“I throw my hands up in the air sometimes!”

Those of you who know me well know that there is nothing that makes me feel closer to God than when I am worshipping Him through song.  All of my life I have been moved by music and the way it makes me feel when I’m singing to my Jesus.  I cry (a lot) and get overwhelmed with the presence of God to the point where it’s all I can do to stand still.  Lately, I’ve been asking myself a lot of questions in this area.  Does everyone feel this way or is it just me?  Or just those that are musically inclined?  Why do I feel compelled to “stand still”?  What would happen if I just let go and threw my arms up in the air and sang at the top of my lungs?  Would people think I was crazy?  If so, do I care?  All of these questions have led me to share this thought process with you and get your thoughts. 

There are many things in life that we get excited about.  For some people it’s sports.  When watching their favorite team play their biggest rival, they will jump up and down, scream, throw things, go crazy on Twitter and Facebook.  They get so excited and caught up in the moment.  And that’s just football (or basketball, or whatever).  If people can get that excited because their favorite team scored a touchdown, how then can they sit still when they sing lyrics like these:

“The cross before me the world behind
No turning back, raise the banner high
It's not for me, it's all for You “

Or these:

“Saviour
He can move the mountains
For my God is mighty to save
He is mighty to save
Forever
Author of salvation
He rose and conquered the grave
Jesus conquered the grave”

Please know that I am not criticizing or judging.  I’m just curious.  However, when you see my at church on Sunday, singing to my Jesus, know that even though I may look calm on the outside, I’m jumping up and down on the inside!!!

Ohio trip 2011

So, I'm riding in the van on the way back from visiting Pete's family in Toledo, OH and thought I should blog about it (gonna try and blog more often in 2012)!

We drove up the day after Christmas. It's an 11 hour trip if you include stops, but it was our first long trip in the van. I have to say it was a pleasant ride. The girls were occupied with movies and gadgets and I had my iPad. ;)

We stayed with Pete's parents, Gary and Carol. Pete's sister, Holly, and her husband Matt also live there. Pete's brother, Bart, was in town from Chicago and his littlest sister, Heidi, and her fiancée, Shaun, also spent lots of time at the house. Unfortunately, Pete's oldest sister, Jennie, and her family (husband and four kids) live in South Dakota and had been to visit for Thanksgiving so we did not get to see them.

Gary, Holly, and Pete love to cook so much of the first night was spent planning the menu for the week. We always know we are going to eat good when we stay with them.

Heidi and I love to play games so that's how we spent most of the evenings. Hilarious!! I was introduced to two new games (Balderdash and Things) and we also played some Catchphrase.

Shaun was a hit with the girls. He colored with them, played horses with them, and showed them his Angry Birds skills.

It snowed a little while we were there, but it was more of a wet snow and not the kind you can get it and play in.

Gary has a good friend who owns an Equestrian Center in Toledo and they were kind enough to invite us over and Hannah got to ride for over an hour. That was a real treat! We also found a neat tack shop and Hannah got new riding boots and pants.

Here a few pictures from our trip. I wish I had taken more. Enjoy!

Potty Time!!

So, those of you who know me well know that my daughter, Emma, is not yet potty trained. She will be four years old on September 20. My oldest daughter, Hannah, was potty trained soon after she turned two and it was so easy! Well, all children are different, and Emma has not been so easy! We started "introducing" her to the potty when she turned two. She wanted absolutely nothing to do with it. She was perfectly content in diapers and was not even willing to entertain the idea that she would go pee pee in the potty. So, we determined that she "wasn't ready" and decided to wait and try again later. Well, we have tried, and tried, and tried and her position has not changed....until NOW!

Up until now we have tried every trick in the book. I took her to the store and let her pick out her own underwear (she chose Minnie Mouse and Ni Hao Kai Lan). That didn't work. We offered her M&Ms (this came highly recommended by many parents). That didn't work. I took her to the toy store and let her pick out anything she wanted. She chose a baby doll with all the accessories. I took it home and put it in the window sill across from the toilet and told her once she was going potty in the toilet, she could have the baby doll. Well, after 3 or 4 days she declared that she didn't want the baby doll anymore. Most recently, I have tried to use activities to coerce her into submission. She is starting preschool at the end of the month, wants to take dance, and will be going into Cubbies at church. The caregivers at all of these places will expect her to be potty trained and may not accept her if she's not. Well, she reasoned that she would just stay with Nana at Little Sprouts, didn't want to take dance anymore, and could stay in Puggles.

I could go on and on about the issues we've had around potty training (and some of you have heard me do so), but to make a long story short....we have finally had success!!!

Since she is starting preschool this month, I decided to take a few days off work and stay home with her for one last ditch effort. I determined that there would be NO MORE DIAPERS. She has to know that they are no longer an option. If she has an accident, she can change her clothes and clean up the mess. Yesterday was the beginning of the "potty training boot camp" and Emma did great!!! The morning was rough. She cried A LOT and fought tooth and nail to keep a diaper on and did NOT want to sit on the potty. I made up stories, sang songs, even painted her toe nails to keep her occupied. I have thought for a long time that if she could just experience going pee pee in the potty one time, that would be a real breakthrough and it would be much easier after that.  Well, FINALLY, it happened!  It wasn't a pleasant experience for either of us, but she did pee pee in the potty.  We made a huge deal of it, there were lots of hugs and kisses, and calls to Daddy and Nana, but she was very upset.  I truely believe that she was mad at herself for giving in.  However, since then she has had a lot better attitude.  There have been a couple of accidents, but there have been no diapers (even when we went out) and accidents have been few and fairly minor.  I've got three more days to work with her and I hope and pray that she will be fully potty trained very soon!

Beach Vacation!!

We just got back from the beach and we had a fantastic time!!! We stayed at Dunes Village Resort at Myrtle Beach. It is AWESOME!!!! They have 2 towers, newly renovated, each with an indoor water park! One is for smaller children and has a lazy river, 2 water slides, 3 hot tubs, a 3 ft pool with basketball goal, and a wading area with things that shoot and drop water. The other one is for older kids/teens and has 2 adult water slides, a lap pool, 3 hot tubs, and a 3 ft pool with basketball goal. There are 2 outdoor pools, an outdoor lazy river and an outdoor hot tub. So much to do and it's all spread out and easily accessible. It is perfect for families! They don't close the indoor water parks unless there is severe lightening. The rooms are really great, too. We had a 2 BR angle ocean view. The master bedroom has a king bed and a jacuzzi tub. I could go on and on....def worth it! I highly recommend it! Oh...and they also have cabanas that you can rent for $50 a day that have 2 lounge chairs, an ice chest, a ceiling fan with remote, and a TV/DVD combo with cable. PERFECT if you have a playpen or little ones that need naps or breaks from the heat.

View from our balcony

Hannah in the Lazy River

Even the grown-ups enjoyed the water slides!

  

 

 

The kiddie area was very popular on our last day! 

Um.......

 

Pa and Nana

We didn't spend a lot of time on the beach.  Peter LOVED it, but Emma wouldn't stay for more than 5 minutes and after the first time she wouldn't go back at all.  She didn't like the waves.  The ocean was a little wilder than usual due to Tropical Storm Emily swirling out there somewhere. 



Mid-afternoon each day we would head inside to shower and get ready to go out for dinner. 

On Wednesday night, we decided to go to Medeival Times.  It was an interesting experience (you can read more about it on my dad's blog).  We were served a four course meal (with no silverware) while we cheered for the blue knight!

We also spent time just hanging out in the room playing games and watching movies.  I tried to get everyone excited about Mexican Train, but I was not successful.

All in all, it was a GREAT week and I can't wait to go again next year!!!

This is how I bungalow! (Day 4)

The last day of camp began bright and early at 6:30 am.  We got all packed up and headed to breakfast (grits, eggs, chicken, and biscuits). 

After breakfast we went back to the cabins to clean up and make sure everything was ready to be loaded onto the bus.  Ben went to the Leaders meeting (there were too many leaders for everyone to go) and the rest of us headed up the hill one last time to the chapel.  The staffers entertained the campers with silly songs and games.

At 9:30, the other Leaders joined us and we were able to view the DVD that was made during camp.  We each got a copy, along with a LUL t-shirt.  Once we were dismissed, we met Erik and Stacy outside to say our goodbyes, let them sign out t-shirts, and get the last group photos.

 The Cow Team!

Ole!

Then it was back down the hill where we THOUGHT the bus would be loaded and waiting for us.  However, the bus driver had gotten stuck and was about an hour late.  We were VERY happy to see Ben come around the corner leading the bus driver to our cabin!

The bus ride home was peaceful.  The kids were EXHAUSTED and many of them took the opportunity to rest (Hannah included).

We arrived back at RBC around 3:00 pm on Sunday.

All in all, it was a great trip with great friends and memories that will last a lifetime!!!

 Andy, Adam, Ally, and Eli

 Lucas and Ansley

 Skylar, Hannah, and Sophie

 Eli, Skylar, Hannah, Zachary, Erik, and Megan

 

Sophie and Kim

This is how I bungalow! (Day 3)

Day 3 began at 7:00 am Saturday morning with a yummy breakfast of french toast sticks, bacon, and biscuits and jelly. 

After each meal, our group gathered outside the cafeteria and took a trail behind the cafeteria back to the cabin.

 Skylar, Hannah, Brittany, and Sophie waiting outside the cafeteria.

Hannah and Skylar on the trail leading back to our cabin.

After breakfast it was back up the hill for more music and Teaching Time with Greg. 

After that it was craft time.  I sat that one out and went back to the cabin to rest.  :)  After craft time came lunch (chicken filet sandwiches, chips, applesauce, and peanut butter brownies) and rest time. 

Skylar, Hannah, and Sophie hanging out at the cabin.

After rest time on Day 3 came the moment we had all been waiting for!  It was finally our turn to ride the swing and the zip line!  While I did not ride either, Hannah rode both! 

 Skylar, Hannah, Sophie, and Megan waiting in line for the Zip Line.

Skylar and Hannah on the Zip Line.

The line for the swing was looooonnnnngggg!!!!  After waiting in line for well over an hour, Rodney and Skylar got back in line to ride the swing again with Hannah.  Poor Rodney spent all of his free time waiting in line for the swing! I have great video of their swing ride but couldn't upload it for some reason. You can see it on Facebook!

 Hannah, Rodney, and Skylar getting strapped into the swing.

 Up they go!!

They made it down safely!

The line for the swing was looooonnnnngggg!!!!  After waiting in line for well over an hour, Rodney and Skylar got back in line to ride the swing again with Hannah.  Poor Rodney spent all of his free time waiting in line for the swing! 

After all of this excitement it was back to the cabins to shower and get ready for dinner (chicken strips, mac & cheese, rolls, and jello) and then back to the chapel for more Funapalooza and Teaching Time.

After Teaching Time on Saturday it was time for the traditional campfire.  We all gathered around to sing songs of worship and reflect on all we had learned during camp.  This is a really special moment for the kids. 

After the campfire, we went back to the cabins for "Words of Affirmation".  This is a time where the leaders paint symbols on the children's foreheads while telling them of some action they displayed during camp that was positive.  For some children, this time of appropriate touch and positive affirmation is critical.  This was another emotional moment for me and unfortunately, I didn't get any pictures.  :(

After this, it was canteen and lights out for Day 3 of camp.