My favorite traditions....
Today, we will go out to our favorite tree farm and select a perfect tree to display our favorite holiday trims. As I look back at the traditions we have established for our family over the years: making suger cookies and decorating them on Christmas Eve....making special "grandparent" ornaments to hang on thier tree.....going to Shopko's all-night-sale to beat the crowds.....letting the girls "wrap" the presents they give to each other......going caroling with friends to our favorite "seniors" in the community....parties....baking....eating......all, great memories, but my favorite would have to be: when I told the girls that Santa did not exist! Actually, the fun part was when I told my husband that I told the girls that Santa did not exist!!!! I, actually, thought I was being a responsible parent by telling them very early in thier childhood(they were 3 and 4) that Santa was a lie. After all, I remember distinctly the moment I was told that Santa was a lie because I was furious at my folks for lying to me all those years!!!!! How, could my dad get up on the roof every Christmas Eve and tromp around like a "reindeer", making prints in the snow and tell us that it was Santa's sleigh??? How could they lie to us like that? So. it was not difficult at all for me to tell my girls the truth about Santa, right? Well, my husband was furious at me, in fact, I think he still believed in Santa at that point, cuz it's the only explanation to his fury.... Any way, that is a precious memory to me, the girls took it much better than thier dad, but, I think he's finally over it. I'm considering, very seriously, telling Con this year that the Easter Bunny and the Tooth Fairy are also lies.....It's been 10 years that he learned about Santa...I hope he's ready.
I really am a good parent....
OK, sometimes, it's really hard to be me.....and be a good parent, at the same time.....Here's a perfect example of this:
We are at our cast party last night for this performance that our church puts on every year and we are in line to get snacks before we view the video of our performance. So, I'm at the front of the line and I see that someone has put a bowl of candy out, as well, to share with the cast and that is when I start to giggle....you see, the "snacks and candy" that are on the table make me think of a catchy song that came out a few years ago by "Marcy Playground." I don't recall the name of it but the chorus goes like this," I smell sex and..... candy......here. Who's that loungin' on my....chair??? Who's that castin' deep (somethin') stares....in my direction??? Oh, mamma, this surely is a....dream." Catchy, right?? I think so...but I can't say the S word in front of my kids so I, instead, substitute the word "snacks" for sex. I am brilliant!! They are none the wiser, I can still enjoy the little tune and I'm still a good parent. "I smell snacks and....candy...here...." I love it!!!
So, this morning, the dumb little tune won't leave my head, I'm humming it at breakfast and singin' it under my breath and finally, by lunchtime I'm singin' it out loud...and I start to laugh because I realize that both my girls are singin' it, too!!!! It's a trio!!!! So, I start to giggle some more at the irony of it all and they want to know what's so funny????? So, I tell them. They stop laughing, they stop smiling altogether....there's a collective, "GROSS!!!" heard, and then my youngest daughter looks at me and asks,"What does sex smell like?"
I'm still laughing.......I can't help it.....
the consequences.....
Is there a staute of limitations on the offering of mercy??? I suppose, by definition, the answer would be NO! However, upon much speculation of late, I'm beginning to waffle about on that issue. If, a loved one chooses to offend you and you offer mercy, then, mercy should prevail... If, this loved one continues to choose the offensive behavior over the welfare of you, then there should be, out of love, some consequence. Is it not reasonable to begin to question the love this loved one brings to you? What kind of love brings pain to it's receipient over and over and over again? At what point does the receipient become part of the problem, an enabler, a doormat, if you will? If the loved one knows that there will be great consequences if the offensive behavior continues and, in fact, continues to choose the offensive behavior, then one can conclude that this loved one will not be surprised when the consequences hits them between thier eyes! Right?
This is not rocket science. It is simple cause and effect..... perhaps I oversimplify....perhaps not......
the day after.......
It's a good thing I don't have a job to go to cuz I'd have to call in "FULL".......
A joke...
What's grey and doesn't matter????
an irrelevant.....
How "thankful" are we?
What am I thankful for...???? I am thankful for my wonderful daughters who make me so proud to be thier mom....for my husband who works so hard so I don't have to......that my cats are getting fixed on Monday.....for my new denim couches......for yummy, soft pajamas....for Starbucks!!!!......for friends who make me laugh.....for Sue, who gives me great highlights(in my hair).....for great hair, thanks, mom.......for my drama kids, they're great.......to Chris and Jacob who are in Fallujah......for President Bush......for my cool truck with cool make-out lights......
You're right, those thing are pretty shallow, huh??? It's easy to come off shallow when we are as blessed as we are, or I am....I mean, really, I've never gone hungry, I wrap up when I'm cold, I pray when I'm scared, I don't know what it means to go without.....I'm blessed, I guess. May I never take the important thing for granted, for that would be a travesty. We do have so much to be grateful for in this country and I am proud to say that I am an American. I am thankful that I can worship God in my church or in my home without any fear....I am thankful that God has a plan for my life....thank you for your salvation, for your grace, Father...thank you, pioneers for seeking a better way of life, for we are heirs to that legacy....
I Thessalonians 5:18-"...in everything give thanks; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.
Am I my brother's keeper?
In Sunday school, we talked about the parable of the sower. The first seed was sown into rocky soil. The second seed was sown by the path and was trampled over....you know the story. The question of a person's motive for salvation was talked about and what is the best scenario for a person to come to Christ, yadda yadda yadda....anyway, what troubled me about that discussion is how responsible are we for a person's "walk" with Christ??? I believe that we are to be ambassadors for Christ and bringing people into a saving knowledge of Christ and, yes, there should be discipling process to get that person firmly rooted on good soil. Beyond those steps, are we to work out every person's salvation for them?? I don't think so!!!!
Doesn't God's word promise that he will make us new creatures??? Isn't it the role of the Holy Spirit to convict and protect???? If a believer chooses to be milk-fed and not be transformed, for whatever reason, that is thier sad choice and not God's plan for them. The parable talks about the circumstances surrounding the salvation experience lends itself to what kind of walk they will have. Aren't we called to plant seeds???? I think one could go mad wondering if the "seed" landed in the proper "soil" with the perfect ph-balance, you know what I mean???
another review....
OK, here's another review, I can't seem to help myself....
My family and I just got back from seeing "National Treasure" and I'm telling you, it WAS a treasure!!! We loved it!!!!It had Nicholas Cage, yum....Sean Bean, the guy you love to hate......the cute sidekick...I'm telling you, it was a great show. It also had a great storyline, great intrigue, and you even learned some wonderful early american history along the way. Nothing justifies the means better than a great ending, but I'm not telling the ending, only saying it was a great ending. I give this movis 4 stars!!!! It's right up there with "Raiders of the lost ark" and Con predicts it will be the next big ride at Disneyland. Way to go Disney!!!!
My review of "Julius"
OK, so my family and I went to see "Julius Caesar" on stage last night at Hanford High. I am blown away at the caliber of talent at that school!!!! To take on such a script and adapt it to a modern flair the way Matt did.....brilliant!!! I especially enjoyed how "madness" was protrayed by an intoxicating creature known as "Ate". The way she incited the violence that was protrayed through subtle manipulation was breathtaking....good form.......I loved Marc Antony's eulogy for Caesar.....very moving......and Ate was there...moving in and out of the crowd. The entire evening was brilliantly played out with passion and fervor and much emotion. Bravo!!! It is no wonder that this drama department was voted #1 in the state and I wish them good luck in Scotland, where they have been invited to perform a play at the annual Drama Festival there. If you ever get the chance to see a performance at Hanford High....do it...you will not be disappointed.
I'm different...after the rain...
While I was in Florida helping with the disaster relief effort, I discovered something about myself....I dig ministry!!! I felt like this is what I was made to do!!! This is what it means to put feet to motion, to be Christ to the wounded and broken-hearted. To give drink to the thirsty.....WOW.....what a huge blessing! I believe that I was part of something bigger than me.
Very cool experience.
Now, I'm home....something I can't quite put a finger on is missing. It is a general sense of restlessness that nothing I do seems to fill. I am involved in what some people would call
"ministry" at my church. I teach a missions class to 4th and 5th grade girls that teaches them about being Jesus to people in our community as well as learning about mission work abroad. I also direct our Children's Drama Dept. at church and we emphasize evangelical messages in our scripts. I help with Children's church and have an extensive community of fellowship there, at my church....Those thing don't seem so important anymore. I want more...to touch people in an impactful way. I want to go to Africa and help with AIDS- orphans, I want to adopt a Chinese baby, I want to take my daughters to remote jungles and build something....for others.
Yeah...I'm different now. Stay tuned to see where God takes me from here.....
my friends....
I believe a person who has one or two really good lifetime friends is a blessed person. A lifetime friend has seen the good, the bad, and the ugly in you and is still by your side. A lifetime friend tells you truth even when all you want is lies. A lifetime friend comes along side of you and walks beside you and it feels like home.....like being wrapped up in your favorite blanket...their love keeping you warm and safe....I have been blessed with three remarkable, lifetime friends. I am blessed.....
Recently, one of these lifetime friends was taken from me.....my heart is broken.....I don't know how to let go of her. She is part of me...I've been in her life for thirty years!!!!! She has been important to me for 30 years!!!!! How does one let go of that??? My head says to "put in on a shelf, for now...just out of reach." My heart wants to shrivel up and die......I think of the picture of Jesus, the good shepherd, leaving His 99 sheep to rescue the one sheep who has wandered away.....I would do that!!!! I would leave everything behind to rescue her!!! I swear it......Everyone says to let it go...that I need to think of me and decide the cost is too great. Everyone says,"It's not your fault, it doesn't make sense...there's nothing else to be done...let it go....."
Unfortunately, that doesn't work when you are a "golden retriever". I am a "golden retriever", the most loyal of loyal.........and i'm not that self-sentered! I would like to think that if, God forbid, anything like this ever happpened to me that my friends and family would NEVER give up on me!!! I hope they would leave the 99 to come after me......I know they would...Love never fails.....
WOW......this really moved me.....
the search is on.....
The search is on for that ever-elusive-clever-funny-smart-script that I can share with my drama students....They look to me with pleading eyes, begging me not to make them do a dumb play, again.....If only I could find that perfect script.....still looking....
necessity really is the mother of invention....
OK, so...Con is out of town and I have some new couches that my friends want to see in my living room, right??? I have a digital camera...I can take pictures with my digital camera...I do take pictures with my digital camera...I can look at the pictures I've taken inside the digital camera....but, I have absolutely no idea how to make real pictures from them or even how to download them into the computer! How dumb is that?????? Really dumb, I say, so......I've spent the better part of the afternoon figuring it all out, reading the manuals and pushing buttons and sighing heavily at times......in the end, though, I sent my first picture emails to friends and I am feeling quite like the chesire cat....Honey, if you're reading this your job security just got bumped down a notch. No worries, though, I still can't fix the VCR, DVD, ISB, OR YOU( hahahahah) but the cabinet above the fridge is still way out of my reach.......
my weekend...
I went to see David Copperfield this weekend at the Paramount Theatre in Seattle and it was a fantastic show!!! The theatre itself was so amazing: it had huge crystal chandeliers and huge recessed frescoes on the walls...the walls were covered in ornate plaster work and everything just oozed sophistication....absolutely gorgeous!!! Did I mention that we were seated 6th row center??? Great seats....still, i have no idea how he made that car appear right in front of my very eyes or how he made those 13 people disappear right before my very eyes...if anyone can shed any light on this, let me know...I'm dying ....
