Quick Takes: I'm Still Here Edition

1. When you take a week or more off from writing on your blog, Quick Takes is a good way to get back into it. I've been gone for no particular reason. I'm trying to write every day in a journal, but that is not going so great. I have to figure out how to get over my worries about what people will think and just write more, but so far I'm not doing it. Which could be said about many things in my life, unfortunately.

2. Words from Timmy, our 6 year old son.

"I know who made the words. God made the words to say. He made the bad words too, accidentally."

Some shaky theology there perhaps, but definitely funny.

3. I bought a really cute white lace dress. It is too short to wear to church, but I have a couple of other events that are appropriate. I was on the hunt for some cute shoes to wear with it, something other than my favorite black heels. But extensive online looking and in-person looking led to nothing in my price range. So I got patent navy peep-toe heels instead. I think it is a little more interesting than black, but I was hoping for something better. They are one of my favorite brands though, for comfort, so hopefully I'll get a lot of wear out of them. All the colored shoes seemed to have heels way too high for me to even think about wearing or they were tacky or they were wedges, which are cute but not right for the dress. It is a sad day when I can't find the perfect shoe.

4. I saw the Hunger Games last night! Hooray! No spoilers, don't worry. I will just say it was really well done. Very true to the book in the most essential parts. Like most movies made from books there is not enough time to really develop the characters and their relationships the way it is done in the books, so I did feel like the depth of feeling was missing at times. But that happens almost all the time since we don't get to hear the thoughts of the characters. Also, I'm a big Peeta fan in the books, but in the movies Gale is way hotter. That is shallow, but true.

5. We are in the midst of sports season here. Four kids on four teams. Tuesday nights and Saturdays are our busiest days. Happily Mondays are free, so we can start our week off without being too crazy. I'll be writing next week about how our family makes sports work for us. I'll say now that I love that our kids like to play sports and I enjoy watching them, but it does get a little stressful at times.

6. I still haven't written a lot about going to Blissdom last month. I don't know why. I think in part it is because I'm still trying to figure out how my experience will affect my writing here and what I want to do with it. I was inspired by several sessions. I was thrilled to meet some people in person that I've "known" online for five years now. The community feeling was amazing. It felt very much like a retreat without all the religious stuff, although I was blessed to have roommates who share a love for Christ and we shared a lot of our stories with each other. Anyway, the conference was great and I would love to go back next year and I hope my experience will lead to some good things for me and my writing.

7. To keep it all real and honest, my over a week long break from writing here was accompanied by a week long break from exercising. Major ugh. I finally got back to the gym yesterday. Kickboxing felt good but then I tried to run and that was not good at all. I felt like a slug. I keep saying I'm recommitting to consistent running and workouts and I keep not doing it. (See #1 for more of the same.)

Happy Friday y'all!

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Dates and Dreams

For the first time in what felt like forever, Travis and I went on a date last night. We get out fairly often, but it is almost always to attend a function or go out with a group. I love our friends, so I always enjoy those times, but we need to make time for just the two of us too. We shared an appetizer plate for dinner and saw Act of Valor, which was great.

We sat and we talked. And then we just sat. When your life is busy and you feel like you barely say two words to your spouse that are not mere scheduling details, you might long for a stretch of time to talk. Only to find yourself not talking. And if you've watched too many romantic comedies or dramas, you might start to think there is something wrong with the not talking. But the comfort of silence is weighted with contentment and security, a knowing of each other that goes beyond words and banal conversation.

One thing we did talk about was a new house. We're a few years away from moving. We're blessed to have a house that holds our family and our stuff (oh my word, the stuff) and keeps us safe and dry and sheltered. Still, we hope for more space one day. Travis said we need a farmhouse. Bedrooms in homes these days are so small, it seems. And regardless of what size house we buy in the future, some of the kids will still share rooms. And then I knew what I wanted. Oh how I would love to build a house, from scratch, with oversize bedrooms. Rooms that offer ample room for two teenagers to live in peace. But what I was really thinking about was rooms that one day will be big enough for a child and his/her spouse, and their kids, as they come back to warm the hearth of the family home.

Because when I really start dreaming, I see a home that welcomes my brood back as often as possible. A home that houses a living, breathing legacy of love. A home that overflows with life and joy and laughter and sometimes tears but most of all unity.

I don't need a big house to have that. I need a big heart and a big faith. And those things don't have to wait a few years.

Just Write: Best Laid Plans

Isn't it funny when you tell your kids you'll do something with them and it sounds so fun and they are so excited and then it all goes downhill? Not really. Not funny at all.

Travis told the kids on Saturday that they could camp out in the backyard. Sleep in the tent. He would even sleep out there with them. We would make S'mores. It would be so! fun! We made our S'mores. They were delicious. The kids had been dragging sleep stuff out to the tent. It was time to settle down for the night. I was inside, watching basketball and Harry Potter. (I like to think I'm a girl with diverse interests.) Soon enough there was crying. Soon enough there was was a cranky mom and tired kids. Feelings were hurt. It did not go at all as planned.

A new day began. Everyone was outside again, tent-ers and inside sleepers together again. I felt like I should do some kind of exercise. Who wants to go on a run/walk with me? I do! I do! Eventually all eight of us had shoes on and we headed out the door. We would walk to the path around the pond and some of us would do some running. And so we did. And then we let the kids talk us into walking to the park, just a little bit farther along. And we played tag and we pushed on the swings and laughed and had fun. We started to walk home. Can we have ice cream? Sure, why not. So we walked to the ice cream place and shared sandwiches and had ice cream. Even the littlest one had his own scoop of vanilla.

Not a bit of it was planned. It was saying yes in the moment. It was letting go of expectations and just letting life happen. The complete opposite of the failed backyard camp-out.

It was perfect.




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Oh Vanity

I feel silly even posting this. Being a blogger is weird sometimes.

Anyway.

I bought a maxi dress. And I think I like it. But it is not in my normal fashion comfort zone. So naturally I took pictures. And I want your opinion. The tags are still on the dress, in case it looks awful and I need to take it back. Tell me what you think. Be honest. But not mean. Thanks for indulging me.

Oh, and I know the belt is not right, but it is the only one I have. If the belted look is more flattering I will get a darker belt, probably braided.

 If it matters, I think I like it better with the belt. But so far my Twitter friends like it better without.

This whole post is so ridiculous.

The Unplanned Break

Oh friends, I didn't mean to leave a silly but fun post about my legs sit at the top of my blog for over a week! But life happens and so it sat.

Two weeks ago I said I was a writer and then seemingly fell off the face of the earth. I'm guessing the best writers don't do this. And I wish I could say I've been filling pages with my messy handwriting, pouring out words of substance and meaning. Alas, I cannot. I've been living, mostly.

Last week I was overcome with some kind of epic tiredness (but it is NOT what I know at least a few of you are thinking) and allergy crud. Naturally, our lives did not slow down just because I felt a magnetic pull to my couch. Wait--blessed rain did come along and give us a brief respite from the busy. I do love our crazy life and watching my kids play baseball and tee ball and soccer and volleyball. I do. But I also give thanks for the chance to just hang out and watch a movie as a family and slow down a little bit. There's grace in the busy and grace in the quiet.

I made a Lenten resolution to spend less time on the computer (I know we're not supposed to talk about our sacrifices, but it is kind of important to share this as I go forward). Going to Blissdom at the start of Lent was perhaps not the best timing. I met so many new people and found even more blogs to read and now have less time than ever to read them and interact with new friends online. So when I do get to open up the laptop for a bit I feel pulled in many directions. And this little space gets neglected.

Every session I went to at the conference that really spoke to me included the need to get up and get started early in the day. To take those still-dark early morning hours and make them mine, as it is time that I am not needed by family. But oh how I hate to wake up early. And oh how I love my warm and cozy bed. So I'll be engaging in a battle of wills with my own will. At the very  least maybe it will produce some crazy writing. The world likes crazy, right?

So that's where I'm at. Struggling against my lazier tendencies and still seeking to harness the thoughts and passion that were stirred up at the conference, all while being the wife and mother and friend the people right in front of me need. I'm hoping to bring more words to the screen though. I hope you'll stick around.

My Legs Are My Favorite

I was going to title this "I've Got Great Legs" but I'm afraid I might disappoint people looking for something else via search engines.

I'm about to go all shallow on y'all. Only I hope I make my point and it is not so shallow after all.

I've got great legs. I'm not bragging (much). Even Steph said so in an email! Her little aside got me thinking. I do love my legs. I've worked hard to get them to look good, and had some help in the genetics department too (my mom has nice legs). And it may seem silly or vain to talk about my legs on my own blog. But since it is my blog, I'm going to do it anyway.

In Zumba one day one of the other women complained about all the mirrors in the room. She didn't like looking at herself. Having mirrors on three of the four walls can really open your eyes to how far you have to go to look the way you want to look. I commiserated, but then shared my own thoughts. I just look at my legs. They're my favorite. I don't look at my stomach, because I know that no matter how  many hours I spend in the gym I won't ever have the flat stomach I had before kids. I don't look higher than my stomach because the perkiness of that area left a long time ago. I don't look at my arms much because I have been way too lax about strength work. I just look at my legs. I look at what makes me happy.

I want to challenge anyone reading this. Find something about yourself that you like and share it. And I am talking physical here. It doesn't have to be something big or something that you had a direct impact on. Maybe you love your ears because they are small and elegantly shaped. Maybe your elbows are less wrinkly than other people's elbows. Perhaps you have a great smile. Or eyes that are bright and welcoming. Maybe your hands show a quiet strength or the toil of working at something you love.

I know you have a great mind. I know your spirit is more beautiful than the most perfect physical feature on the most beautiful person in the world. And you know it too. But I bet you've spent time looking at yourself in the mirror and finding all the flaws. Just once, look for something you love. And next time you're looking in the mirror, remind yourself of it.

I love my legs. What do you love about yourself?