Why I love the #4

1. Born - 1974

2. Married - 1994

3. Pistol Pete and Aaron proudly wore #44

4. Four kids - a child for each hand

5. The good ole boy from Mississippi - #4 - Brett Favre - who broke Dan Marino's record Sunday as the quarterback with the most TD passes. You stay as long as you want, Brett.

Kaela Takes Over

Here is the evidence of Kaela being in our home for the weekend and deciding to be my guest blogger for the day. Fourteen is a great age -- but I can't say I miss it.

Jonathan's latest smile is more like a look of pain.

Ow.
Pose, baby
"braces: they suck." - kaela reid

Daniel Said

Okay, this wasn't taken today, but it fit great with what happened:


Daniel was helping me bake chocolate chip cookies and I said, "Daniel, when you're a big man and have little kids, you can teach them how to make cookies!!"

He replied, "But, where do I get the Mother?"

I'm With Ya in Spirit, Dad

In Ohio right now are my Dad and my brother, doing the most honest work a man could do. Tip your hat to the man on the tractor, hogging the roads this fall!

Last Comic Standing - Jon Reep - Final 4 Performance

Last Comic Standing - Jon Reep - Final 4 Performance

This is the guy who's been cracking me up for the past few weeks. He just won "Last Comic Standing" and totally deserves it. Enjoy the next 4 minutes!

Famous Dave's BBQ

Granted, it will never surpass Red Lobster in my list of favorite restaurants, but Famous Dave's is just one groovy place to go. This past weekend, Aaron took me to Brainerd, MN for my birthday for an overnight get-away (HEAVEN).

Famous Dave's was right across the street, but we thought, naw, we can find something different, a place we'd never been before. We were sadly mistaken. After driving around for an hour and a half, Famous Dave's was lookin' reeeaal good. The place doesn't scream romance, but it's the kind of place you can relax and be silly for a bit. The servers' t-shirts say things like, "Make sure the fingers you're lickin' are your own."

And I love the Blues they pipe through the speakers. You feel like you just hit a big southern family reunion, so pass the cornbread and butter. Also enjoyed their sweet tea. Southern food, man, does it get any better?

I didn't write this, but I had to share it

The following post is something I have permission to share from my friend, Angie, in the Minneapolis area. Angie went to IWU with me and is married to another great IWU alum, Dan L.

Angie posted this on her blog recently and I just thought it was so good, I asked if I could put it here. Dan and Angie suffered through 4 miscarriages and have had many questions about pain and suffering and faith. Angie shares...

Today was amazing! God’s truth’s are so evident that sometimes they get clouded by our own understanding of them. Let me explain. I am reading a book by Joni Eareckson Tada & Steven Estes called When God Weeps: Why Our Sufferings Matter to the Almighty. I am reading it in conjunction with counseling. I am in search of finding meaning to my (and others) suffering.

Truth: God is love. (1 John 4:8)
Truth: In all things, God works for the good of those who love Him. (Romans 8:28)
Truth: Nothing happens that hasn’t been approved by God. (Lamentations 3:37)

Suffering is on purpose. It is not, I repeat, is not “just because we live in a fallen world.” I don’t know how many times I have said that. We do live in a fallen world, and things happen that wouldn’t have if we were still in Eden, but it’s like I’ve said that very phrase to give God an “out.” As if He needs one. Surely, God wouldn’t have CHOSEN to allow THAT to happen on purpose? Would He?

Everything that happens to us, good or bad has been ok’d by God. Our lives are so intricately woven with the “big picture” that we have no clue that what happens today could effect someone’s salvation 10 years from now.

God’s plan is perfect. Nothing that He allows is meant to harm us. (spiritually speaking) “He chooses to use or allow things that He hates, to achieve what He loves.” (Joni E. pg.84) Enter suffering.
However, He does not do this from somewhere far away or lofty. No. His hands are dirty from being right there in the middle of all that we are, and what He wants us to become. All the while weeping with us, because of us, and for us. His eyes contain nothing but love.

My counselor shared a story with me today:
My 2nd oldest son (now 16) was jumping on the bed at age 18-24 months. He dove head first into the headboard splitting his lip open on a shelf. We rushed him to the hospital where doctors had to literally tie him up in a papoose to allow them to stitch his lip up. I watched knowing all the while, this was for his good. Letting the doctors hurt my son on purpose to help them fix him up. My son looked at me with “why are you letting this happen to me eyes.” He never would have understood at that age, any explanation, had I even tried to give him one. I could only stare right back into his eyes with as much love as I could muster.

What a parallel. God couldn’t even begin to tell us all the reasons for our suffering. Our intellectual level wouldn’t even get it. Just to know His heart, His character...should be enough to trust Him. To look back into His eyes knowing that His heart is breaking too. Only, He loves me (and anyone else this event matters to somewhere in the future) more than His desire to end the pain.

Praise God.

Please know this posting is meant to be an encouragement. This is coming from someone who is 7 months separated from her 4th miscarriage. There is a rawness left when you are in close proximity to suffering. Believe me there were days that all I could see was the pain five inches from my face. Nothing else. Since then, God has been healing my broken heart one day at a time. This is just one of those good days.

Holy Posts, Batman

Well, that post certainly brought the comments outta folks!

Okay, here's "the rest of the story" -

I found out I was pregnant back at the beginning of August when I was tested for a UTI. The doctor's name who told me I had a bun in the oven was Dr. Merickel. No joke - like, pronounced Miracle.

I sat in the room with my hand over my mouth, just laughing. "You've got to be kidding," and he said, "I don't kid about these kinds of things." Many deep breaths after that information was given to me.

Aaron and I have always somehow thought 4 was our number, but man, I just wasn't prepared for the reality of it yet. Still have trouble wrapping my brain around this.

Okay, so then five days later, I'm in the OB/GYN and I'm telling her this antibiotic just isn't working...still some weird dull ache going on. She tries to get a heartbeat for the baby and nothing. She gets a little concerned about pregnancy + pain and sends me down for an ultrasound.

At this point, I'm pretty nervous because I think I may have an eptopic (tubal) pregnancy...just don't know. The ultrasound was torture because it hurt so much for her to push around on my middle, but finally after what seemed like FOREVER, she saw the baby in my uterus. I kept saying, "It's not in my tube???" She said, "No, but I see why you are in pain and your doctor will explain."

Oh thanks, just keep me waiting and suffering. And that's when I found out about the appendix. Since the surgery, I've had another ultrasound to check on baby and heartbeat is strong, so I'm praisin' the Lord for that.

May there be no more drama. Please.

What I Learned Over Summer Vacation

I shared this with my MOPS group this morning and thought you'd all get a kick out of it...

5. My favorite mathematical equation? water + sun = very tired boys

4. Never, never, never forget your stroller when flying with a 2 year old.

3. Next summer, I must have a plan for July 6th and after. At that point, you've done all the "summer" things you wanna do, but there's still a WHOLE LOTTA summer left. Six little eyes lookin' at me - "what are we gonna do now, MOM???" I have no idea!!!!

2. If you think you have a UTI, you might just have an inflamed appendix and need surgery. It could happen.

1. And the number one thing I learned this summer....I'm pregnant. Seriously.

Visiting Mathias

My friend, Rachel E. had her baby boy, Mathias Paul on Labor Day last week -- pretty funny, huh? It's true, even though I've had babies, you tend to forget the sheer teenyness of a newborn. It was a pleasure snuggling with him for a bit.

After I left this day, he ended up having a rough night. As a nurse walked by him sleeping in the nursery, she noticed his color turning blue and realized he had stopped breathing. He recovered after about 4 minutes, but obviously, something was wrong.

After a spinal tap, they discovered bleeding on his brain. I don't know all the details or the answers, but he's now doing much, much better, and actually went home today. He is on a special monitor that will alert Rachel and Seth when he stops breathing.

It was actually such a blessing for this to happen while he was still in the hospital where they could help him and discover this.

We pray little Mathias will breathe easy now!

7:15 AM - September 3rd

Grab a Paddle!

Here are the promised pictures...
Many thanks to my father-in-law for putting up with these two monkeys in one canoe.

I enjoyed annoying my family with snippets of songs that had the word "river" in them...such as, "Old Man River" (I only know those 3 words) "Just Around the Riverbend" from Pocohontas, but I only know those 4 words, too. I also did "The Water is Wide...I cannot cross o'er..." and then Aaron made me be quiet and enjoy nature in all it's stillness.

Saturday in Superior

From Wisconsin --

Aaron's got the boys on the 4-wheelers, so I thought I'd blog for a bit. This morning, we headed to the Brule River for a canoe ride. Gregory got to paddle up front with Poppy (Aaron's Dad) in the back, Daniel in the middle. Aaron and I had Jonathan in our canoe. I'll post pics when I get home. It was a clear, 70ish day with great sunshine. Couldn't ask for anything better.

Daniel and I almost stayed behind because he threw up after breakfast, but he's been fine ever since. Funny how you just clean up and go and not worry about it with three boys and all their injuries/ailments. Aaron could see Daniel wouldn't make it to the bathroom, so he swoops him from the living room into the ceramic-tiled hallway, so it would be easier to clean. A little funny, but not at the time...another two points for SuperDad.

Has anybody played Wii Nintendo?? This thing is amazing. Aaron's parents' have it and I can't believe how fun it is. Forget sitting and pushing buttons on a controller; we're talking stand up and play tennis like you are really on the court or throw that ball down the lane for bowling. It's pretty realistic for a video game and you pat yourself on the back for "exercising." The boys love bowling and tennis, and sometimes golf, but that's more of a challenge for them. There's also boxing and baseball. Ya gotta play it!

Alright, that's all from up north. School starts Tuesday and I, for one, am doing the dance of joy. Gregory, a big first grader going all day every day, and Daniel at preschool three mornings a week. Hot Diggity Dawg.