Hiatus

I'm taking a hiatus from the reverb10 prompts.  Too busy getting things ready for our trip and then will be with family for awhile...more important than blogging! Merry Christmas!

PARTY

Reverb10. Day 9. Prompt: Party. What social gathering rocked your socks off in 2010? Describe the people, music, food, drink, clothes, shenanigans. 

We don't really go to parties.  Unless it's a kid's birthday party, which are fun, but they don't "rock my socks off".  When I read this prompt, I immediately thought of this summer when our dear friend Aron got married.  The wedding was hosted in our college town, and many many many fellow college friends attended.  College was awesome.  Some of my favorite memories are from college and most of my best friends were met in college.  I never knew true friendship until I went to college.  This wedding was a college reunion.  And there were many hours of celebrating kid-free thanks to Kristin letting our kids sleep at her house!  I don't have the best pictures to describe the fun we had, because I had dropped my camera and couldn't' tell what pictures I was taking, but here are a few.

Hannah and Callie at the rehearsal dinner.

Bubbles.  Life saver at the reception.

The reason for the party.

We actually became great friends after college, but Natalie in the background was a fellow roomie!

Different?

Reverb10. Day 8. Prompt: Beautifully Different. Think about what makes you different and what you do that lights people up. Reflect on all the things that make you different – you’ll find they’re what make you beautiful.

 What makes me different?  Well, my name is Melody (there aren't too many Melody's out there).  I have the rarest blood type.  I have a crooked smile.  I have a Great Dane named Caboose who has been hit with a turkey baster several times.  I grew up in Colorado and have never been skiing ...okay okay...really the only thing that makes me different in the most broadest sense is my DNA.   I'm surrounded by fellow moms, and I'm surrounded by people who worship the same Yahweh..and we all have the same struggles and challenges.  I guess what makes us different is we don't always experience them at the same time, so that's where we can jump in and encourage each other. 

Community

Reverb10 Day 7: Community.  Where have you discovered community in 2010?  What community would you like to join, create, or more deeply connect with in 2011? 

I have discovered community this year through The Rooted Church, college friends moving just 15 minutes away, BSF (Bible Study Fellowship), and just continuing to be a family.  Just today I exercised community with some fellow attenders of The Rooted Church.  Three of the Whaley family members spent the day with us.  We had a blast.  Well, I hope they had a blast, I know I did!  It was really fun to have the younger kids (including my two girls) entertain themselves, while I got to do more grown up activities with the 12 year old girls.   We had donuts for breakfast, skyped with Marsha (their mother) who is currently in Ukraine challengingly waiting to bring home Neah, a new member of their family (read their story here Isaiah 43).  We made beaded candy cane ornaments, and hair bows for their new sister (we've been told she LOVES hair bows).  We then cooked up some tator tot casserole, ran around outside, and ended the day decorating christmas butter cookies (I think that was Sayer's (the five year old boy) favorite part of the day.  It was a nice change to just hanging out with my girls, which I love most days, but I had so much fun today, we are doing it again on Friday, so I think I'll stick with this community for 2011. 

 

The cookies...after we ate some, of course!

Make

Reverb10 day 6: What was the last thing you made? What materials did you use? Is there something you want to make, but you need to clear some time for it?

This is an easy one for me, because I'm always making something, especially this season of life being around Christmas and all. Last night I finally finished up these inserts for pocket cloth diapers. I bought 24 microfiber shop towels.

I folded some to have three layer and some to have four layers and used a sewing machine and serger to hem them all up. Sewing isn't my most favorite thing to do, especially when it takes a long time, and these took awhile. So, I was glad when it was over. Ellie is testing out one right now. I'm sure they will do their job. Micro-fiber inserts go for about 3 dollars each! I made 24 for the nice price of 10 dollars!

There are always things I want to make. But, the thing I want to make soon is this idea I've had in my head for my upcoming nephew's nursery. It's a wall decor with one of my favorite poems (don't want to give too much away in case my sister's reading this), but of course I need to make time to do it, but we are leaving in almost just a week for Christmas vacation to see her and my list of "to do" is very long. And blogging is not on that list, so good day:)

Let Go

I'm skipping yesterdays Reverb. I couldn't get it to load all morning, so when I wanted to blog, I couldn't, and also..i didn't really like it.

Day 5- What (or whom) did you let go of this year? Why?

Well, the only thing that I can think of that I've had to give up was my knee. Let me explain. No, i did not literally give my knee away; it's still fastened in my body, but two summer's ago I developed rheumatoid arthritis in the left knee. Can't really explain why except, as a young teen I had juvenile rheumatoid arthritis in both knees, and after several drainings and cortisone shots it went away, and then around the time my knee started acting up again, my husband and I had been caving in a slick cave, a place where I almost died, and in the process of almost dying I hit my knee a lot and put a lot of strain on it...those are the only reasons I can come up with on why a then healthy, active 27 or 26 (can't remember how old I am right now, and I don't feel like doing the math) year old developed arthritis. At the beginning, I was very hopeful that draining and steroids would fix the problem like it did when I was a teenager, but it's been over a year now, and nothing is different. So, i gave up my knee and gained a slight limp, not too noticeable except when I first get up after sitting for awhile. Walking upstairs is not pain free, and I can't run. To make this story shorter, the knee is not better, and the doctors don't think it will ever get better. So, I've had to give up my knee, which has made me have to give up certain exercises and activities that I had really enjoyed doing. At first, I was a big sour puss about it. Woe is me. But, now that it's been about a year and half, I'm not so down about it. Yes, Lord, please take it away, but thank you Lord, because, one, it's not spreading to my other joints (it's not getting worse), and two, I can function very normally in life. And best of all, I'm not on medication anymore, and I'm function just the same as when I was on meds, so there is a lot to be grateful for. We've had a mellow year, which the Lord knew we need..and it's nice that the only thing I had to give up was a knee.

Reverb10 Day 3- Moment

Pick one moment during which you felt most alive this year. Describe it in vivid detail (texture, smells, voices, noises, colors).

It was this summer while visiting the Bishop farm, the place my husband grew up. The weather was perfect and the days were spent playing outside with family and friends.

The farm is a peaceful gem in the midst of a growing town. The farm land is in the city limits, but you're surrounded by open fields containing livestock. To me, it's the perfect spot to live because you are minutes from the essential stores, but how the land is set up, you are miles and miles from the busyness of traffic and noise. Perfect.

We spent a week there.I had a good friend come and visit, and we sat on the back porch talking while watching our kids run around on the land.

Spent time roaming the vineyards nibbling on the growing grapes.

One evening we drove up the road some miles to swim in a local lake.

But, my most favorite moments were when we'd work on snapping the beans and shelling the peas. We'd sit out in the shade of a large tree while the cool breeze slightly blew through our loose hairs with a bowl in our laps and produce in our fingers. We'd start snapping and shelling. My husband told me one of his favorite sounds is the "ping" of the first few peas that land in the metal bowl. I enjoy the smell of the fresh produce and dirt and the purple stains left on the fingers from the purple hull peas.

In that moment I felt peace. My family was all together, working together...this is how life should be. This must have been how Adam and Eve felt before the Fall.

I can't really explain it, but there is something about living off the land that brings you closer to your maker.

Reverb 10 Day 2- writing

What do you do each day that doesn’t contribute to your writing — and can you eliminate it?

Let's first start with the fact that I am not a writer. One, I'm horrible at grammar, and two, (did i use too many commas?) I'm not gifted in thinking of creative words and describing things in an interesting, elegant way. I don't ever see myself writing a novel like one of my dear friends, or writing poetry like my talented mother and sister-in-law, or writing funny, witty blogs like my other sister-in-law, or writing in my journal daily like my sister. My writing is not very good, which is what I think contributes to why i don't write more. There is the tv and the internet and the cleaning that keeps me from finding time to write, but really it's that I don't present my thoughts well, and many times I don't think my thoughts are that interesting. How do I eliminate this? By writing more of course! Talent contributes a lot to great writing, but doesn't practice as well? Every writer has "good" works and "not so good" works. I know I'll never be a great writer, but that shouldn't stop me from writing, because one, I love going back and reading my past journal entries, and two, one of these days my children might like to know what their mother and their little selves were up to!

Reverb10 Day 1

A few of my friends are doing this reflection challenge this month. To learn more about it go to http://www.reverb10.com/ I'm hoping this will get me to blog more, but more importantly to reflect more, because that's hard to come by when you are trying to mother a 3 and 2 year old.

Day 1: Encapsulate the year 2010 in one word. Explain why you’re choosing that word. Now, imagine it’s one year from today, what would you like the word to be that captures 2011 for you?

Year 2010...Rooted.
I'm in a way stealing this word from the church I attend (The Rooted Church), but I don't know a better word to use. This coming up March will mark 3 years in Texas. To describe why I'm using "rooted" for this third year, I have to outline the first and second year. My family and I had some major stressful things happen all at once...

...move to different state, buy new house, family member terminally ill, got pregnant, new job, no friends, critically ill dog (stupid, I know, but it added to the stress), traveling A LOT to see family, church hunting, sell old house, baby born, family member dies, weird new job hours, finding a church, learning to be a mom of two babies and at times feeling like a single mom b/c of the jobs weird hours....

...those have been the hardest years of my life yet. And this third year has been the year where I've had the time and chance to root myself. I found a church and formed more friendships. I've found my way to grieve and heal from losing my mother-in-law. I've learned to work with and even enjoy the husband's weird job hours. My husband is rooted himself in his job by excelling and making great accomplishments (He recently just made the SWAT team). I wouldn't say I'm excelling in my job as a mom of two, but they aren't babies anymore and that helps :) I've watched my husband transform our backyard into an extra large vegetable garden, where we eat most of our produce. I've watched my three year old sing hymns and start to talk about Jesus. I've become good friends with some neighbors. I've learned the lay of the land around us (I know where to shop and for what). I've accepted this place as my home. I've made my roots and I'm slowing growing. Which leads to what I desire of 2011...

Growth. I'll put it simply, my all time desire is to grow more in love with my Yahweh.

All about Callie

Funny stuff:
Callie's toy tractor is broken. Its wheel broke off, and I don't think i can fix it. Today she asked "mommy, do we need to go to the post office to fix the wheel?" I'm really confused on how she linked post office as as a place to fix things.

The other day Callie stuck her hand out wanting me to shake it. While shaking her hand, she said, "have a great day" and walked off.

We went to run some errands one day while it was raining. At the beginning of our drive Callie became very upset and kept saying, "oh no!! Mommy, the new car is getting wet!"

Callie was getting redirected one day, and I told her, if she didn't obey, she was going to get a spanking. She replied, "mommy, i don't want to get a spanking; I want to be happy."

Speaking of spankings, Callie saw a wooden spoon on the floor the other day and picked it up. She came up to me and asked very innocently, "mommy, is this the spanking spoon?"

As Nate was walking out the door heading to work, Callie went through a series of questions: "daddy, do you have your wallet?" "daddy, do you have your phone?" "daddy, do you have your coat?"

Mel or Mommy?

I was typing on the computer when Callie came up to me and asked, "what are you doing, Mel?" I don't think any other words have caught me by surprise then those. How common that question is, "what are you doing, Mel?" from my husband, friends, siblings, parents, but not my daughter. Why does it make a difference coming from my child? It's not like I go around saying, "what are you doing, daughter?" I'm Callie's mommy, I'm not her Mel, and I want to be called Mommy! I know she's just saying it because she's heard her daddy say it, and I knew it was bound to happen sometime (frankly, I'm surprised it hadn't happened earlier), but I was still blown away when she said it. With the exception of calling our parents by their first names when trying to get their attention in a crowded walmart, i think it's safe to say we grown adults still call them mom and dad. I can't think of many other primary titles besides grandma/pa that are used for a lifetime. I love being called mommy. It's a more loving title then my birth name. I often forget the joy of being called mommy in the mists of the dirty diapers/panties/faces/house/car...and hearing "mommy this, mommy that, mommy more, mommy help, mommy, mommy, mommy......!!!!" But today, Callie reminded me how being just Mel is not as great and important as being mommy.

What, I'm posting something on my blog?

Tonight for some reason I started reading my old posts from the xanga years. http://www.xanga.com/thebishopswife if you're interested. I'm surprised they haven't shut that deal down. Does anybody still use it? But, I guess I'm glad they haven't shut it down. Maybe I need to copy and paste my posts off that just in case they do. Anyway, I had xanga before I had human kids. I say human because if you read my xanga posts you will think Trixie and Caboose were my kids. Seriously, if you didn't know I was talking about dogs, you would think I was talking about Callie and Elliott. I read those posts and thought, that's my life still, but instead with little girls instead of puppies. I'm glad the dogs aren't as destructive anymore..it'll be nice when the girls aren't either.

Potty Training 101

Callie is done with her potty training class. She passed with flying colors. (Why do people say that? "flying colors"). She started her class a week from today, I provided the room, time, and tools for this class. All she had to do was attend...and apparently teach, because this mommy did absolutely none of that. Well, the first and second day I was the annoying professor always asking her the same question, "do you need to go potty?" But, i soon retired as Potty Training prof and became Chocolate Chip Giver and Janitor (oh wait, i was already that). Callie was a good teacher. At first she had a mishap here or there...but for 4 days straight she's had zero.

Callie on a handful of occasions has held her pee for 3 hours. We do errands, go to church, go out to eat, take naps without having to visit one bathroom. She'll stop playing, run to the bathroom, do her business, and return to playing (after she makes sure I give her a chocolate chip of course.) She even washes her hands without having to be told. I award her Teacher and Student of the Year.

I will say that this was my plan from the beginning. Wait till she just taught herself. It just seemed easier that way...turned out it was. Although, I am expecting Elliott to be completely different, because that's how it works, right?

I think soon we'll take Callie out for ice cream (because that's her favorite) to celebrate her big achievement.

Hmm..this is a big milestone we've passed...what comes next, teaching her how to drive? I don't think I'll let her teach herself on that one.

Callie's a Big Girl

I know i haven't written in a long time. Actually, I just plain forget that I have a blog sometimes, but today's events are worthy to post.

This morning for no reason at all, I asked Callie if she'd like to wear panties like mommy or a diaper. She chose panties. She chose some pink striped little girl panties and once I put them on her, she immediately knew what to do. She peed a few times in her little potty, but then soon wanted her detachable potty seat to be placed on the big potty. She had ONE accident around noon, but since then, she's been wet free. I thought for sure she'd be wet after nap, but she surprised us with being dry.

I think it's helped that she gets a chocolate chip after each pee in the potty, and that when she runs over to tell daddy she peed in the potty he gets way overly excited and throws and twirls her around in the air.

She definitely has become more independent this last week. Her most common phrase lately is, "no, i want to do it." She looks older wearing panties.

I hope tomorrow goes as well as today, but my strategy is to just let her teach herself. I'm still not sure how to handle night time. I felt like I was betraying her accomplishments today by putting a diaper on her for bed. Do I buy pull ups? Do i leave a potty in her room during naps and bed? Do i just keep her in panties during bed? Maybe I'll let her decide.