wednesday randomness

I'm watching The Blind Side.  I love this movie.  If anyone could watch this movie and not feel changed in some way then they are dead inside.

Stan left today for a three day meeting in KM.  So we are keeping it low key this week.  Just getting a few things done around the house.  Maybe planning a little Father's day surprise.  We'll see.

Kirby asked me today when 'Kirby Day' was.  I asked him why he thought there should be a 'Kirby Day'.  He told me we were about to have Father's Day so he wanted to know when it would be Kirby day.  I told him someday when he grew up he could have a child of his own and he would get to be the Father and it would be his day.  His reply...'Mom, I won't have a baby.  Men don't lay babies'.

So true, Kirby...so true.

I need some hair help.  I need to look and see what's in right now.  See what I can try to manage to make out of this mess I have going on.  I've been trimming my own layers.  I figure I need to learn how.  I can find someone to trim length off for me but if I'm going to have any kind of shape I'm going to have to learn how to get it on my own.  This battle will be won!

I think that's it for today.  I'm too in to the movie to remember anything else.

Have a great day everyone!

weekend fullness

We just had one of those crazy fun weekends that wears you out but was totally worth it.  It started with a good-bye party for a co-worker, J.  He has completed his two years and will be leaving in just a couple of weeks.  He lives in a different city than we do but we still got to see him often.  He has become a favorite visitor of the boys and we joked about him being our oldest son.  So we planned a 'getting rid of J' party.  I know, aren't we nice!  Don't worry the title was all in good fun.  There is a golf course--a very expensive golf course--in town and he's a big golfer so a big group went and played golf on Friday.  I stayed behind with the boys and prepared things for a cookout at our place that night.  We had burgers, cheesy ranch mashed potatoes (by request) and 7 Layer salad.  G made home made onion rings, yes he makes AMAZING onion rings, and the ladies made a Banana Split dessert, also AMAZING.  And after we all took an aspirin to thin our blood and prevent a heart attack, we watched a little presentation the ladies made (I laughed so hard it hurt) and gave him some gifts.  Funny gifts.  So he can never, ever forget us.  Ever.  He stayed through lunch on Sunday and then we had a last good bye.  My boy is all grown up, heading back to the States and starting law school.  *sigh*  Makes a momma proud.

We have a lot of such goodbyes coming up.  We will lose all of our singles, except one, by the end of October.  That means the other J will leave in August and the ladies, M and W, will both leave in October.  Things will seem so different in the coming months.  But as I've said many times, such is the way of life here.  People coming and going and moving on.  It will be, for obvious reasons, mostly difficult to say goodbye to the ladies.  But I am excited for them all and the paths Father has begun to lay for them.

On to the rest of our fun weekend.  Some friends that have 4 older children (meaning between ages 9 and 15) were sending the 3 oldest off to camp for the week and they wanted to go off for a night to celebrate their 20th Anniversary.  They asked us if their youngest could stay at our house.  I of course quickly agreed.  He is one of those children that you definitely want hanging around your own.  You know what I mean.  A great kid that you hope will rub off on your own children.  They are in there playing blocks and trains and with their tools (thanks to Papa Jiohn and Eric).  And even though he's 9 he is playing with them without complaining that they are too young or that he's bored or that he would rather be doing something else.  He's taking on this role of temporary big brother like a champ.  It makes me want to shadow his mom, K, (who deserves a whole blog post all on her own cause she is super woman without even knowing it) and copy her every move.  Seriously I live around some amazing women who can teach me so much.  And she, who also has three sons plus a lovely daughter who is the oldest, I know will teach me so much.  Her 4 are close in age and she has been through these tough years of babies, preschoolers and beginning homeschooling.  Anyway, I'm so glad their youngest has been able to spend a couple of days with us.  We had hoped to take all the boys out for a picnic lunch but it is raining.  So I think we will do a living room picnic instead. 

It's a busy week ahead as well with Stan heading to KM for a special training.  But even after being so busy all weekend, which usually leaves me dragging on Monday morning, I feel energized and overflowing and ready to go.  Happy Monday to you all!

the last person

I think I am officially the last person on earth to find my way to The Pioneer Woman.  Admittedly I have heard of her before this week.  But I really thought she was some woman in her 60's or maybe a fictional woman that someone created for cook book purposes.  I had only heard mention of 'The Pioneer Woman'  in the context of cooking but come to find out her site covers many areas of my interest.  She talks about photography (something I would love to know more about), gardening (we are talking of starting one in our side yard) and homeschooling (a journey I am about to begin myself).  Why didn't you people tell me?!?!?  I blame you blog friends.  I count on you to lead me to new places.  Especially since I'm here and you are there and have much more access to these things.  OK, not really.  But you can't keep her all to yourself!  I haven't blogged this week cause any free time I had I was reading through her love story.  That is my ultimate favorite thing to read about, talk about and think about--well think about my own that is.  I love a good love story.  True ones that is.  But anyway, if I could write half as well as she does I would do the same.  But most of you know mine already so no need for that.

OK, I'm off to browse her gardening section.  If there are any other blogs out there that are must reads please don't leave me clueless.  Please.  

a different kind of childhood

I have never been under any illusions that with our calling to live overseas our children would have a similar childhood to what we had.  There wouldn't be frequent trips to visit family, no going to school and holidays and memorable moments would be just a little different.  And I am totally OK with all that.  Well, not totally OK with being so far from family, but I have come to a place of peace about it. 

But even with all that, the other day Kirby said something that kinda threw my mind for a loop.  Stan was explaining a burn scar from his childhood that is on his left collar bone area.  This prompted Kirby wanting to hear stories from our childhood.  I was telling him about something, I seriously can't remember exactly, and I mentioned a lady and he asked 'Was she English or Chinese?'  And it just totally hit me.

As long as we live here he will always think in bilingual life.  This simple question is part of his everyday.  He has no concept of growing up in an almost all English speaking world.  I know that people in America speak multiple languages but most people stick to a social life spoken in their first language.  He is slowly learning to respond to English speakers in English and Chinese speakers in Chinese.  When I told him that everyone I knew when I was a child spoke English he was completely puzzled.  For him to imagine that my childhood was different is so difficult. 

My boy's childhood isn't going to be better than mine or Stan's, just completely different.  Do I know how to handle it if they have culture shock when we return to America?  Nope.  Will it always be easy on us as a family?  Nope.  Would I change the decisions we've made?  Nope.

I am excited to see how their little hearts grow in their desire to know and serve God.  I'm excited to let them soak it all in.  I'm excited to see the men they will grow to be.  I'm excited that there is the question, 'English or Chinese?' 

summer

It's already June.  I looked back and saw that I only had four posts for May.  That about sums up that month.  A whole lot of fun but busy, busy, busy.  And like I said before, there is a lot going on for us in the next few months.  But this week I don't feel so very overwhelmed like I did last week.  I sat back, took a deep breath, asked God to bring me back a notch and got through the week.  Today I crossed off  last couple of things on my To Do List that were for some reason kinda worrying me.  Why I was feeling so uptight about getting them done I don't know, but they are done now.

Over the weekend we were even able to squeeze in some beginning of summer fun.  I think for most Americans summer really begins on Memorial Day weekend.  That's when we head to the beach, crank up the grill and cake on the sunscreen--or is that just me?  Here the summer months really start more at the begining of May--in my opinion at least.  Our temperatures start to climb, not really any higher than what they have in NC but to be honest the no AC makes it seem SO much hotter, and since around July our rainy season begins (lets hope we get more of one this year than last cause we are in a serious drought) at that point the weather can be quite pleasant most days due to the rain cooling it off.

So here we are, summer time, busy time.  I feel just a little better prepaired to head into these next few months.  And knowing that we will be richly rewarded with a vacation at the end of the summer is going to make it all that much easier.