Thankful Tuesday

I am not in much of a mood to write tonight but I am incredibly thankful.

I have been handed some yucky news today. But in the grand scheme of things, this news is merely a change in life. So as I sat here at the computer, looking to soak in the blogs I read regularly, I started with my first read every day and found it was her regular Tuesday Thankful list.

I need to list reasons I am thankful. I need to remember that even though my problem might not change, there is so much more that God has for me. So much more that He wants for me and has given me.

So even more for me than for you, here are only 10...and I'd love to see your thankful lists too. You can be a part of this over at my dear friend Crayl's Spot at Beyond Black and White.

10. My 3 + Nephew kids are healthy. Happy. Adorable. Loving. Smart. (Too smart, sometimes.) Hilarious. Wonderful.

9. My husband has been with me for almost 13 years. He has been faithful to me in some of the toughest times a marriage could endure. And he is my rock even now.

8. I have a home. It has walls that keep the cold out. It has a roof that keeps the rain out. It has enough rooms and space for everyone. It is not infested with unhealthy bacteria or poison or rodents.

7. My husband has a job. They like him there and he has survived many cutbacks. He works hard and I am able to stay home with our kids.

6. I have a car that is reliable and works. It is comfortable, affordable and the right size for my large family-especially when we have all 4 kids in tow.

5. I have friends who reach out to me when I am hurting. They are busy. Some of them have even more going on than I do but they text, call and e-mail me to see if I am okay. To pray for me and encourage me. I don't deserve them.

4. Popcorn. I sat and shared with with my neighbors today who watched my kiddos while I was at a doctor's appointment. We sat. We ate. We played with Ella and watched TV. And it was exactly what I needed.

3. Mario Kart. It has been my "go to" game when I want to just kind of zone out. David is waiting right now to play. It will be just the right medicine for me also.

2. A place to write. To express myself, attempt to be funny and connect with people. I am thankful for all you people.

Finally, and mot importantly.....

1. I have a relationship with God the Father who has a plan for me. He loves me and allows things to happen to me knowing that if I draw myself close to Him, we will walk through it together. He has never failed me before and we have walked through some very tough times.

Number One is something we all need. If you don't have that relationship with God, I would love to talk to you about it. I am no expert of Bible Theology but I know my story and I know what has happened to me and I know that I am able to walk through tough times and have Hope for the future. And I would love to share that Hope with you.

Something Having to Do With 4 and Pictures

I am so negligent of you, dear readers. Are there even enough of you to say readers?

Well, I was tagged by the lovely (and consistent) blogger and bestie Crayl so, like a dare, I don't pass on a tag. (Most of the time.)

Here are the rules:
1) Choose the 4th folder where you store your pictures on your computer
2) Select the 4th picture in the folder
3) Explain the picture
4) Tag 4 people to do the same


Here you go!


Oh my gosh that is so lame! Okay, here is the goofy photographer getting the light "just right" for a blog about what a pregnant cliche she is. I didn't like this one because there was too much glare on the jar of pickles. I have, um, 20 pictures of pickles in this folder. 20! Some were fully in focus. some with a wide aperture, some fuzzy and out of focus.

Are you still reading?

To save the 1 of you (Hi Mom!) who are still reading, I changed the rules a bit. In that same folder, I counted the 4th image of a PERSON and got this:

Oh my sweet Nick is so cute. This is my nephew Nick pretending to eat the cookie he'd just decorated. I love love doing projects with the kids like cookie decorating or painting a little wooden car or birdhouses. This was one of those nights.

Here is also the 14th picture in the 14th folder:

Lucy's Princess Tea Party (January 2008) was just starting and the girls thought this step was HILARIOUS!

The 24th picture from the 24th folder:

Disneyland! The pleasant looking girl is Nate's Betrothed, Alexis. That funny looking one on the left? No idea who she is.

Finally, the 34th picture from the 34th folder:

Mission Bay. We practically lived there in the summertime meeting my mom and her hubby down there. We'd sit on a blanket, eat cold cuts for dinner and the kids would run around till they were exhausted. David would meet us there after work and we'd roller skate and ride bikes. I can't wait for spring to come so we can have the longer days and warm weather to do it again.

I really want to keep boring you with all kinds of pictures but this last one has made me so happy just looking at it that I am going to stop here.

Tag people? Um....

Sis in Law, Jamie
Friend Deanne
Friend Angela
Friend Emmy

Defined.

Momsomnia: The act of staying up past the rest of your family to get about a million things done without anyone else bothering you. Activities can include house cleaning, cooking, correspondence or simply surfing the internet.

Upside includes: Completed tasks. Time alone. Blogs written. Cupcakes iced.

Downside: Grouchy mom in the morning. Dark under-eye circles even at the youthful age of 31.

I have had a number of Momsomnia nights this past week and expect a few more since it is currently Birthday Season here at Zab Central. We have traded in one 3 year old girl for a 4 year old young lady and it has been a whirlwind of a birthday so far. The fun is not over with a party tomorrow and a class party on Tuesday. I am a cupcake icing machine!

Four looks good on her, doesn't it?

How Did I Do This Again?

Hi! How are you? Happy 2009 Already!

I know, it has been weeks since I blogged but I have happily been busy. Doing the Family thing. The Friends thing. The Photographer thing. The Drama Director thing. The Facebook thing. (Facebook has become such a part of my life, it gets its own "thing" status.)

Now, were I your average blogger, I would recant all of these things for you. I'd include some amazing pictures in the snow as well as cute Christmas anecdotes. The cockles of your heart would be warned to such an extent, you would think it was Christmas all over again. You would tear up at the preciousness of my kids, laugh at the hilarity of myself and cheer for the non-doghouse Christmas present my hubby gave this year.

But, dear readers, I am not your average blogger.
Instead, I will stay true with the unofficial theme of my blog which would be: self deprecating humor. Ready? Okay!

The baby was up last night after falling asleep at 4:00pm and staying asleep well into bedtime. She's had a high fever and we just left her alone. But, of course, she didn't stay asleep because somehow she knew that Mommy was looking for a decent bedtime for the first time all year. No worries, at least she's cute. We played, tired her out and were back in bed at 1:30. We won't talk about her other times of being awake that night (3! THREE other times!) instead we will simply state the following: Mommy was tired.

We woke up in time for school, we dropped off, we ran errands, we consumed Venti Soy Green Tea Lattes (and enjoy the new "recipe") and came home for morning naptime for Ella. As soon as she was down and Lucy had a plate of lunch in front of her and a movie on, I took my favorite position on the couch: with my old bedspread my mom made me my sophomore year in high school and one of the big purple floor pillows...and I was horizontal. Ahhhh.

At some point, Lucy turned off the TV and climbed on the couch to snuggle with me. And then at some point, my consciousness went for a walk or something because it was about THREE HOURS LATER that I woke up to blink at the clock and realize that the time for leaving to get Nathan had passed. In fact the time for Nathan to walk out of his classroom had ALSO passed. And I was now 10 minutes late! I woke up Lucy, called the school, stumbled around a little and woke up the sleeping baby. We got to school only 15 minutes late and Nathan was in the office. He didn't seem to care but I think my post nap appearance startled the kind assistant in the office who didn't really want to hand my kid over to this sleepy, disheveled lady. I don't blame you, lady. I wouldn't do it either.

So I guess I have to go looking for another school again?

There you go. Happy New Year.
Want to know something great? That isn't even my most embarrassing moment of 2009 so far! THAT one will be coming soon. I will use it to break up the monotony of Christmas stories and sledding in Reno pictures.

I think stories like this will be given their own category: are you not entertained?