Watch it, Wabbit!

This guy and his friends have been 

paying us frequent visits lately...

When we spotted him from the dinner table 

doing a little dining of his own last night...

I did what any self-respecting gardener would do.

I took out my camera and shot him.

Wordless Wednesday: Wilderness Wonders

A glimpse of our weekend explorations....

Sugar and Spice and Everything Nice...a Contest!

OK, so we know what they're MADE of, but what what do you NAME one of those sweet little irresistible creations??  Not because I need to know (no, no, no), but because my friend just found out she is having a GIRL!  Oh bliss!

She didn't mention what you might win if your name is actually chosen, but she read my crazy mind-dump of a post a few days ago, and thought the moms out there would be the perfect ones to come to her aid.  Go ahead, give her your list!  Maybe we will come up with a prize for the longest list, so she will have more to choose from.

But you don't have to be a mom--anyone can join in!  My husband offered Tracy as his suggestion. Maybe that was as in, "Take my wife...please!"--but I think he was being sweet. ;-) He said she should avoid Broom Hilda (his version of Brunhilde), which we discovered in our own search for baby names is German for battle axe or something like that.

Note:  This photo is a sneak preview of the continuation of the "Ten Amazing Years" series, coming soon to a blog near you.  I know.  You're on the edge of your seat.

Wordless Wednesday

Mid-Blog Crisis

WARNING!: This post is a mind-dump. Nothing more. Save it until you need an antidote for your insomnia.

Having said that, you have my condolences for the fact that you are still here. I will try my best to disappoint you if you were counting on something really super boring. Have a pillow ready, just in case.

Somebody recently asked, why do you blog? That is the question of the week for me. The initial purpose of my blog (here) was, and really still is, to serve as a journal of sorts. I journaled for years before I got married, and although it was then in the form of conversations with God, it really helped me process my life, and my "becoming" for lack of a better word. I think the Bible probably calls it "...being transformed by the renewing of your mind..." (Romans 12:2) So I suppose I could say I used it to chronicle my transformation. Yeah, that's it. And I guess that's where this one started.

But at this moment, I am going through a little identity crisis and wondering, who is my audience?

I have been reading a lot of mom blogs, which make me laugh hysterically, and remind me how not alone I have been in my parenting endeavors. Now these women get the visitors, I tell you! I am certainly a mom, but this is not a mom blog. I think if I tried, I could make it one. A funny one at that. But alas, the Scrapbook blog is the space for showing off the kids, and that is really for the out of town family and anyone else who wants to check in on them, specifically. It is not so much about me. The Journey has some aspects of my parenting story in plenty of places, but not often enough to keep the moms coming back, except the really really sweet ones who have noticed I don't get too many comments and taken pity on me. Should I throw them a few more bones to keep them coming back?

And then there is the theological side of me that is sort of under construction right now. I am very serious about this transformation thing, and for the first time in many years I have the time to take stock of how it is going. Are my beliefs well-informed, and have they grown up with me? I've so enjoyed revisiting some of them recently, but by the grace of God I have more questions than answers at the moment (definitely a good thing in my book!), and not that much to write about. So I'm a little afraid my really good thinkers are going to fall to the wayside while I pause to reflect. And some of them have quit writing, too, so I can no longer engage them in dialogue on their own turf! (But I'm not bitter.)

And then there is the nostalgic side of me that has been reliving the family history lately, and just reveling in the joy of being a family, and seriously, that could only be for the kids. For later.

I keep wishing my blog could narrow in on an audience. There are a lot of people out here in the blogosphere, and many have touched me. I would like to touch them back. Who could I touch? The moms? The thinkers? The sentimental types? I guess I believe there are others who are being transformed who will pick something up along the way from any of those.

It is, after all, a journey, and there are so many different kinds of stops. Sightseeing stops to look closely at the things that take our breath away, or teach us something we never knew. Recreational stops for something fun and entertaining. Stops to check the map to see if and where we got off course, or whether we are still headed in the right direction. Stops to refresh and refuel.

I like the people part of blogging, I really do. But the question was not, "For whom do you blog?", it was "Why do you blog?" And it's really to help me in my becoming.

You know what makes me really grateful? I have some precious friends on this journey, who are kind enough to tell me (mainly in person) that they read, and laugh, and learn from my blog, random though it is, and yes, even enjoy my mushy love story. So to you who fall into this category, thanks bunches for mentioning it to me now and then. I would probably blog without you. But I love knowing that you are along for the ride.

So Lord, thank you for my journey in its many facets, and for every companion who is along for the duration and those who just stop in for one leg of it. Send anyone this way who could get a blessing here. May all who come here know that YOU are great, and that you provide amazing transformation in the lives of all who draw near to you!

Now grab a coffee or a Mountain Dew, and get on with your day!

Fun Weekend

I love to bake. The only problem is I love to eat what I bake. So unfortunately I have kids who, when they smell something yummy coming from the kitchen, say, "Where are we going?" or "Who's that for?" It's a little pathetic. Yesterday I had Ben help me make some Rice Krispy bars. For us! And I have, already, eaten too many. He was quite a happy camper, though.

Today we rewarded the kids for some better sibling behavior recently by taking them to the newly revamped theme park at the mall. We all went on the big roller coaster together for the first time! Now what age could possibly be more fun than this??

If you want to see the photos close up, click on them. Bethany is sporting a new look...

(Originally posted on Tracy's Scrapbook)

Springtime

"Sing to the Lord a new song;

sing to the Lord, all the earth.

Sing to the Lord, praise his name;

proclaim his salvation day after day.

Declare his glory among the nations,

his marvelous deeds among all peoples.

For great is the Lord and most worthy of praise;

he is to be feared above all gods 

For all the gods of the nations are idols, 

but the Lord made the heavens.

Splendor and majesty are before him;

strength and glory are in his sanctuary."

Psalm 96:1-6

Oh Happy Day!

Mother's Day Bouquet

Every mom should be so lucky!

Wordless Wednesday

(Blogger's Note: I've noticed a big thing among bloggers is to post a photo on Wednesday that speaks for itself. I love it. Here's my first.)

Ten Amazing Years: Money Management

True confession...I am one tough customer. Sweet, but tough. Probably because I spent four years in two different cultures where you negotiate the price of your vegetables. I'm pretty sure that the day Lee decided to marry me was the day we went to Schlotsky's (which have since closed and I MISS!) with a two for one coupon. We went in, totally unaware that it was for a different location about five miles away. When the cashier brought this to our attention, I said, "Oh, you don't want us to have to drive all the way over there, do you? You'll honor it, won't you?" And he did.

When we got engaged, a lady in our church said to Lee, "There goes your money guy!" Lee was laughing as he told me about it. She had no idea how much money I would save this man.

So today I took my computer to the genius bar at the Apple Store to have the battery looked at. Thankfully I had done my homework. I went on their support page and found that this was a problem people have been having, and that, if my computer was purchased during a certain time frame and had one of a list of symptoms, I was a candidate for replacement even if the warranty had expired (which it did a month ago). While I was at the store trying to bring the bookmarked page up, the genius was telling me sometimes batteries just wear out, and your warranty is expired, and what? you don't have AppleCare?, and you'll probably have to replace it. And do you have Leopard or Tiger, or do you know? What?? Do I know??!!! What kind of a question is that for an intelligent person? (Tiger.) So I pulled up my Apple Support page, and voila!

Free new battery. Value: $129
Knowing your stuff well enough to beat the genius at his game: Priceless.

I celebrated by buying sandals for Bethany and me. Twenty bucks. Cha ching!

P.S. Due to popular demand, the Apple page for dying batteries is here. Go get 'em!!

It doesn't get any better than this!

Finally, a beautiful Sunday afternoon to spend at the zoo! And on the way home, one of my favorite songs was on the radio. I thought it was perfect for this little movie about our day.

Gorgeous Day!

Here we are today, celebrating the beautiful spring weather in one of our favorite ways. More about that in my Scrapbook, here!

Ten Amazing Years: A Blast From the Past

You won't believe this...



Hold onto your hat (or your stomach)...



I really did take this picture of Lee in 1998...



I am not yanking your chain...



(Of course, we found it noteworthy enough, even then, to take the picture...)






Today:

Well at least ALMOST everything keeps getting better with time!