Update that ends with H's playdate at the hospital

November - well, how I am supposed to remember what happened in November? It's almost January. I know there was Thanksgiving, and good food, and visit to my parents house, and much to be thankful for. And there were flu vaccines all around. Of which I am SO thankful for because seriously everyone I know has a kid with the flu about now. Let's see, what else? Oh yeah, Hannah volunteered to sing a song for the residents of a local retirement home. My church does a worship service there every month for the residents. Hannah practiced (and perfected!) "Thy Word is a Lamp Unto My Feet" and sang it beautifully one Sunday morning. She was a bit nervous, but had a blast and did a great job. She sure put a smile on everyone's face. She has a beautiful voice and loves to sing. Sadie loves to sing too. But her ability to carry is a tune, is, well..still developing. So is mine. :-) Actually Sadie has a great ability to change songs in the middle. What might start out as Jingle bells could easily become Silent Night or Old Macdonald or the ABC's or something else she made up. She doesn't sing *songs*, she sings *medleys*. But Sadie put a smile on everyone's face too because she walked around saying hi with her beautiful smile and giving out hugs. We also spent an afternoon at a nearby farm having pictures done. It was fun and they turned out so great. I'll try to get a few up on here soon.

So November consisted of Thanksgiving, flu shots, Hannah singing, and pictures. And 26 other days that were busy but I don't remember with what.

And then December. Christmas parades, visits with Santa, and parties galore! School parties, Brownie parties, dance parties, going to see the Nutcracker, elf mischief, church events.

Like most people, it was busy. And yet, there was a calmness this year too. Most of the busyness ended a week before Christmas. When school got out, we spent a couple days at my parents house celebrating Christmas with them.

Then we came home and spent the rest of the week relaxing, playing outside, making home-made playdoh, reading stories of Christmas, driving around to see lights, and just enjoying the time we had not to hurry. On Christmas eve, we spent a good part of the day outside while the girls rode their bikes.

We saw Santa as he came through the neighborhood on the fire truck as he does every year. We enjoyed the Christmas eve service at church. We came home, ate supper, enjoyed Charlie Brown's Christmas with popcorn and hot chocolate, and made sure to put out reindeer food before bed.

And food for Santa. Only Santa didn't get cookies at our house. He got a piece of bread and a spoonful of cranberry sauce (since we didn't have grape juice). And Hannah left a note "We left you kind of communion so you can remember Jesus is more important". See, Santa had made a suprise visit at church that evening and had taken communion. It made for a good conversation on the way home about how even Santa knows he's not the most important. Even Santa takes time to stop and remember Jesus. So Hannah decided to serve him communion at our house too! Very sweet, even if I was kind of hoping for chocolate.

I shopped online almost exclusively this year. So there was no running around searching for gifts. And pretty much most of the gifts our family gave were homemade gifts. Santa's gifts were not, but most of the others were. And it was great. The girls had a great time making gifts, such as scarves for cousins. They enjoyed painting old soft drink bottles that we turned into bowling sets for a couple of younger cousins.

I found printouts online for a "Journal in Jar" gift that I loved. So that's what most adult family members got. Except a couple of the men - since I didn't think they'd be as into journaling. But they're basically old mason jars with writing prompts inside. Presented with a notebook and pen. I loved the questions too - questions about family, childhood, favorites, opinions, and memories. They also had a child-version. So one of the girls' 9 year old cousins got that. And the girls both got one too. Sadie likes it because it's like Hannah's. Hannah LOVES it. She's been using the prompts every day. She had seen me making them for others and she was so very excited to have her very own.
As far as Santa goes, the girls were pretty thrilled on Christmas morning with their pillow pets. That's the one thing they asked for. And Sadie..thrilled beyond belief with her new camera and dancing Mickey Mouse. We have had a lot of pictures being taken lately. And Hannah got a karaoke machine. Which she LOVED until the microphone just died that evening. She was a bit dissapointed, but was okay when I told her we'd get a new microphone. She amused herself with her new Magic Science kit.


And it snowed! We didn't have a white Christmas like so many of our neighbor cities. But we did see snow falling on Christmas day. Beautiful. And the day after Christmas, we got enough of a dusting for a few snowballs. And an attempted snow angel!

We spent some time the day after Christmas at our friends' Beth and Wayne's (a.k.a. nana and granddaddy) house. The girls had a ball with more gifts, snowball throwing with cousins, lunch, and play-time. Then Hannah and I headed for her appointment at the Children's Hospital after-hours clinic. For an ear infection. And yes, I did let my 7 year old that I suspected had an ear infection out in the snow to play. It only snows an average of once a year here - I wasn't about to make her miss it. (But don't worry mom, I made her wear a hat!) And yes, she did have an ear infection. We found that out after waiting 4 hours. But we were lucky because as we were leaving, they changed the sign to read "6 hour wait with appointment". Yikes. But at least all she had was an ear infection. One that wasn't even particularly painful. So many of the other kids had the flu. Or suspected flu. You kind of get to know people when you sit in the waiting room so long. And while I was thinking "lots of sick people..let's just sit over here by ourselves and read or play video games quietly", Hannah saw the situation a little differently. Her view was "Awesome..so many kids. I'm going to make new friends!" So she had a 3 hour play-date (the 4th hour we were in a room by ourselves) with kids who probably had the flu. great. Again, so thankful for that flu vaccine. Oh, and by the end, she'd become such great friends with one little girl that the other mom wrote her phone number and address down for me and invited us to come over to play anytime. But finally, armed with a prescription for antibiotics, we went home. And I bathed Hannah in the hand sanitizer in my car before we pulled out of the parking lot. Just kidding - sort of. As much as I hated to spend 4 hours in the after-hours clinic on a Sunday for an ear infection that didn't even seem to really bother Hannah (rather than waiting until the next morning to see her regular pediatrician), I needed her seen that day because the next day was...surgery day. (coming soon!)

October Wrap-Up

Our first big event in October was Sadie's birthday. I can't believe my sweet little one is 5!! Wow!! She had a great birthday party at the park with her friends. It was a "baby doll" birthday party. Then on her actual birthday, she enjoyed dinner at a local restaurant. Fun times!!

Of course, my weekend with prison was a big October event..but I've already written about that (scroll to next post).

Hannah wrapped up her cheerleading season. Her coach was so sweet to let Sadie join in on the cheers for the last game. It's been fun and Hannah was so sad to see it end.

On Halloween, we had two separate events. First was "Children's Day" at our church where children dressed in costumes, sang, led worship, and had fun activities afterwards such as inflatables, hayride, etc. They'd been learning about "super heroes" and so dressed as such. Here's Sadie in her "super bunny!" costume and Hannah in her "Lady Truth" costume.

That night, we joined some friends in another neighborhood to trick or treat. Both girls decided to be the Easter bunny. :-) The girls had a blast and it was definately more fun going as a group. One of their friends' fathers had this cool contraption that he drove the kids around on which they thought was the best thing ever. We ended the evening with chili at a friends' house and went home and crashed. Definately one of our most fun halloween nights.

Prison Update

This past weekend was our Kairos retreat in the prison. To those who made cookies for us or prayed for us - THANK YOU! It was an incredible weekend. The Holy Spirit was present with us in a big way.
It was so so good to be back in that little chapel. It may sound crazy, but being in prison, I just feel so "right" and at peace. (of course, that's being there as a volunteer!)

We had 104 ladies with us for the two days. Let me just say, that's a LOT of people packed into a small space. But it was just such a blessing as we sang, worshipped, talked, listened, and loved. I sat at a table with 10 of those ladies for the weekend and my heart was touched by each of them as they shared their struggles to live a life of faith in that place. While numerous obstacles tried to get in the way before we ever entered that prison (let's just say it was completely God that we got to go in at all!), once we were there, we felt God's favor in so many ways. We had wonderful and helpful officers on duty with us in the chapel. The prison's chaplain led worship with us on Sunday morning, and it was a very heartfelt, moving time of worship. We sang, prayed, shouted, and danced. Our team just really connected together and worked together. Lives were renewed and refreshed by our amazing God. I am so thankful to have had the opportunity to be a part of this weekend. And now I'm praying for our "sisters in white" (ladies in the prison - they wear white uniforms) as they face this week back in their regular institutional life..that they would remember who they are, remember how much they are loved, and seek God's power in their daily struggles. And I'm praying for Kairos ministry as a whole as we pray for continued opened doors to further the ministry there. Please join us with your prayers.

Hannah's Cheerleading Pictures

Prison (A post that is not about my children..although they are still my favorite topic! :-)

I drive a lot for work. My car and I travel a lot of county roads. Occasionally I pass crews of men or women who are in prison and are out cleaning up the roads. Sometimes they are city or county crews – usually given away by the orange jumpsuits. But sometimes I also see white clothing with the familiar black letters on the back (DOC). Department of Corrections. Many years ago, I just drove by them without a 2nd thought. I didn’t actually think badly of them. No, my attitude was almost worse. I simply didn’t think of them at all. They had nothing to do with me or what I was doing or where I was going. They were “other”, not like me and not a part of me.

That all changed in 2001. One Sunday morning I was walking in the door of my church when I was greeted by a friend who said, “Hey! I’m going to lead a Kairos weekend in September and I’d love for you to help. Are you interested?” I said, “Sure, I’d love to!” I then entered the church and thought “Oh crap! What did I just do??? I didn’t mean that!”

See, my friend was very involved in prison ministry at our state women’s prison a couple hours away. Kairos was the name of the ministry she was involved in. I’d just told her that I’d love to minister in prison! Um, yeah. That wasn’t really my “thing” back then. I’d never even considered the idea. Up until that point, I’d volunteered with different groups of people. Kids mainly. Kids were my “thing”. I’m a teacher and I love kids. I love all kids – but my heart has always been with those who struggle (tough homes, low income, but especially those with disabilities). But adults in general weren’t my “thing” and especially adults in prison. I got nervous. What would I say to someone in prison? How could I relate to them? I thought prison ministry was a good thing for someone else to do, but not me! I had actually sent cards to some men in prison as part of a project before. But to talk to them, sit with them, spend a weekend with them? What was I thinking?! Actually I wasn’t thinking. My mouth said yes before my brain could engage in a debate. And while I generally can say “no” pretty well, I’m very thankful that in that instance, I said “yes”. I don’t exactly know why I didn’t ever go back to my friend and say “hey, I made a mistake and I meant no”, except that I started listening to God. And somehow, this started seeming “right”.

It’s 9 years later and I’ve been in that prison numerous times. Maybe 5 times for full Kairos weekend retreats (3.5 days each), twice for shorter 2-day follow-up retreats, and more times than I can count for monthly reunions lasting a couple hours. Somewhere between a Thursday night in September and the following Sunday afternoon back in 2001, prison ministry became my “thing”. My fears? Irrelevant in the face of what God was doing. You know what I learned about relating to people in prison? They are people. And just like me and you, those ladies are people of great worth. The woman wearing that white DOC uniform and I are the same in God’s eyes. We have the same fears, hopes, and dreams. We have both made mistakes. We have both sinned. We are both in need of God’s grace and forgiveness. God loves me intensely with an amazing love. God loves her just as intensely with just as much amazing love. True, I have not committed a crime that could end me up in prison. But have I committed crimes in my heart? Have I gone against what God wanted me to do at times? Yes, it’s part of being human. But God’s grace is there for me, and it’s there for the women (and men) in prison as well. And because of that, I can relate to the ladies there as sisters..sisters in Christ. It’s a really, really beautiful thing.

It’s a beautiful thing, but it’s not always easy. Kairos’ mission is to “bring Christ’s love to the incarcerated, their families, and those who work with them”. It’s tough sometimes. Because even though God sees us as his children, equally loved, the world doesn’t always see that way. And the world passes that message on to us, and to them. Sometimes I have to fight through a temptation to think that in some way I’m “better than” my sister wearing white who is sitting across from me. More often, I fight the opposite temptation to think that I’m “not good enough” to make a difference. And sometimes our new friends, they struggle with those things too. They struggle to impress us, make us think they’re “better than”, “tougher than”, etc. Or, they struggle with thinking they’re not good enough, don’t’ deserve God’s love, etc. It’s not just the relationships inside the prison that are tough. Our relationships with other team members aren’t always easy either. We’re a pretty diverse bunch: we are young, older, black, white, from big churches, from small churches, and from many different denominations. . We disagree with each other at times. Sometimes we hurt one another’s feelings, even if unintentionally. Sometimes, we just plain irritate and frustrate each other. But God’s grace covers us all and because of that we learn to pray together, listen to each other, forgive, and love. It helps that we also sing together, eat together, and laugh together. God shows up, and lives are transformed right before my eyes, every time. Sometimes, it’s even my life that gets transformed as I learn a little more each time about what God’s heart looks like in the world.

After a couple years hiatus, I will be entering the prison again in a few weeks for a 2-day retreat with Kairos prison ministry. I am very excited about what God has in store for the weekend. Please join me in praying for our team, the chaplain, warden, and officers of the prison, and for the approximately 75 women who will be with us for those 2 days. I know God has great things in store. This is the first time I will have been in the prison since Sadie came home from China 2.5 years ago, and only the 2nd since Hannah came 4.5 years ago. But I’ve been sensing God’s whisper to Go, love, and serve. I go because I love the women there. I also go because I want my children to grow up seeing me use the gifts and passion God puts inside me to serve Him, but I go mainly because God nudges me there and He is there.

My favorite “snapshot” of ministry in that place is that we close every reunion, every retreat, the same way. We all gather in a large circle in that small, simple chapel. Nothing fancy. A cross and Bible on the altar along with a battery-powered “candle” (you know, we can’t have fire in a prison – it’s against the rules!) A circle made up of very diverse women whose only common denominator is Christ. Women who have shared our lives over the past hours or days. Our team of women in jeans and colorful t-shirts interspersed with women in white uniforms. We all join hands together and sing a song proclaiming that there is only one God, only one King, and only one Body (of Christ) and asking God to bind our hearts together with his love. I’m not a big crier. But that moment gets me every time. I feel a lump in my throat and my eyes tear up as I look around that circle while we all praise the God who unites us. I imagine that feeling of unity and peace and love is just a taste of what heaven feels like. Who knew that when I said yes to prison ministry, I was saying yes to getting a glimpse of heaven?

Now, when I pass work crews with those white uniforms and “DOC” on the back, I notice. They are no longer “other” and their lives matter very much to me. And actually, so do the lives of those in the orange county / city jail uniforms. They matter too. I think about them and about the others those uniforms represent. I slow down just a little and as I pass by, I whisper a prayer of God’s peace, protection, and guidance on their lives. Just maybe, next time you pass one of those crews, you’ll sense a little nudge too…to notice them, to slow down just a little, and to whisper a prayer.

** And if anyone would like to help with our Kairos retreat (Oct. 23-24), there are a couple things we need. The three primary things: prayers, cookies and money. We love to take homemade cookies so if you can make a dozen or two, call me or e-mail me at DeEtte530@juno.com (you kind of have to live locally to me for this – so I can meet you to pick them up). Or if you want to make a donation to help cover the cost of the retreat, let me know that too. We will be feeding 75 ladies, 15 team members, a couple officers, and the chaplain of the prison a small breakfast, snacks, and lunch both days we are there. A $5 donation can sponsor lunch for one lady. More is always welcome. Most importantly, we would appreciate your prayers.

September Recap

1. I found out Sadie can't see. Not really, but she did go to the opthalmologist where I found out she has a pretty significant astigmatism and needs glasses. It wasn't a huge suprise - I suspected vision problems which is why I took her in the first place. But seeing her actually undergo vision testing and hearing the results made everything click together and answered some questions. For one, I now understand why she always had such a hard time when we played "I spy" in the car - she can't see what we're pointing out. What I basically had explained to me was that she was very slightly near-sighted, but she had a moderate-severe astigmatism that cancelled that out and made things blurry up close and far away. But things farther away were affected more. Anyway, doesn't she look adorable in her glasses? She's taken very good care of them and is great about wearing them all day. But I'm not suprised - she's pretty easy going on things like that.

2.Sadie got a great report from her hand doctor in Atlanta. We don't go back to see him for a full year. We love the staff there and are so grateful for all they have done for Sadie.

3. Hannah started cheering with Upward. I thought this might be a "sure, try it this season" thing where she tried it, decided it wasn't "all that" and then moved on. Nope. She L.O.V.E.S. it!! She's pretty good too - definately has the "spirit". And leadership - I must say I've been impressed with how she's handled herself on game days.

4. Both girls started dance. Hannah is taking ballet and jazz and having a lot of fun with the jazz part. After a year off, I moved her from the dance studio she was previously at to one closer to our home. Her other studio was good and their director was very nice to us. But the move has been a very good experience. I like her teacher and how she handles class time for the kids. They're learning a lot, but it has a different feel to it - it's just a good match for Hannah's personality. I like that I don't drive as far. (I like that it's cheaper!). And Hannah likes the addition of jazz and she likes having friends from school in her class. This is Sadie's first year and she is taking a preschool ballet and tap class. All I can say about Sadie is that what she lacks in coordination, she makes up for in personality. She is having so much fun, although she is a little, um, "social". (yeah, she talks too much!!)

5. Hannah started brownies. She is "bridging up" from Daisies (the kindergarten-first grade part of Girl Scouts) and is excited about all the possibilities and events that encompasses. It's a pretty active troop and most of the girls in her troop go to school with her which Hannah is enjoying. I guess she's at an age now where her friendships are starting to become more important. It's fun to watch. Especially since her friends are some really sweet and fun girls.

If September was busy, October promises to be more so. But it's good. We are having fun, enjoying the fall weather (finally!), and enjoying one another.

August is Gone Already???

Wow! I just can't believe August is over. Fall is here. I'm so ready weather-wise for fall!! :-)

Sadie is happy to be back at "Ms. Sherry's house" for her last preschool year. She is learning so much and soaking up everything right now - it's neat to see her at this stage. That last year before kindergarten has always been one of my favorite ages of kids and it's fun to see Sadie at this stage. Very curious, very interested in everything, full of questions and full of life.

First Day of School: 2010

Hannah is in 2nd grade this year. She's loving her teacher, her class, and her friends. She's off to a great start. I'm finding that I am really enjoying her at this age right now. She's young enough that she likes to play and likes to cuddle and likes to do some "little kid" stuff still. Yet, she's also entering that world of "big kid" and she's become very independent. And she's fun to talk to and sometimes gets my jokes now!! ha ha!! Of course, she doesn't quite have the hang of telling her own yet - they still make no sense. :-)

Speaking of Hannah, she turned 7 years old earlier this week. Wow! She had a great birthday. Sunday night she had a party with her friends at the park. In the rain. And mud. It really was fun though and at least it wasn't so hot. Hannah rates it as her best birthday party so that means success. (And the fact that I think it was the cheapest and the easiest to plan is a bonus!) The girls mostly ran around jumping in water puddles and stepping in mud for most of the party. I organized one game, and they organized themselves into a couple others. They ate pizza. I let the girls decorate cupcakes and Hannah opened her presents. And that was pretty much it. Then, on her actual birthday, Hannah came downstairs wearing her dress with cupcakes smocked on it (she's had it since she was 4, I didn't know it would still fit - but it did) and a headband with birthday stars. She wanted to make sure everyone knew it was her birthday. :-) She had a great day at school and then we went out for dinner, her choice. We went to a local Chinese restaurant and then came home for Hannah to find her "big" present: a new bike. She had outgrown her old one and it was time.

The other big news for Sadie is that she got a new bed this month. She'd been sleeping in a toddler bed ever since she came home from China at 2.5 years old. She'll be 5 in October and well, she's kind of outgrown that bed. I've been planning to get her one at some point. Well, one day last week her babysitter told me she had seen one at the thrift store that looked like new. I went to look at it that afternoon, and sure enough..still had the directions in the drawers and everything. It was in great condition. And now, Sadie finally has her "big girl" bed. She has been SO excited about it!

To Come: September and fall craziness! Cheerleading (Hannah), Dance (both girls: Sadie's first time), and Brownies (Hannah). I love fall though. It's my favorite time of year. So bring it on!!

Different Personalities

Today we went to our local library's End-of-Summer Reading Celebration. First of all, what's up with an "End of Summer" program mid-July?? It certainly did not *feel* like summer was ending..it was HOT. Stations were set up outside and lunch was served. And there was a show and prizes were given away. We had about an hour and a half. There was no way for the kids to do everything..choices had to be made. Luckily, being a local event at a place we were very familiar with made it easier to let the kids make different choices. It was in a small area outside the library and I could see everything. Bigger events mean they have to choose to do the same thing because it's the only way I can watch them both unless we are with others. But this was just different..so for a rare treat, they got to make different choices. I stayed with Sadie and allowed Hannah a little bit of freedom.

Sadie chose anything that did not have a long line. (She's like me in that!! hee hee) She waited about 5 minutes to get a balloon sword, colored a paper hat, helped me pick up all 3 of our lunches, ate lunch on a blanket, and wandered around with me "making new friends". She thinks she looks tough in this sword-fighting pose..with a cookie in her mouth. :-)

Hannah chose to have her face painted. She waited in line the WHOLE time. An hour and a half. I took her a lunch which she ate in line. A sweet older girl of about 10 behind her was nice to "save her place" a couple of times for Hannah to run to the blanket where we were to get a drink. But she stood there, without one complaint, for the rest of the time. Did I mention that it was HOT?? Was it worth it?

She certainly thought so. She didn't whine once that she didn't get to do anything else. She smiled all the way home and said "I'm SO happy, thanks for taking me". I don't stand in line for an hour and a half for anything. Not even at Disney World. So I guess it's a good thing it was a place I felt comfortable letting her have a little freedom. Sadie was slightly dissapointed when she noticed Hannah was FINALLY next in line. She thought she was going to run up there and get in line with Hannah. Um, no. I had to explain that while she had run around having fun and doing lots of fun things, Hannah had done nothing but stand in line for a REALLY long time, and the kids behind Hannah had stood in line a REALLY long time, and it just wasn't fair for her to run up at the last minute and jump in the front of the line. She looked dissapointed for all of 5 seconds, and then ran off to balloon sword fight with a nearby little boy. I love watching their different personalities emerge and grow!!

Life in our house when it's REALLY hot!

Today was 100 degrees. TOO hot for me. I thought about driving to a friend's house with a pool. We've done that this summer too. Instead, we stayed inside. All day. Well, except for one little outing to CVS. So, here's a rundown of our afternoon. (If you're curious about the morning, well, that would be that we slept late, watched t.v., and basically did nothing productive).

1. First, I cleaned and the girls did some "chores". That means that Hannah sprayed a little windex mixed with water all over the mirrors and eventually did get them clean, after making designs first. She also straightened the playroom, which was a MAJOR undertaking. It didn't have to be - all she had to do was pick up the handful of toys on the floor and put them on the shelves. Instead, she took EVERYTHING off the shelves and put it all in the floor, because she "wanted to make it neater". Admirable effort. But in the middle she got way overhwhelmed. So I sat in the floor with her and gave directions while she put things away as we listened to an old James Taylor CD. And then we needed to reward ourselves so we all went to CVS, where I had extracare bucks to spend. The girls got candy for their reward. Me? I got some more windex, and a diet coke. That made me happy. If you want to know what "chores" Sadie did to earn a reward, well, she waved a duster all over the living room while singing. It occassionally actually touched some furniture and maybe some dust. I think she rearranged the dust actually. She also "organized" the movies. She said they were all in the wrong covers, so she put them where they belong. Except she can't read and she didn't pay attention to the pictures. So actually she organized them into the *wrong* covers. But she thought she helped, so she got candy too. We don't usually get treats for chores, but that playroom was a big one. And I really wanted the diet coke. And I had extracare bucks to spend. :-)

2. We spent some time reading. We all read to ourselves, Hannah read to Sadie, and I read to both girls.

3. Hannah created a "purse" for Sadie and a "mailbox" for her out of construction paper. Too bad I didn't get pictures of these..and they didn't last. But it kept them busy for a good 45 minutes.

4. I had this brilliant idea that we'd take a couple balloons they had in the floor and do paper mache with them. So, we all sat in the floor and tore up a magazine I had into little strips. The next step will be to put them on the balloons and cover them with a glue/water mixture. Let dry. Repeat. Paint. I think we're going to make people out of them. But we didn't actually get farther than tearing the paper today. Because when we finished tearing, we, um, I mean the girls, couldn't resist doing this:

(that's a twizzler in Sadie's mouth.)

5. As I was cooking supper, Hannah left me this message on the dry erase easel:

(It says "to mommy can you come to our dance show after supper and if you need to work or clean stuff and clean dishes and do lundry thats ok with us from Hannah")

6. So of course, we had a dance show, complete with numerous costume changes.

7. Then, we settled down for the evening..showers, snack, teeth brushed, and ended with some more reading time.

A 100 degree day isn't so bad sometimes. But I hope it's cool enough to actually get outside tomorrow. I think the high is supposed to be only 94. I hope we don't get cold. :-)