Vacation Highlight Reel

Nora took this.
And this.
Scott and Mary joined us for the first two days of the week that we were in Michigan.
Swimming!


Nora and I love these foam things.


We did a lot of this together during the week.


She liked it.


Nora took this one! Haha! I love it!


Kids playing in the grass while Daddy grills.


More of that.




Yay!




Nora dragging Henry away from certain doom.


Back onto the blanket.


Nora's crawling?


Willi grillin'.


We won't tell Henry that's a girls' cup.


The lake.




I got them both to look and smile!


Daddy and Nora.


Mommy, Henry, and Nora by the swings.


Mealtime action.


Quite the dining view.




He was trying to escape and get into things at the same time.


Parting view.

Ugh. I miss it already. I missed it when I took that last picture.

Hey, It's Okay Tuesday!

Here is the little spot at the beginning where I give credit to where it is due.

Hey, It's Okay . . .

. . . to pretty much never wear high heels. Sorry, fashionistas. Judge away. I'll be over here being comfortable and having less bruising.

. . . to not understand how it became "hot" for dudes to have chick hairdos. I find that it's just confusing.

"Excuse me, Miss. Oooh. Sorry. You know what? Never mind."

. . . to go through a gamut of emotions while watching a news special that is educating parents on "when not to text" while parenting. For example, "Don't text while reading to your children."

It's like, "Haha! Wait. What? What the crap? Seriously? Oh. This is for real. Oh, sad."

. . . to wait until you're nearly 29 years of age to read Pride and Prejudice, even if you're two kids, work, and life make it nearly impossible to find the time.

. . . to take no small pleasure in watching your kids "play" with your very, very annoyed, yet, surprisingly tolerant cat. Sweet, sweet cat karma. Delicious.

Photos from the 4th . . . Mostly

We were only at the farm for the actual day of the 4th of July,
so photos from the day are limited.







































The following two photos are from this morning.
The kids both went down for an early nap (it wasn't a good sleep night
in the Brown house). Henry was up for a good portion of the night, and
we discovered this morning that Nora spent the night with a crazy,
jazzed cat in her room. She didn't sleep much.





Henry has never passed out in his jumper like that before.

Nora's Pics

Nora ran off with the camera again recently. Here's what she captured:



















She also took some photos of some "stuff" in the toilet
(she's pretty proud of how potty training is going),
but I decided to delete those. You're welcome.

What I Believe

A few Sundays ago, our pastor challenged the congregation to think about what it is we believe. He didn't say, "Explain your faith," or anything like that. He just wanted us to think about it, I guess. Then, he told us to write it down.

So, for a few weeks now, I've been pondering what it is exactly that I believe. I feel like it’s such a broad topic to ponder. There’s a lot to be discussed.

I decided to go with 20 bullet points. Here is what came of that.

What do I believe?

• There is a being that exists that wants us to suffer. Some call him Beelzebub. I don't really call him, but he and his evil give me the heebies.
• Patience doesn't just happen. It takes work, and part of that means putting in a request to God. Often. And, it involves being slow to speak until that patience (or grace) arrives. It might not come when it's convenient, but it comes.
• Forgiveness is much the same as patience (in practice).
• "Forgive and forget" isn't quite as accurate as "forgive and dismiss." Part of forgiveness is learning that the party that did the inflicting might remember things differently than the party that took the blow (including the whole concept of who did the inflicting and who did the receiving). We all have ways of coping—creating alternate realities, if necessary. Some might refer to these different recollections as different “perceived truths.”
• We can always be better than we are (there is always room for improvement) in regard to things of virtue.
• Living simply and (mostly) under the radar can be, in fact, completely fulfilling.
• There is rarely ever a real conspiracy. (This one took me a long time to realize, and I'm still working on this one.)
• People can really be just as good and kind as they appear.
• Regardless of how abrasive someone may seem, they are still a person who needs to love and be loved.
• The heart of a young child is so pure and good. I'll admit that having my kids has made me believe harder that there is a God, and He loves us. Children are gifts.
• Dogs, while annoying, do serve some sort of purpose. Finding out what that purpose is might be part of it. Same goes for cats. Mostly. They're partly evil, I think.
• Getting plenty of sleep is important.
• Laughing (for real) is important.
• The colors of the fall are proof that God loves us. So are baby giggles, the smell of a clean baby, children laughing, the smell of freshly cut grass, and the smell of dirt just after a spring rain.
• Thunderstorms are just mere reminders that He's there.
• Love and sharing love is important.
• Loving people takes work sometimes.
• Being there is important.
• Stuff is just stuff, and none of it really matters.
• It is never too late to get close to your family.

Pastor Evan did say that this list may change over time. He also suggested that we revisit it now and then as well. I plan to do that. It's not a bad idea. What is it that you believe?

---

²⁷Then he said to Thomas, "Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe."
²⁸Thomas said to him, "My Lord and my God!"
²⁹Then Jesus told him, "Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed."
John 20:27-29

Hey, It's Okay Tuesday!

Again, I'll begin by saying that the whole idea behind this business came from this sassy lady via this sassy lady. Enjoy.

Hey, It's Okay . . .

. . . to recognize that due to the fact that this week is going to be insane (packing, trying to get a major publication done for work before Friday morning with only having three days to do it, taking care of two kids, laundry, etc.), other stresses are naturally going to pile on this week. That's just how it works.

. . . to be both excited and a bit scared (withdrawal, maybe?) to be without the internet and, gasp, Facebook for an entire week. (And yes, that means that all of you folks will be without me for a week. Yes. Weep. Weep, children!)

. . . to also recognize that there may not be a "Hey, It's Okay Tuesday" from this moi next week. It's just not likely. Also, I'm pretty sure everything will truly be okay next week because we will finally be on vacation "for real" for the first time since two Mays ago (like, we are actually leaving home and relaxing).

. . . to have totally slept through the fireworks on July 4th (and I'm talking even the giant, crater-making fireworks my awesome neighbors across the street shoot off every year, too). We were totally in bed and asleep before dark. High five!

. . . to be so thrilled about a decision to purchase a new mattress four years ago (for cheap) and not use it until yesterday. It's like, "Yay! Surprise new mattress!" (It used to be on a guest bed.)

. . . to want to cry a little bit because the awesome Little Tikes beach ball sprinkler in the back yard started taking on water in the big air cavity compartment where water is most definitely not supposed to go. Sad face. That thing lasted about a month and a half before malfunctioning.

. . . to find yourself saying things like, "This is why we don't jump on Rubbermaid containers!"

. . . to love it when Nora quotes the, "Hey, Mr. Grumpy Gills" scene from Finding Nemo. "When life gets you down, you know what you gotta do? Just keep swimming. Just keep swimming. Swimming, swimming. What do we do? We swim!"

. . . to wonder why people bother having Facebook accounts if they don't let people post comments on their wall. (I'm not bein' mean. Honest. Just curious.) I suppose you can always do private messages, I guess. I just kind-of think most of the fun is wall posting. That is all.

Dilly out!

Nora Quote Worth Noting

This may very well be too much information for many out there, but I can't help myself on this one. We're potty training in our house, and many times, I'll make Nora come to the bathroom with me (to encourage her to go). Just before nap time today, I made her come with me, and when she sat down on her potty (she had just recently gone to the bathroom), she said, "My bum's not working, Mom!"

You're welcome.

P.S. Those of you that witnessed our potty training disasters all day on the 4th, would you believe she went through yesterday entirely accident-free? That's what napping will do. Sheesh.