Lucy got a package of these "crowns" (aka New Year's Eve hats) from my mom (actually, I think they came from my grandparents in Alabama).
Anyway, they are royal adornments as far as she is concerned and for all who are willing, are required to wear them around the house.
Sadly, it's only Mom and Dad who are loving enough to indulge her. Poo-poo on the big kids who don't play along!
Dad is king, of course, Lucy is a self-appointed princess. Well, her daddy gave her that title long ago, actually.
And me? Well, I'm the queen of the house. And of the world. (I'm way more like Lucy than I care to admit)
And when I was taking pics of Macy hoola hooping the other day, Lucy jumped in and had to have her camera time too.
And then she insisted on taking my pic, which consists of her holding one eye shut with one hand, and trying to balance the camera with the other... she then asks me to push the button. Needless to say, she needed more help than that and Macy jumped in to help.
Ok, here's a post about the two kiddos who have been getting the least amount of blog-time lately.
Brenden is on the go...constantly. So there is little time for pic-taking or recording his musings. Although, they do continue, trust me.
Anyway, I bought the girls hoola hoops the other day and Brenden, being a majorly talented hoola hooper, showed off his circus-worthy skills.
The scholarships will be rolling in any day now, I just know it.
Then there's Miss Macy. Don't ever think that my lack of blogging about her is a red flag for concern. She's super shy and it's important to me to respect that and not over-report every little thing about her.
But let me assure you, her transition is moving along quite well and she continues to make slow but very steady progress. She is cautiously letting her guard down, little by little.
And she ain't lackin' hoopin' skills either...
Please note that the mess in the background is 100% Lucy's doing. She has taken over our house, our lives, and the world is next. You think I'm kidding? Huh.
And her piano talent is blooming as much as she is. It's really proven to be a great outlet for her.
Check out the new BIG hoop earrings. Her fashion, yeah...it's bloomin' too.
She is such a sweet part of our family.
I'm so very thankful for all of my kids!! God has blessed us richly. We laugh so hard. We pull our hair out in chunks. And we savor every moment.
I was thinking I would start this post by saying...
So sorry I haven't posted in a while, I hope you didn't miss me too much.
But ummm, I'm here to admit that almost every single time someone else posts something like that I think... hmmmm, I didn't even notice they hadn't posted in a while.
SO....I won't say that since most of you probably didn't notice I've been gone for a few days...and that's just A-OK. (Well, except for my dear friend Judy who has threatened to find another blog to replace mine if I didn't start posting more)
Love you, Judy! And the rest of you too, even if you didn't miss me as much as Judy did.
Anyway,
I need to ask you something. Did any of you know that there was a 4:30 AM??
I'm here to say that yes, yes there is.
I found that out twice this week because that's when I had to get up two days in a row for Nick's golf tournaments. On top of that Lucy had a mini (MAJOR) medical crisis. The major part was her drama.
Oh you have no idea. I am certain that I have left our entire doctors' office baffled (once again) and wondering if I have ever parented a child (or even a pet) before.
Well no I haven't...not a child like this.
It has left me feeling like a rung out dish rag.
So I'm happy as a clam that the weekend us almost here and I can *relax*. I've heard rumors about that word and I'm thinking that some day soon I might be able to at least look it up in the dictionary to explore its meaning.
"When God invites you to join Him, the task will have such God-sized dimensions that it will cause you to experience a crisis of belief. Your response will require faith. Faith will be demonstrated by action."
This well-rounded girly has discovered the fun of a pink bat and ball.
For now, we'll keep it at the home level. Not sure I'm quite ready for her to play in organized sports. But I'm sure it's only a matter of time before she realizes that there are actually teams she can play on. Or perhaps it's that the teams aren't ready for her.
And ummm, yes....she stops to pose before continuing with the game. Perhaps another reason she's best to stick w/ her one-gal roster for now.
Great throw!
And then she just as quickly moves on to the next activity. Swinging. One of her very favorite things in the whole wide world.
And I simply had to show you my Hydrangea. Two of MANY gorgeous blooms. My gracious, God is so stinkin' creative, isn't He?!
Pink AND blue blooms this year...all on the same plant. Love that!
Summer is here, people. Well, not technically yet but based on the thermometer and my hair, summer IS in full swing.
We bought this ginormous floating island for our pool. It's amazingly fun!!
How stinkin' cute is this face?!!
And ummm, someone in our house refuses to get in the pool. Haven't quite figured out why. Apparently she's leaving it as a mystery for her Mama.
But she did stand pool-side and let me take some pics. And by let, I mean...she knows I'll post bad pics so she might as well pose for me so I can get some good ones.
Stunning, isn't she?
Friends, I am blessed. Blessed...so very, very blessed.
*Took the girls to a very special baby shower. It was Macy's first shower ever and she had a lot of fun. What made it extra special was that it was for my sweet friend who has waited 4++ years for her FIRST precious angel...and she and her husband are FINALLY leaving for Chinathis Wednesday!!
*Caught Lucy under the kitchen table with a stick of butter.
*Went to Wal Mart on Saturday night. Don't be jealous.
*Had every intent to get a lot done around the house. Mission not accomplished.
*Went to church. Great worship, great teachin'.
*Finished reading, Crazy Love by Francis Chan. A MUST read for every Christian. Be prepared for your world to be rocked. Don't say I didn't warn you.
This morning Lucy and I were running some errands while the big kids were all in their various activities.
It was 10:15 and Lucy announced to me that she was soooo hungry and that she wanted to go to McDonald's for something to eat.
I was more than a little perturbed because we had just left the house where she had basically refused to eat her breakfast.
So there I sat at a stop light explaining to Lucy the value of a dollar.
Me: "Lucy, you had the chance to eat breakfast at home and you didn't. Why should mommy go spend money on buying you breakfast when we have food at home?"
Lucy: "But Mom, they have eggs at McDonald's!"
Me: "Yes, Lucy...I am aware of that, but we have FREE eggs at home!"
Lucy: "But MOM...we can eat eggs at McDonald's too!!"
Me: "Lucy, we have to be careful with our money and it's so much cheaper to eat at home, OK?"
Lucy: "Mom, LOOK! There's On The Border! Let's go there!"
For the two of you who asked about Zeke, he's got it pretty darn sweet here on the 'stead.
He and Lucy are still buddies, although one of them is growing at a much more rapid rate than the other.
Sorry, that's as still as I could get Zeke to stay for a pic. I'll try to get a better one later.
*~*~*~*~*~*
Ok so for those you who are blessed (like me) to have both teens and tots, you will understand what's been happening as of late in our house.
Mercy. Be.
So, besides the big boys telling Lucy things such as,
"You're not from China, Lucy...you're from Africa!" and "Lucy, go tell mommy that she's annoying you."
Tonight at the dinner table they were telling her where babies come from.
That's right.
They had "the talk" with her about babies coming from....
the clothes dryer.
Huh?
"You see, Lucy," Nick said in all seriousness,
"when a mommy and daddy want to have a baby, they put baby clothes in the washing machine. When the clothes are done washing, they put them in the dryer and when the dryer stops, they open it up and out comes their baby, all dressed and everything."
If labor/adoption were only that easy.
Now I'm dreading more than ever having the real talk with her someday.
*Sigh*
And that is just a small sample of what goes on in my house.
Well, I gotta tell ya that blog material around these parts is minimal at best.
It's not like we don't have a gazillion things going on, it's just not very high up on the wow-scale.
The boys are busy doing there thang... Nick starts his summer golf league tomorrow with the first of many tournaments. Go. Nick. Go. Nick.
Brenden is workin' and just chillin' with friends.
Macy is taking art classes and piano lessons. Oh and she's discovered the reruns of Full House, which she loves! AND... she even watches Sanford and Son. Yes, you read that right. Can I just say that there is something hysterically funny to me about seeing my Chinese teenage daughter glued to the TV, laughing out loud at an old grumpy black man. It's a sight to behold.
And Lucy, well, she's just along for the ride. Bubble blowing on the sidewalk to one of her favorite activities. We'll see just how quickly she zips through the gallon I just bought her. Oh and she beat me in the match game (you know, the game where you have to keep turning over the endless little cards to try and find its match?) last night. With zero help from me. She's a smart little firecracker, I tell ya.
Anyway, busy-busy again today. And we've got something really fun in the works for Friday.
"But God doesn't call us to be comfortable. He calls us to trust him so completely that we are unafraid to put ourselves in situations where we will be in trouble if He doesn't come through."
Two years ago today was Gotcha Day for our Lucy-bug.
It's actually hard to believe it's only been two years because, quite frankly, it feels like she's been with us forever. I truly have a hard time believing sometimes that I didn't actually give birth to this child.
