Wednesday, May 26

Summer, is that you?

I'll tell you what.  This weather has really put us in the mood for summer.  But, I'm a Michigander...so I can't truly commit in my heart that summer has arrived until July 4th.  Sad, but true.  I mean, did you see those reports that northern California got snow (yes, I said it) today?  We are not exempt.


We've been spending a lot of time outside.  Which means we do a lot of sleeping... even in chairs while we drink our bottle.


And we've been doing a lot of cooling off in the pool.  By we I mean Annelise.


And Elli, well there is no gradual growing for her.  Oh no, she decided to crawl and roll over all in one day.  I think this kid is going to be the one that gives me grey hair.



Why does watermelon from the farmer's market always taste so sweet and juicy?  Today began my weekly purchase for the summer - a ripe, juicy watermelon.  It'll be gone by tomorrow.


And my mom will hate me for this picture, but its more for the memories than anything else.  Anne and Gigi decided to play chalk last night at 9:30 - what fun!  I think we'll have to get ours out today.

We're very excited to head down to Kentucky for the Memorial weekend.  Its been 6 months since we've made the 6 hour drive and I'd say its about time.  Lets pray we can keep these kiddos occupied and happy for that long.  Can't wait to see the Neal family!

Friday, May 21

Friday At Last

Its a rainy day here and I'm glad for the excuse to stay inside with my kiddos.  Minus a quick trick to the grocery story this morning, we are snuggled in tight and loving it.

I was going to post pictures, but Annelise is finally asleep in the room with the camera and cord, so all you get is a quick one from morning baths. 


But who doesn't love a couple of cute naked babies right?

And I have to give a shout out to my cousin Angie, who had her sweet baby boy last night.  Levi Ryder Hirschenberger decided to join us in this crazy world.  Praying for you guys!

Tomorrow mommy and daddy are off to a wedding, alone.  I have to say I'm looking forward to a guaranteed few hours with my husband.  It doesn't happen often so we're going to enjoy it.

Otherwise, I'm sorry to say I don't have much else to report.  God is giving us grace upon grace during these last few weeks of school.  We are eagerly anticipating the arrival of summer.  Of course, I'm sure we're not the only ones.

Happy weekending!

Wednesday, May 12

Ear Update

Yippee Skippee!  I went to the ear doctor in Novi today and got a wonderful report.  First, he removed the rest of the packing which opened up a whole new world of hearing for me.  Then, he beautifully announced how well my ear drum was healing.  In fact, they think I should have 100% of my hearing back.  Now you see the reason for the yippee skippee.  Its been a long road, 8 years to be exact, but whose counting?  I'm so thankful for modern medicine and God's gifts to trained men.

Oh and I came home with some awesome pictures of my inner ear before the surgery and after.  I think they are awesome, Matt thinks they are gross.

Believe me, they are awesome!

Monday, May 10

Why I Work

This has been a blog post in progress for a long time...in my mind.  Many other posts have been written, saved and published while this one remained in the editing state, so to speak.  I don't know if its because I was afraid to write it (you know, that whole 'fear of man' thing) or if I wasn't sure how to write it.  Either way...I've decided that today is the day I will free my mind of these thoughts and express what I've been feeling, living and know to be true, by the grace of God.

I'm a working mom.  And before I get any comments about how all moms work...I mean, I work outside the home.  I'm fortunate enough to not have to work full time and can do a lot of my work from home.  This leaves me free to be with my children 5 out of the 7 days of the week.  But I work nonetheless. 

At first, this was a decision made out of necessity.  My husband is a Christian school teacher.  Taking that job was a calling from God.  But, that meant that we would live on less in order to serve.  I'll admit, working was a bit selfish at first.  I like buying new clothes, going out to eat, traveling to see family in other states.  All things that we would not be able to afford if I did not work.  We would not live in the house that we do, or have the means to give at the level that we're able to give.  We are passionate about the Great Commission - and though God has not yet called us to go, we are having a wonderful time helping to send!

But, lest you think my attitude has always been so glorious...well it hasn't.  When my first child, Annelise, was born, I went back to work after 6 weeks.  I spent most of my time working from home...but as a new mother, that was difficult.  I didn't want to sit on my computer all day.  I wanted to take pictures of my sweet, baby girl, go for walks and playdates with friends.  You know, all the things that moms do.  I struggled for a long time.  Angry at myself for wanting to work, resenting my husband for not making more money to support us, bitter at friends who had made the decision to stay home.

This lasted for nearly a year...and I was miserable unbeknown to anyone but my husband.  The poor guy.  He put up with a lot of moaning and complaining.  I was not a godly wife.

Then the Lord blessed us with another pregnancy.  Another beautiful baby girl.  And, selfishly, I decided that I would take 12 weeks off after her birth.  My initial plan was to prove to my husband that we could make financial sacrifices and survive without me working.  And for a short time, we did just that.  But slowly, God started to break away the crusty, bitter layer around my heart and reveal His true plan for our family.  Boy, did I have a lot to learn.

You want to know the real truth about me?  12 weeks of maternity leave did not give me more time to be a homemaker, mother, godly wife.  I didn't do the Bible study I had intended or teach Annelise a foreign language.  I didn't have more time to read books or visit friends.  Instead, I had more time to be lazy and selfish.  Ouch!  Reading books that I wanted to read, being consumed with "me" time. 

Let me say this...I do not believe that all stay at home moms are lazy and selfish.  Many that I know use their time very wisely, in a way that nurture's their family and honors God.  Unfortunately, I was not one of those moms.

God used those 12 weeks to show me that He had a purpose in my working outside the home.  He has gifted me in ways that are useful to the Kingdom.  If I were not using those gifts, I would be squandering them selfishly.  I'm driven by tight schedules.  I enjoy getting a lot done in a little bit of time.  In fact, too much time to do a project drives me crazy.  I'm weird, I know.

Believe me, being a working mom isn't easy.  There are pressures and expectations that I often feel I cannot fulfill.  There are times when I'm torn between family and work.  There are lots of times when I feel like I'm not a good mom...or a good employee.  I've been fortunate to have close friends and family available to watch my children so I don't have to utilize public daycare.  Most of those caregivers have been able to come to my home.  I have a wonderful young lady watching my girls this summer...I babysat for her when she was little.  Its joyous to know that she will be impacting my children.

Speaking of my children...God has given me two beautiful girls with strong personalities.  In fact, I believe He gave them those personalities to help them (and me) cope through the busy times I have at work.  Neither of my girls are so clingy that I cannot leave them.  They are independent in nature and have a "I can do it on my own" attitude.  Because of that, I believe God has gifted them to understand and support my work outside the home.

And my husband...my dear, sweet, supportive husband.  I always thought he pushed me to working because he didn't want us to go without.  I always equated it to money.  How selfish and arrogant of me.  I now realize that he understood me (my personality, emotions and needs) more than I did.  He saw my creative drive, my need to have purpose, to make a difference.  He sees to the future.  He understands that when our children are gone I will want to reenter the workforce, and how difficult to do that with a 20 year gap in experience.  He has been the biggest supporter in times when I felt like he was my enemy.  He was the silent cheerleader when I felt like he was the taunting opponent.  I'm thankful for his insight.  I'm thankful for his love.

So, when you started reading this blog post you didn't know it was going to be a book.  Sorry.  I had a feeling it was going to be a long one.  But, its my story.  And its one that I didn't write.  I'm proud of who I am - who God has made me to be.  I have found freedom over the past 6 months...I'm no longer slave to my feelings of being inferior as a mother.  I know that I am who God has called me to be for such a time as this.  Instead of wallowing in "what could have been" I'm rejoicing in WHAT IS.  And who knows...maybe this post will inspire someone who has been feeling the same bondage in their chapter of life.  I hope that this is an encouragement to others.



Monday, May 3

Tulip Time 2010

It's Tulip Time around here...one of our favorite times of the year.  We are people people, which means the crowds bustling about around our house don't bother us.  In fact, I think it has kind of energized us.


This is also the first year that Annelise really understands what's going on.  She loves the pretty flowers, though its a challenge to keep her from picking them ($50 fine for each one!).  We are enjoying the Dutch dancers, carnival food, lots of walks downtown, shopping at the stores that seem to have new life in them and can't wait to watch the parades this week.

We're sad that Erin, Betsy and Sarah weren't able to make it this year, but hope the tradition can continue on next year.  If you're ever looking for a nice, quaint town to visit for a weekend, come on up!  We'd love to have you.


We also have a new "favorite" store that we like to visit.  Its called Tip Toes and it has all kind of goodies for kiddos.  Anne's favorite part is the huge play space.  And that happens to be Mommy's favorite part too.  I was actually able to shop for 45 minutes the other day while she contentedly played.  Nice.


Its been nice enough lately to do lots of playing outside.  And painting...


And who can resist this face?  Elli has been really animated lately.  She's a pretty happy kid.  She's also sitting up like a trooper.  I love that she's able to sit on the floor and play with her toys.