderella, while she is here in my arms;
‘Cause I know something the prince never knew.
Oh, I will dance with Cinderella, I don’t wanna miss even one song;
‘Cause all too soon the clock will strike midnight…and she’ll be gone.

Sig

Filed Under: being mommy, blessings, family, just life, Maelie, music, where I am

Little Blessings (Pt. 52)

October 29, 2012 by · 2 Comments

:) Laughter with my girl.

:) Perspective…and the insight that can be gained from a rough morning.

:) The chicken dance. (BAIS peeps, do you remember? ;))

:) What the house looks like after three hours of cleaning. (Since the girl is sleeping, we’re guaranteed it will look this good for another ten, too!)

:) Cozy blankets and chick flicks. (Guess what I’m doing tonight?)

:) Blog hopping…love reading my friends’ takes on life and all that God is doing.

:) Early morning 5k PR’s. :)

:) The gift of true friendship.

:) Anticipating a crazy-fun, downtown-5k weekend.

:) Prayer…and a Father Who loves us each so deeply. Please keep the Hall family in your prayers, especially tomorrow. (Tuesday.) I went to college with Julie and Randy; tomorrow, their youngest daughter, Taylor, who is not even two yet, will be having surgery to remove a cancerous tumor from her spine. This is a very delicate, risky surgery as the tumor is wrapped around arteries. Please lift up Taylor, the doctors who will be working on her, and her family as they trust God to heal their precious little girl. You can read more of her story here, and if you’d like more updates or information, there is a facebook group called Praying for Taylor. I know they would appreciate your prayers so much. Thanks!

P.S. Wanted to give you a photo…what a beautiful little girl. God holds her in His hands. :)

Sig

Filed Under: blessings, friends, just life, Maelie, prayer, where I am
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