To be brief, the A-Team is back home. Details will follow in days to come, but for now let us say the FAA and Air Traffic Control are…

The Road Not Taken
by Robert Frost

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;

Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim
Because it was grassy and wanted wear,
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,

And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I marked the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way
I doubted if I should ever come back.

I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I,
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.

The site will be moving to a new server on Friday night 7/22/11 at 9pm or so. It will take a few hours, and the transition should be transparent to visitors. However since we’ll be getting a new IP address because of the move, it may take up to 48 hours before the new IP/domain info is updated globally in DNS. If you try and the site appears down, it means your ISP sucks. Just kidding. Hit “F5” to refresh and if that doesn’t work and you’re just bent on reading our blog, try rebooting your DSL/cable modem and also rebooting your PC. That will force DNS to be updated.

My husband loves me so much that he bought me a new keyboard! My old keyboard has been used SO much that most of the letters are actually worn off the keyboard keys and it is really loud when typing! He had replaced it once before but the replacement had a HORRIBLE space bar and I refused to continue typing with it. Since I typed really fast for nearly 4 years, I have become a bit picky. Anyway, I absolutely LOVE my new keyboard! It is silent, all letters are visible (when entering nonsensical words, this is essential) and it just plain feels good!

THANK YOU HONEY!

I am keeping very busy getting last minute things done before I head off to the hospital. The house has been cleaned on the first floor and the 2nd floor will be dealt with tomorrow. I have my bag mostly packed and I think I feel ready for this baby.

I am SO thankful that my most recent ailment did NOT kick in until now. My uterus has gotten so large that my sciatic nerve is going haywire. I really have a hard time bending to pick something up. The bending isn’t the problem, it is getting back up! I have been “stuck” more than once and the pain is excruciating. This will all be over very soon!

I know that I am very excited about meeting our newest member but so is Aaron. I am so thankful to have such a wonderfully supportive husband who has done SO much for me during this pregnancy. I haven’t had to bathe Abraham in days because Aaron has been doing it! It has been such a blessing to have him home and help with everything. All of his time has been eaten up by chores or just helping me with my chores and Abraham. I know that I will never be able to repay him for all he has done for me.

Abraham still doesn’t really get it that we are bringing a baby home soon. His innocence is so precious. Yes he knows Mommy has a baby in her belly and he will acknowledge that it is even Abel. He has liked seeing all the “baby” things come back from the basement but again, it doesn’t really make any sense to him other than we are moving stuff around. It will be interesting to see how he responds. I think he will do great. He loves other babies that he comes in contact with. I just hope the jealously factor won’t be major. I also am praying for extreme patience with myself as well as both boys during this transition. I know it won’t be easy going on so little sleep and keeping this house running without losing my mind. Phillipians 4:13 runs through my mind when I think of this: “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” I will just submit to His will and go with the flow. These days are so precious when you have little ones because you blink and they turn 2! Yes, I am already having to think about planning Abraham’s 2nd birthday party. I am in complete disbelief. Not to mention my husband’s birthday is just around the corner too….geez, why did I plan on having this new guy in late May? That’s okay. I have already broached the subject about doing this AGAIN with Aaron. We talked about a July 2012 baby but I think I want 4 kids before I am 35 (I am currently 32). So I mentioned that maybe an October 2011 baby would be possible. Aaron seemed open to the idea! We will just see what God has in store for us:)

Anyway I will update you on the “family” day we are having on Wednesday. I am looking so forward to spending the day with my guys. I love them so much and I know that God will show me many wonderful things while we are together. I am very thankful to have all of these loving men in my life!

Happy Mother’s Day!

Having a blast at the playground!

I had a wonderful Mother’s Day and hope that you did too (for those of you that are mommies). My husband did a great job of making me feel very special today. I am off to finish off my night with a movie of MY choice! Yippee!!!

Over the past few weeks I have done extensive self-reflection. I have been doing this for a myriad of reasons but I am glad I have done this. One major revelation came to me…I am a FIGHTER. I am not the stereo-typical woman who will ball up and let whatever is coming happen. I will fight back. I don’t know where this instinct has come from. I wasn’t like this when I was younger but something changed in me several years ago and I have been fighting ever since. I take on every challenge that comes my way and I don’t back down. I am not talking about challenges that require compromise. I mean big challenges, like life-threatening challenges. Will I let a man rape me? Will I let a stranger get my child? Will I cower in the corner while a store is being robbed? These are the kind of situations/challenges I am referring to. I have made a promise to myself and my family that I will NOT be afraid. I will NOT allow the “bad” people to win. If they come knocking at my door (wherever that is) they will have one serious fight on their hands. Hopefully my growl and scowl will be enough to have them think twice realizing I am NOT weak or afraid but if not, I have other means of protecting my family and I am NOT afraid to use them. Something else that adds to intimidation of a bad guy is eye contact. If they see that fighter in you, they will most likely look elsewhere for a less formidable opponent.

The reason I write about this tonight is that I saw the worst statistics of my life. We women have a nearly 100% chance of being victimized in some violent crime or another (85% sexual crimes). That is horrible. This needs to end. We must speak out and not sit in silence. We must make it known that we are NOT weak or unwilling to help ourselves. We WILL fight back! You must be prepared and you must make a commitment to yourself to fight. You don’t have to be some black belt karate master, but you must know your surroundings at all times and BE PREPARED. I carry a concealed weapon at all times. But that isn’t everything. My attitude will carry me MUCH further especially if I don’t appear to be weak. I also pick and choose my surroundings. I don’t put myself in “typical” danger situations. I stay away from certain parts of town; I avoid shopping alone after dark; I frequent familiar areas; I typically park with a cart corral blocking one side of my vehicle (especially with children); I survey EVERYTHING constantly; I make eye contact with anyone nearby to assure them that I know they are there; I have my cell phone in my pocket; I always lock the car doors when we are in the car and once we leave the car; I never answer the door (if we aren’t expecting company, I don’t answer the door but do look out a window to check out what is going on). These are just a few things that you can do to be prepared and to avoid a situation.

Anyway, enough of my rambling. For the few of you who read this, I hope you will have a conversation with someone else and mention this to them. I believe the only way to stop victimization of women is to get the word out that it is OKAY to protect yourself. Be a FIGHTER!

After 3 visits back to the church nursery, Abraham and I both have the sniffles. Poor little dude has it a bit worse than I for now. I seriously hope I don’t get really sick.

I know this is Satan ripping us away from the church because now we won’t be able to go this Sunday because we won’t be “those parents” (you know those parents that still take their sick kids to church and put them in the nursery to infect everyone else). And we most likely won’t return to church until after the weather changes because we can’t afford to be sick; not just financially, but emotionally and physically! It really drains all of us when we have an illness. What kills me is that I do not keep my son in a bubble. We go out to the store and he interacts with other people (mom’s group functions) and it is not like my house is perfectly germ free. But yet, the minute we go to church, we get sick.

We have such disdain for illness that we will change our lives to avoid it and that stinks. But I guess that is the life we have now with kids. Maybe once the last one turns 5 this won’t be such an issue anymore!!!