I Miss Her

February 15, 2012 by · Leave a Comment

I have often talked about our house helper in Indonesia, Ibu Sari, and how much I miss her.

When I talk about missing her…I’m talking about her as my friend. I miss cooking with her, laughing with her, practicing my Indonesian with her…just being her friend. She’s wonderful. :)

And though, at times, I’ve missed the things she did for us, I think I did ok adjusting. For the most part I can keep up on laundry and cooking and (some) cleaning. (No comments from a certain person reading this… ;))

But today I missed her for a completely selfish reason.

See, she used to make this coffee cake for us.

I made it once, it took a small forever, and she watched. I planned that she would watch me make it so I would never have to do it again. I know, I know…I’m a teeny bit sneaky. 😉

And, without even asking, she made it all the time…probably at least once a month. And if we ever went on a trip, we knew it would be there waiting for us when we got back. (Once, it was the only thing we had to eat in the house.

True story.)

We haven’t had it since Indonesia…in fact, I think I ate a piece of it the morning I left. :) But there’s a reason for that.

(insert cheesy grin and slight head tilt)

And I rediscovered it tonight.

I have treats for Bible study tomorrow morning and have been planning to make this for a couple weeks.

Why did I NOT look at the recipe before today?

More importantly, how did I possibly FORGET why I hate making this so much

?

Because not only does the dough take eight hours to chill, the rest of it takes at least two. Three if you’re me.

Ugh.

And you are probably wondering why I have time to blog about it all…because I get to wait for an hour for it to rise before it bakes.

Hello going to bed at midnight.

I always miss my friend, Ibu Sari.

And tonight, I miss her just a little more. 😉

Sig

Filed Under: food, friends, Indonesia, just life, remembering

Little Blessings (Pt. 23)

February 14, 2012 by · Leave a Comment

It’s ok to count them two days in a row, right? 😉

:) Extra cuddles from a certain little girl who didn’t want to sleep tonight.

:) A card and not having to do dishes or clean up the kitchen tonight.

:) Prayers and words of encouragement from a friend.

:) Lunch dates.

:) Chocolate. Today, specifically, dark chocolate and sea salt caramel.

:) Moments to reflect.

:) A random memory that made me burst into laughter. It’s good to laugh.

:) A spunky, fireball-of-a-girl who makes grocery shopping an adventure instead of a mundane, hated chore. (Well, I still don’t love it, but she does make it interesting.)

:) Fuzzy slippers. My. Feet. Are. Cold. Love my slippers.

:) The new mercies I am given each and every day. I need them.

Sig

Filed Under: blessings, just life

Little Blessings (Pt. 22)

February 13, 2012 by · Leave a Comment

:) Zumba. Chalkin’ up another new experience. I am not a dancer…and that’s ok. There was a lot of laughter, and that is definitely a blessing. 😉

:) Valentine’s Day…though we’re actually celebrating Friday. (I think!)

:) Realizing what a mistake it is to take Maelie into a book store…and being thankful that I had enough cash in my wallet to pay for the damage. Yikes. Blessing? Choosing to see it that way…

:) Seeing a friend, on above outing, and her UH-dorable baby boy.

:) Seeing God answer a specific prayer today.

:) Anne of Green Gables. (DON’T laugh. I’m completely addicted. You should be, too.)

:) Singing in the shower.

:) Going to a new destination (in another city) withOUT using the GPS.

:) Running five miles yesterday. (I coulda gone more…really. But my knee decided to “dislocate” for a second. Really. Supposedly what happens with runner’s knee. Yeah, it was good times. Choosing to focus on the I-ran-five-miles part. ;))

:) Two crazy golden retrievers who love me to pieces.

You know what? I love them to pieces, too.

Sig

Filed Under: being mommy, blessings, dogs, friends, just life, Maelie, running

God Moments

February 12, 2012 by · Leave a Comment

I love those moments when I know that God is speaking to me. And it’s always pretty cool to see how He speaks, too.

I’ve been singing this son

g for weeks…in my head, in the shower, in the car…and probably other places, too. 😉

What’s funny about it is that I seriously haven’t heard it since I was in college, and I don’t have it on CD or iTunes. It’s just still in my head. :)

So it was a bit of a surprise, flash-back moment, but definitely a cool one, too, when I logged into Facebook tonight and saw that one of my best friends had posted the lyrics of it.

God moment?

I think so.

And as I read over them, they challenged me. Maybe they’ll challenge you, too.

I will not offer anything that costs me nothing;
I’ll place before Him nothing less than my very best.


And if I’m called to sacrifice,
It will be worthy of my Christ;
I will not offer anything that costs me nothing.

Sig

Filed Under: music, what I'm learning, where I am

Mae Converses

February 11, 2012 by · Leave a Comment

We’ve always kind of been aware that Mae is verbally advanced. I mean, most of her biggest influences are talkers. 😉

Today, she surprised us, though. Like, really surprised us.

The context: I had cut up a piece of pizza for her lunch.

She had eaten several bites and decided she didn’t want any more of it and started throwing pieces to Andre and Sammy. (This is fairly common in our house.)

Me: Mae, please stop throwing your food. You need to eat it.

Mae: (Pointing in the general direction of the dogs) Sammy!

(At least, that’s what we thought she said.)

Me: You’re right, Mae. Sammy is one of our doggies.

Mae: (looking right at me) No! I said, sippy! (Pointing to her sippy cup.)

I think this could be the first real conversation we’ve had with her with an actual sentence.

It was pretty amazing.

My girl is pretty amazing. :)

And she’ll be 20 months on Tuesday!

Wowsers, where does time go?!

Bonus: Just because I can, here’s a pic of our girl doing one of her favorite things. Lounging on the couch while reading a book. (Sadly, the lounging part only lasts a minute or two before she’s jumping up and down on it…) Love her.

 

Sig

Filed Under: being mommy, just life, Maelie

Friday Smiles

February 10, 2012 by · Leave a Comment

Sig

Filed Under: being mommy, Maelie

A Letter to My Girl: Lessons from the Playground

February 9, 2012 by · 1 Comment

February 9, 2012

To my Mae…

Today I watched you play at the new playground at the mall by our house. Oh, we were exc ited to check

it out! They closed it for a few weeks to make it better, and today was finally the day that we could go with some friends! You had so much fun!

What you aren’t fully aware of yet…is how much I observe you while you bop around, exploring anything and everything that piques your interest even a little. Today, while I observed you, I noticed something.

That I could learn a lot from my 5-days-shy-of-being-20-months-old daughter.

You reminded me of JOY. Daily I choose to see the joy in a day, but watching you play brought out more in my heart than I could have imagined was possible. You were completely LOVING every moment (well…most of them, there were a few tears) as you explored and interacted…and smiled. You’re just a smiley kiddo…and everything these days brings out that beautiful smile. Sometimes I forget that JOY can be found in simple things, but you have already learned that.

You keep trying. You know what? It’s easy for your mommy to give up on things sometimes. Today I watched you climb the “wrong” side of the new tree slide, not knowing that it was the wrong side. You’d try and fall…over and over. Instead of getting frustrated, you’d find something else to do and still smile. And when you discovered that there were steps on the OTHER side? JOY! You were so happy to climb up them for a chance to try out the slide. Over and over. :) It may seem small, but you reminded me to persevere, even when things seem difficult.

You handled mean kids with grace. They didn’t mean to be mean…but they were. A couple girls who wouldn’t let you go down the slide. You’d come to me and cry…and that’s ok. I cry sometimes, too. Once a few tears were shed, you were ready to go back and try getting past them. Eventually someone told those girls to stop, and the slide was open again. And you just played again…with so much JOY. No hard feelings.

My daughter, you’re going to meet people like that in life. And when you do, my prayer is that you will exhibit a spirit of forgiveness and willingness to move forward, just like you did today. Your mommy is still working on that one!

I had a wonderful day with you. And though there were definitely tears when we left to go home for a nap, it’s the simple moments like these that I treasure the most. The chance to be out with you, just living life with the daughter I’d always dreamed of having.

You are a dream come true.

And I love you to the moon and back…plus infinity.

Love,
Mommy

Sig

Filed Under: blessings, friends, just life, Maelie

Random in a Wednesday

February 8, 2012 by · Leave a Comment

aka: Possibly more than you need to know?

That’s ok. It will make me feel better to spout out random parts of my Wednesday.

Wednesdays are just kind of that day. On Mondays, Maelie and I usually have something to do. Tuesdays we make it a point to get out of the house to do something.  Wednesdays are hit and miss…today was a miss. But, really, it’s ok. We need to spend some days at home not running everywhere. :)

So tonight I was really missing my Mac…you know, my lovely two year-old laptop that bit the dust last summer? Yeah, that one. Tobin was able to borrow one for me from work for awhile, but it had to go back. Now if I want to blog I have to actually sit up at the computer and write instead of lounge on the couch. I know, I know.

I’m lazy.

And I AM thankful for our computer…it was a big blessing. So no more complaining. That, and Tobin scored the part he thinks he needs to fix my Mac for free (!) so it’s very possible that my computer could come back to life. That would be very nice. :) It would also be nice to not have to blog from my Kindle when we’re in Spain.

Yeah, do you think I could actually go nine days without the blog?

I believe we all know the answer to that one. 😀

So I was browsing some of the archives on my blog and noticed the formatting is all screwy. Please, please, please…don’t go looking for it. In a nutshell, wordpress is giving me fits. I’m not sure how to change it.

That will be our project for this weekend, maybe? So if things don’t look quite right on a post, It’s probably wordpress and not me. Just wanted to clear that up. 😉

So I’ve gotten a little lazy since September/October. (I know, I know! First I don’t want to sit UP at the computer, and now this?! Kidding.) Anyway, that would be the last time I wore flip flops? Yeah. I decided to give my toenails a break and not paint them through the winter…which is HUGE for me, folks.

It drives me craaaazy when they’re not painted, but at least in the winter I hardly have to look at them. However, all of that changed on Monday night when I went to my workout. We did some yoga.

Barefoot.

Gee, thanks.

And to top it off, I couldn’t find any nail polish in the house when I got home that night. I really only have maybe one bottle anyway, so it was time to splurge. And being the bargain shopper that I totally am, I scored some sparkly blue polish for about $1.50. I’ll take it.

I vowed that I would paint my toenails today. I haven’t yet, but I plan on it. Not like it really matters…it’s just the principle.

Anyway.

This could potentially win an award for the longest, most dramatically random collage of musings I’ ve e

ver come up with.

Goodness, maybe I should just hit the hay.

After all, I did pay for that coffee I had last night.

Wide awake ’til 1 a.m.

Yeah, I’m cool.

And so are you…for reading. Love you bunches.

Sig

Filed Under: just life, random

Late Night Coffee

February 7, 2012 by · 2 Comments

It’s been far too long since I’ve sat down with a cup of actual coffee while I write.

Tonight, at a quarter to ten, I’m gonna pour myself some and spill my heart…for at least as long as it takes me to drink it. 😉

I’ll let you know tomorrow how late it kept me up…though I’m tired enough that I’m not sure it will make too much of a difference.

Really random…but you know what I looooove? When coffee is at that just-perfect temperature and it kinda burns your throat as it goes down. Yeah, that’s awesome. 😀 (And I think I just solidified in all of your minds that I am a total dork. But, really, that’s ok. If you haven’t at least thought that by now, then you probably don’t know me well enough yet. But you’ll think it soon enough.) 😉

So I know I talk about Mae a lot on this blog…she is the majority of my life, after all. 😉 But it’s been amazing to watch her the last few weeks. Words are turning to sentences, she understands and follows directions, she’s able to tell me when she needs or wants something. It’s all kinds of crazy…and all kinds of happy. I just love her and the little person she is.

Sunday was an especially sweet day of Maelie memories. When I was singing on praise team that morning, I looked out and saw her pointing at me, saying, Mommy! Mommy! Oh, how part of me wanted to run to her and grab her and bring her back up on stage with me! After church, when I finally got to see her, I was walking around with her, and she was passing out hugs to everyone. It was the cutest thing. Then, that night, we went to watch the Super Bowl with some friends, and she was just so full of love and cutie patooty-ness. Really, that’s her every day, but I can brag on her, right?! I just love my girl!

So, barring an actual training program, I started training for my ten mile in May. That translates to hopping on the treadmill and running until I can’t anymore, or in the case of today, running until I’m out of time and have to do something else. I managed to pull a little over four miles, and I was happy with that. Now I need to work on my pace, which can’t be done with our treadmill.

I have finally separated a good treadmill from a not-so-good one…besides price. The good ones actually go faster than 10:00 pace. So I will have to wait til it warms up a little and I can run outside. But it does feel good to keep my running up through the winter. Not sure I’ve ever done that before.

And possibly the best news is that my runner’s knee doesn’t seem to be flaring up as much. I’m trying to keep my distance running to every other day and mix cardio and strength on the other days. That and ibuprofin seem to be helping a lot. Praise God.

By the way, who’s running with me? I’ve got a couple friends…I need a few more. And those of you who don’t run with me

? Should come be my cheerleaders ’cause I’m gonna need ’em!

Ok, I’ve devoted far too much of this to working out…on to new topics.

I’ve been in crazy, I-miss-Indo mode. The other day a friend who is still there told a story on facebook of driving her motorbike, hitting a bump, and her bags of groceries flew off the bike and landed in the river. And a nice, old, Indonesian grandpa-fisherman helped her get them out.

You all laugh…I smile.

And that story actually makes me MISS it.

Almost like I wish it had happened to me!

And all this missing Indo reminds me of home and all that it is. Just a year ago, we weren’t sure what home would look like for us. God was so good…and we got to stay.

We love it here. We are blessed times a million. But when I think of home, I remember that my heart will always have two earthly homes.

There is no way that Indonesia will ever leave my heart. I can rejoice all I want that my house is cockroach-free (HALLELUJAH!!!!) and that I don’t have little lizards popping out of my toaster.

That traffic is, for the most part, orderly, and I can usually get to my destination without stopping to wait for longer than a minute or two. That my grocery store has every possible food I could ever want…and the idea of getting by without brown sugar or Lucky Charms? Is no more.

And yet, the lessons I took away from Indonesia are still there. They have changed me…and are now part of who I am.

And so I guess the word home is relative…no matter if I own my house or not.

The good news? We own our house, and we’re really happy here. :)

Just a random tangent. :)

I’m thankful.

It hasn’t been an easy few weeks. Like I said, I’m learning to appreciate winter and the hidden growth that it brings. But at the same time, my heart is heavy and my eyes are puffy and red.

I’m learning that thing I mentioned yesterday. Trust.

I know He is GOOD. And I know that I can trust Him.

And when my heart aches, I can give it to Him, knowing He will hold it and heal it.

That amazes me sometimes.

No, it amazes me all the time.

Well, my coffee cup is empty, and I really should crash for the night.

Thanks for stopping by. You bless me. :)

Sig

Filed Under: being mommy, blessings, church, coffee, friends, Indonesia, just life, Maelie, where I am

Trust

February 6, 2012 by · Leave a Comment

It’s three in the morning, and I’m still tossing.

Thankful that the couch is comfy, but clearly not enough for actual sleep. (Hubby is sick. We don’t sleep in the same bed when one of us is sick. Just sayin’. ;))

The sound of his occasional cough is the only sound that breaks the silence of the night.

And my mind wanders.

I cry for a friend who is hurting. I worry about my own struggles.

I wonder what the future might hold…and that thought scares me.

I ache for people I love and miss on the other side of the globe.

And I think about these things over and over and over while I continually turn from one side to the other, flipping my pillow every few minutes because the cold side is always the best side.

This goes on for hours, I’m sure.

At one point I fumble for my cell phone and see 3:47 flash at me.

Really?

I talk to Him about the same things I’ve been sharing for the past few hours…staring into the darkness, hoping that maybe this prayer will be the one that finally gives me some sleep.

And it is in the darkness that I hear Him say,

Trust. Trust Me, for I have already been there.

In that dark, silent room…where I’m sure the clock would read somewhere in the 4’s… I finally begin to understand.

It is in the darkness that I must learn to

Trust.

Sig

Filed Under: what I'm learning, where I am
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