Thankful Thursday...

Today, I am thankful....

1) For my dear friend, Angie Schmitt. We got together yesterday, and it was wonderful! Our kids sure love to be together, too! AND.... we finally were intentional and put quite a few dates on the calendar! YEA!
2) For the fact that Walmart has carried the strap-hinge scrapbook pages that I use.... it's been great to get them much more cheaply than at a craft store (and certainly than through Creative Memories). The unfortunate part: Walmart just decided not to carry them anymore! BOO!
3) For a vacuum cleaner that works. Ollie is shedding...
4) For answered prayers! Miss Kate is continuing to make improvements, slowly but surely (right, Krista?!!)
5) For my mom and dad's willingness to watch our kids during small group every other week. We had a great time with friends last night, and Aaron and Isaac had a great time swimming at Grandma and Grandpa's!

A Preschool Post

Well, Aaron has officially conquered the first 5 days of his schooling career! It's been a fun two weeks, and I'm encouraged by the fact that he looks forward to me dropping him off each day. I think we've BOTH gained confidence! However, I've found a few things that I was not prepared for:

1) Not being able to get a straight story. So.... last night.... for the life of me, I couldn't figure out if they took a field trip to the fire station yesterday or if it was to happen today. Once I finally concluded that it was going to happen today, Aaron decided to add that they were going to ride a tractor, a red one, in the field.... or to the fire station. Okay, so I ended up COMPLETELY confused by the story of a 4-year old. AND.... for the record, they didn't take a field trip ANYWHERE today! I was telling my friend, Angie, about it over lunch today, and she had a good thought.... wondering if the teacher had told them yesterday about ALL of the field trips that they are going to take throughout the year, and Aaron just lumped them all into one day, Wednesday, August 29th, in his sweet little head. Thank goodness for Mrs. Seiffert's parent letters on Wednesday, so I actually know what is going on! I am looking forward to volunteering in his room at some point, too, so I have a better feel for what he is talking about.
2) STORIES about other kids. Our conversation at dinner the other night went something like this:

A: Mom, ____ pooped his pants at school today.
Me: Oh, that's sad. Did Mrs. Seiffert help ___ get cleaned up?
A: No, she didn't know.
Me: Really? So _____ told you but not the teachers?
A: Yep.
Me: What did you do?
A: Nothin'.

Well, allrighty-then! For the record, the stories now have me paralyzed in fear about the stories that will go home about "Aaron Greene" over the years. Oh well. (Beth, feel free to fill me in on all that Brielle shares! HA!)
3) The fact that Aaron declared this morning that he doesn't like circle-time. To be quite honest, this one isn't a huge surprise to me.... this has been my biggest concern with Aaron as he moves forward in this schooling thing; the child HATES to sit still and HATES being quiet even more. But.... his reasoning did surprise me: he said that it hurts his legs to sit cross-legged. Huh....
4) I actually love picking him up and dropping him off. The whole "sit and wait in line" thing is actually fun for me. I love to people watch, and it's fun to see other mommas and mini-vans! Now, the big debate for me.... I've already learned that I'm a roll-down-the-window-so-we-can-chat-while-we-wait-in-line kind of momma.... I've learned that isn't the case for everyone!!! :(
5) 2 1/2 hours IN TOWN is a long time. On Aaron's first day, I was SO excited to just take ONE to run errands. I had to go to Aldi's and Walmart.... and the time just kept dragging on, giving me only one desire: to spend more money. For the record, I've gone HOME every day since!!! Scott and our banking accounts are thankful for that fact!!!
6) I've already seen that there are going to be fun new conversations at our house, too, in other arenas. Last night, we filled out an "All About Me" paper that Mrs. Seiffert had sent home with us. It was fun to hear him talk about his favorite sports and favorite foods. Then, the final line was, "Something special about me is:" My sweet little guy said, "Um, God?!!" I said, "You mean that God made you?" Aaron got really excited and said, "YEAH!" So fun....

The best video yet....

One of the things that I love best about our church is our baptism celebration! It's awesome... twice a year... people taking a stand in their faith... an external expression of an internal confession. 98 people two weeks ago! Awesome! Enjoy the video.... you won't regret watching it (way to go Scott Greene and Steve Divine....the video creators!)

(in spite of a WHOLE lot of rain, God still did His thang in people's lives.... in a wading pool, nonetheless!)

Life and clutter....

Dear blog readers.... I am feeling a little overwhelmed today....

Do you ever have days that the clutter of your home seems to overtake you? I'm having one of those days. It's not even that the house is SO terrible today, but I still feel like the "mountains" and the tasks are endless. I keep asking God, "Where do you want me to START?!!! Okay, what next?!!!" I can get so easily overwhelmed by the endless list that I just don't start in the first place. Can anyone relate to that?!! AND.... for anyone who knows me, you know that I am a clutterbug (as I've confessed on this blog on numerous occasions!) So, it's like one thing feeds the other.... not knowing how to start AND being a clutterbug (oh, and then there is the little problem of finding the motivation to start.... wow, I'm giving myself counseling via this blog entry.... yuck!)

Okay, I've said it.... now, I'll ask: what works for you?!! I know some of you are neat-freaks by nature; congratulations!!! NOW, help the rest of us!!! HA!!!

Well, I'm off to tackle one mountain: the laundry! Hugs to you!

Lysa TerKeurst and Co.!

Okay, friends.... if you need some encouragement today and a testimony that our God is living and active AND still speaks, this is the one for you. Check out Lysa TerKeurst and her friends (and family) on the Oprah show! I heard Lysa speak a year ago at the Hearts at Home Conference and was amazed by this story. God IS asking us to take steps of faith.... and yes, sometimes, LEAPS of faith! I'm so thankful that Lysa and Art and their friends listened to this precious God of ours! What a testimony!

Oh dear, Miss South Carolina.....

WHAT?!!!! Okay, so the other night, Scott and I were flipping channels and landed on the Miss Teen USA pageant for a bit and were BLESSED to see this clip LIVE! Oh my dear..... The good news: Miss South Carolina did NOT win. The good news: She had a beautiful dress. The bad news: Congratulations, Miss South Carolina. You've created a "YouTube" moment!!! (but that's good news for us!)

Trip to the Dentist

Well, after much mommy-guilt for not doing it sooner.... I finally took Aaron to the dentist on Friday. I was very nervous about it.... but he did AWESOME!!! He made me so proud.... wasn't timid at all and the entire office staff kept going on and on about what a terrific patient he was! Way to go, Aaron!

I don't get it....

Okay, I must say, I loved Carrie Underwood on American Idol awhile back. In fact, I'm pretty sure that she has been my favorite, by far.... however, I'm a little dumbfounded by something and am wondering if you can help me understand. How does sweet little Carrie go from "Jesus, Take the Wheel" to this. Yes, I know the song has been out for quite awhile.... I get it.... I know that it's about making money by selling records.... but really?!!

Thankful Thursday...

Today, I am thankful...

1) For Presby Preschool. It's so wonderful to have a preschool option in our town that seems to be loved by almost everyone. Presby always gets rave reviews from my friends at church, and Aaron seems to love it already!
2) For cleaners with bleach involved. I cleaned the toilet the other day (whew, it was WAY overdue....) and the Lysol cleaner with bleach was fabulous! Doesn't the SMELL of bleach just make you think, "CLEAN!!!!"
3) For the 80-90ish people who were baptized at the church at our baptism party. It's so incredible to witness changed lives! Amazing!
4) For our digital camera. It's not a new one, by any means.... in fact, it's around six years old.... but we're always pleased with the pictures that come from it, and it's so fun to put my scrapbooks together because of fun pictures!
5) For the wonderful daddy that Scott is. I cannot begin to express what an amazing dad he is to our kids. Amazing actually doesn't begin to describe it. It's so fun to think about the adult men that they are going to become because they have had such a fabulous example. Their daddy loves their mommy.... and sets appropriate boundaries with work and other activities so that he can pour himself into their lives. One of the greatest privileges of my life is to parent with Scott.

On that note, my kids take notice! Yesterday, Aaron asked me when I would leave again so that they could have another boys' night.... because I had prayer group last night, I was pleased to tell him they were having another boys' night last night (I had worked on Tuesday.... whew, two nights in a row!) So, Aaron proceeds to tell me that boys' nights are "SOOOO FUN," and he hopes that I will always leave so they can have boys' night every night. Yikes, that wasn't so good for mommy's confidence and well-being, but as I thought about it more, I was just overwhelmed with gratitude for the relationship that Scott has built with both of our boys. When I was leaving last night, I told Aaron that I wouldn't be home in time to tuck him in and asked if that was okay.... he was delighted and said "SURE!" Okay, so life is ALL about daddy at our house these days.... when will daddy be home, what is daddy doing right now, where is daddy.... and to be quite honest, I'm more than okay with that!

Pray for Kate

Well, Miss Kate had a horribly hard day. She actually flew to Indy via Parkview's helicopter with her mommy, and once she was there, her little heart stopped for 20 minutes. PLEASE, PLEASE PRAY!!! Thankfully, she is under the care of a wonderful team of doctors and nurses again. To read more about Kate's journey, click here.

He (WE!) Did It!

First day of school.... First day of school! Aaron seemed to enjoy it! He talked about playing with Brayden and Brielle.... he talked about the fact that he liked song time.... he said he met Silas and that "he is nice".... mommy survived drop-off/pick-up procedures.... Isaac survived without a morning nap.... and I did Aldi's and Walmart with only ONE CHILD! Whoop!

One question though.... how does the time go by so quickly?!!! I was fine this morning UNTIL I grabbed the camera to take "first day of school" pictures and thought to myself, "How has it already been 4.... almost 5.... years?!!" I did rationalize a bit though.... as I was taking the pictures, the school bus was driving through our neighborhood, and I thought, "Well, at least I'm not putting him on the bus.... yet." And then, I saw some friends from church at Walmart, a mom and her daughter, who were shopping because she goes to college in Indy tomorrow. Okay, yeah.... that made me feel better, too. One BABY STEP at a time.... Presby is definitely a wonderful place to start! After orientation last night, I had such HUGE peace of mind about sending him there.... goodness, they even gave me a handout with the Bible stories that they will be discussing! Hoorah!

Our little man was pretty excited about a NEW backpack! :)

An Eventful Saturday....

On the way to Muncie, before "the incident"

We spent a few days in Muncie this weekend, visiting with Scott's parents, sister and her family, and grandparents who were visiting from Florida. We had a great time connecting with them! So good to see our boys enjoying their cousin, Lainy, too!

However, the weekend took a turn south on Saturday morning. We stayed in a hotel to free up some room at Scott's parent's house.... that morning, I was getting ready, and Scott took the boys to the pool to enjoy some swimming before we headed out to the house. Once I was ready, I walked into the pool room to get them and was greeted by Scott holding Isaac, who had a mouth full of blood. He had fallen on the wet tile and landed face-first. Once we got the bleeding to slow down, we figured out that it was his top lip and his top two, WIGGLY, CHIPPED front teeth that were bleeding. Well, needless to say, we spent the next hour on the phone, trying to find a dentist who would see him (we had figured out that he didn't need stitches on his lip.... that's why we didn't just go to the ER!) We found an urgent-care dental office in Anderson and hit the road. They were able to take x-rays (that was an experience with a 15 month old.... yikes!) and determined that the roots of the two teeth are not fractured! YEA.... but now, it's just a "wait and see" thing.... to see if those little ligaments will tighten back up or if the teeth are going to fall out! AHH! Poor guy! We also received the news that we can't give him a pacifier.... WHAT?!! So..... it's been an eventful couple of nights around here. Actually, he was up A LOT the first night, and Scott and I both did a lot of rocking. BUT.... last night, he slept through the night again! YEA!

So.... if you think about it.... would you pray for Isaac? We are hoping that those little teeth stay in his sweet little mouth. We will be taking him to a pediatric dentist in the next couple of weeks for a re-evaluation, too.

Some fun pictures from the weekend.... Isaac and Daddy hanging out in the hotel on Friday night.

Kisses for Lainy!This picture was taken after "the incident." If you look closely, you can tell that Isaac's teeth moved a bit. :( Four generations.... Aaron, Grandpa Greene, Great-Grandpa (Papaw) Greene, Scott, and Isaac

EDITED TO ADD: Did anyone else notice that the five men/boys in this picture all look alike?!! Golly.... those Greene-genes must be STRONG! Jill's daughter looks exactly like her, too!

Cute drivers

Now, really.... could they be any cuter?!! I think not! I know I'm biased.... but adorable! Adorable! Adorable!!!

Bitter at Blogger

For the record, I'm mad at "blogger" right now.... I typed a WHOLE post, 4 paragraphs in all.... but when I went to change the size of the font, it deleted ALL of my text.... and then, at that very moment, my "draft autosaved" (I had been saving it all along as I typed.... however, of course.... it saved the blank, deleted screen). SO..... I'm frustrated right now.... and won't be retyping. Maybe I'll post again tomorrow.... when I'm not so mad at blogger.... but for now....

I'm bitter at blogger....

I better hit the "publish post" button before bad things happen....

Goin' Golfin'!

It's no secret to anyone who knows my hubby.... he loves to golf. He loves to golf by himself or with a friend. He loves to golf on a nice course or a not so nice course. He loves to golf with a cart or on his own two feet. He loves it in any state. He loves it in any month. He just loves it.

So.... my "good wife" accomplishment of the summer has been to ENCOURAGE him to play golf more. Last summer, he barely played at all..... of course, with a brand new baby in the house, I think that we were both probably in survival mode! But.... after last summer, I decided that I needed to be very intentional about encouraging him to golf (and.... he got a wonderful gift from my parents for his birthday in May that helps with the expense part of golfing!)

Here is where "the tension" comes in.... OF COURSE I want my hubby to have fun. OF COURSE I want him to have a break. OF COURSE I want him to have time to connect with his friends. The tension comes in that I have to remind myself to ENCOURAGE him to play..... because, OF COURSE, I would always rather have him with us. He is so kind in this area.... my beloved is not one to just come home and declare, "I AM golfing this weekend..." He is always so kind to ask if it fits our schedule.... I am so appreciative of that.

SO.... today, I am thankful.... he had a "comp-day" after working some longer hours earlier in the week and last Sunday.... and right now, he's enjoying this beautiful day on the course. I'm glad I encouraged him.... I am glad that he is reconnecting with a friend..... and I'm glad that, in turn, he encourages me to go scrapbooking once in awhile, too!!! Wink, wink!

I think that one of the things that I've learned over the past 4 1/2 years is that it is okay AND NECESSARY for Moms and Dads to take care of themselves. I think that many do not.... but should. I am just thankful to have learned the lesson.... and I know that I am better mom because of it.... and Scott is a refreshed dad because of it, too! So.... what do YOU do to JUST HAVE FUN?!!!

Thankful Thursday....

This edition of "Thankful Thursday" is dedicated to my best friend, my soulmate, the love of my life, my companion, my partner, my extra special blessing from God.... Scott Greene!

Yep, folks.... today is our 10th Anniversary!!! Happy Anniversary to us!!!!!!! It's been an amazing 10 years! Full of high-highs and low-lows, but God has molded us and shaped us through it all! I'm so thankful!

I love you, Scott Greene! Here's to another 10+!!!!! :)

This was such a fun day.... the day Scott proposed 11 years ago!

The countdown is on!

How in the world is my babe ready for preschool?!! In 6 days, he will officially be a member of Mrs. Seiffert's 4-year old class at Presby Preschool! And today, I'm SO THANKFUL that I just signed him up for 3 mornings a week. Yep, it's going to be a time of transition for us (especially since Isaac has been a pattern of sleeping until 9:30 or 10:00 in the morning, and I think we'll have to be out the door by 8:45! Fun! Fun!)

I will say though.... Aaron is SO excited! He's got his new backpack all ready to go!!! I think God has been preparing me as well.... Aaron has WHINED every morning this week because he wants some other kids to play with. When I offer to come outside and play, he just whines louder saying, "But you're not a kid!" Yep, our social bug is going to love kid-time! By the end of the year, I may even be regretting not putting him in 5-days!!! HA!

Blessings to all of you who are busy preparing for a new school year!!! May it be a great one for you and your family!

Chase the Lion!

Mark Batterson spoke these words at Granger Community Church last week.... I heard them, was inspired, and hunted them down on his blog. Enjoy.... may you be inspired with me! :)

"Quit living as if the purpose of life is to arrive safely at death. Set God-sized goals. Pursue God-ordained passions. Go after a dream that is destined to fail without divine intervention. Keep asking questions. Keep making mistakes. Keep seeking God. Stop pointing out problems and become part of the solution. Stop repeating the past and start creating the future. Stop playing it safe and start taking risks. Expand your horizons. Accumulate experiences. Consider the lilies. Enjoy the journey. Find every excuse you can to celebrate everything you can. Live like today is the first day and last day of your life. Don't let what's wrong with you keep you from worshipping what's right with God. Burn sinful bridges. Blaze a new trail. Criticize by creating. Worry less about what people think and more about what God thinks. Don't try to be who you're not. Be yourself. Laugh at yourself. Quit holding out. Quit holding back. Quit running away. Chase the lion!"

A Thought for Today....

I read this on another blog.... it really made me think about the truth of this in my own life, so I thought I would share it:

"In the darkest nights come the sweetest songs,
in the strongest winds grow the deepest roots,
in the loneliest places come the most profound character traits.
The things we run from are the very things that make us great."
(Chuck Swindoll)

So true, so true....

"Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us." - Romans 5:3-5

My Water Babies!

Thought you might enjoy some fun pictures from Saturday at my mom and dad's pool! I LOVE pool pictures.... they are always so bright and fun!!!

Aaron's latest adventure is conquering hand-stands in the pool! Here is a picture from the tail-end of one of his acrobatics!

Quote for Today

"Before I got married, I had six theories about bringing up children; now I have six children, and no theories."
-Lord Rochester

Don't ya just love that?!! This quote was a part of the weekly email that I receive from MOPS, and I just loved it. Isn't it amazing how you can have life AND parenting all figured out before having children, AND THEN..... you realize once you look at that sweet little baby's face, "Oh my goodness, I don't know ANYTHING!" I remember looking at Aaron as an infant and realizing, "Oh my goodness, this child will DIE if I don't take care of him. He is relying on me for everything.... LITERALLY!" Yeah, this parenting thang can be a bit overwhelming! Then.... you get through the infant stage and think you are doing pretty well at this parenting thang, and they become toddlers.... who have words.... and talk back.... and disobey!!! AHHHHHHH!!! AND THEN.... you add another baby to the mix who is completely different from his older sibling! AGAIN..... AHHHHHH!!!! Yep, I'm done with theories!!! Our latest dilemma has been GUESSING at why Isaac has been waking up at night again.... is it teeth? is it diaper rash? is it separation anxiety? Alas, we realize.... we have NO theories.... only more questions about parenting and about life in general!!! And.... thankful to know THE ONE who does have the answers!

Do it anyway....

Forgive me.... I may be completely out of the loop and this video may be years and years old. However, I wanted to share it tonight because it is new to me and inspired me today.



So, here's the question.... what's your dream?!!! Scott has a shirt with that statement across the front, and every time he wears it.... it really does make me think. I believe that God has placed a dream within each of us that WILL make a difference in our world. Lately, I feel like God has been stretching and challenging my heart.... calling me out to pursue and fine tune exactly what He has made me to do and the life that He wants me to live. Yes, it's a journey.... No, I haven't arrived. BUT.... one thing that He has reminded me of over and over again is the fact that we only get ONE chance in this lifetime. What am I going to do today that will impact eternity?!!! For me personally, the words that I keep sensing in my spirit are: THINK BIGGER. We often limit God. We nearly always seem to limit ourselves. Unfortunately, we may even limit our children and our families, too.

For me, for today: THINK BIGGER.

"For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do." Ephesians 2:10

Glory to GOD!

I don't know the full story.... but I do know that on a previous trip to Africa, God used the prayers of Beth Moore to heal a little boy named Matthew. Here is what her daughter, Amanda, said in a previous blog:

"For those of you who don't know his story, Matthew was on his deathbed when she met him and his mother two years ago in a malnutrition clinic. He was starving, malnourished, and dying. By the time he arrived at the clinic, he was too far-gone to be helped. My mom prayed with him and pleaded for his healing. You may have seen footage of it on LIFE Today. God did a HUGE miracle, to the praise of HIS glory, and Matthew was completely restored! My mom said he just turned five years old and was running all over the place today."

Make sure to check out yesterday's post on her blog. The before and after pictures are astounding! ONLY A GOD LIKE YOU!!!! Thank you, Jesus!

17?!!

Okay, some things in this world make me nearly speechless.... well, not really (for anyone who knows me personally, I'm CERTAIN that you would say that I am never speechless!) However, it has been brought to my attention (thank you, Anne) that the Duggars have welcomed their 17th child into the group. Here they are, appearing on The Today Show. Any thoughts, comments.... anything?!!

For the record, in case you were wondering.... the Greene family will NOT be having 17 children! Merely thinking about life with 17 children leaves me breathless.... and feeling guilty for the days that I complain that life is hard with TWO!

BUBBLES!

Just some fun shots from a few weeks ago!

Thankful Thursday...

Today, I am thankful....

1) For air conditioning (no big surprise there.... after my tribute to AC a few days back!)
2) For little Kate's progress. I can't wait for the day when jump onto Krista's blog and see that they are headed OUT of the PICU!
3) For Deb's safe arrival home from South Africa! The boys and I are headed to Fort Wayne to see her tonight and will also get to visit with her this weekend. Can't wait to hear all her stories and see all her pictures. Just a sidenote: BETH MOORE was on her 16-hour flight home!!! No, she didn't talk to her, get her autograph, or a picture.... but I still think that is pretty cool!
4) That Aaron still naps!
5) For God's faithfulness in providing for our family. Today, I went to Walmart and had a very short list of "school supplies" for Aaron for preschool. As I grabbed a new backpack, I was just so grateful that God has given us the means to allow Aaron to attend Presby Preschool this fall.

Three scenarios....

So, yesterday was an interesting day with Aaron. Our day started with Aaron begging me to go to work so that he could spend the day with daddy instead of me. Huh.... that feels really good to hear as a mom who has devoted her days to raising her kiddos, now, doesn't it?!! When I asked him why.... he said that he wanted to take a nap with daddy that day. Well.... interesting. SO.... bless Scott's heart.... because I was close to tears anyway, he called Aaron into our room and proceeded to say, "If I wanted to play with Isaac every day and didn't want to spend time with you, would that hurt your feelings?.... You need to go tell your mommy you're sorry for hurting HER feelings." So, that was the end of the first scenario....

Second scenario: I ended up being spontaneous yesterday and took Isaac to get a 15-month pictures taken in Fort Wayne (side note: I'm SO proud of myself.... I went to The Picture People and ONLY got the free 10x13! YEA! That was my goal, but I'm always a sucker for good pictures!) Anyway, I told Aaron that if he made good choices and helped me get Isaac to smile for the pictures, I would take him to Fazolis for lunch and to Chuck E. Cheese to play a few games. Things DID go relatively well.... so the next stop was Fazolis. As we were sitting at lunch, after I had just wrestled both children, our drinks, and the silly "pager" device to get our food, we were all finally sitting at a booth.... so, being the smart mommy that I am, I said, "Let's thank God for our lunch," bowed my head, and started praying.... the next moment is one that I wish I could forget (and take back...) In the midst of my deeply thoughtful prayer (ha...), Aaron proceeded to shoot his straw wrapper into the blasted center of my forehead. Whew.... never knew a moment could change so quickly.... I went from praying to my Creator to LECTURING my 4-year old in 2-seconds flat (no, there wasn't an "Amen" included in that prayer... we didn't make it to that point!) It went something like this: "If you EVER do that again..... blah, blah, blah!" Yes, Aaron's eyes were the size of saucers (and I am sure that the people sitting around us were a bit alarmed as well. I couldn't bear to look at anything but his little face at that point. No, I was NOT yelling.... I was speaking THROUGH my teeth, if you know what I mean!) Whoops.... way to go, momma.

Okay, so here's the third scenario of the day.... I was laying in bed last night.... and the feeling of mommy-guilt was overtaking me as I thought about a few events from the day.... when THIS thought hit me, "Huh, every 'expert' that I've ever heard speak on spiritual development talks about the fact that a child's concept of God is formed BY the age of 5. CRAP!!! I only have 3-more months with Aaron AND I've blown it!!!" Now, believe it or not, I was actually able to get to sleep last night.... but that was an interesting thought. What have I done right as a mom in this journey? What have I totally screwed up? I think that BOTH lists could probably go on and on and on. BUT.... I think THE biggest issue is THIS: I WANT my kids to hear me say that I'm sorry. I want them to know that I mean it. I want them to know that mommy is trying to live her life more like Christ. I want them to know, without a doubt, that they are loved by an imperfect mommy.... but a perfect God.

A tribute to our air conditioning...

Ahem.... will you please all join me in song:

I love my air conditioning, oh yes, I do....
I love my air conditioning, you are so true....
When we get our bill, we'll be BLUE....
BUT air conditioning, I LOVE YOU!!!

Kate is off the vent, Kate is off the vent!!!

Look at this precious darling! Isn't she the sweetest thing?!!! Please pray that Kate has a WONDERFUL day.... full of LOTS of coughing to get the gunk out of her lungs!!!

Every once in awhile....

.... I get it "right" as a momma. Because the "career" of motherhood is so immeasurable, I often am left to wonder if I'm measuring up. Many times, I feel like I fall SO short and am SO disappointed in myself. BUT.... occasionally, JUST occasionally, I know that I've done something right. Tonight was one of those nights....

Now, I should preface this with the fact that the boys and I had a ROUGH day today. I'm sure a part of it was the fact that we are all dealing with re-entry after a weekend apart, but it was just ROUGH.... momma was in a funk.... boys were in a funk.... our house was CERTAINLY in a funk. SO.... I was thankful that this opportunity presented itself to redeem the day:

We had finished dinner tonight, and Scott whisked the boys outside while I finished cleaning up the table and dishes. After the clean-up was complete, I ran upstairs to visit the potty (I know, it's all about the glorious details of the story....) While I sat for a moment, I heard the sweetest sound: the giggles of a 4-year old, MY 4-year old! Yep, the fun had begun outside... filling water balloons, spraying with the hose, drips pouring down cheeks. But.... I also noticed a moment later when I looked outside that Scott was completely dry. Huh, this momma (and WIFE!) had a choice to make. The kids were completely occupied by daddy.... I could sit down and enjoy a moment of QUIET inside, OR I could join in on the fun. I'm glad I chose the latter.... I snuck around the front of the house and filled a pitcher and bucket, asked Aaron to join me, and we drenched daddy.... and I drenched Aaron.... and then, Scott drenched me. It was fabulous fun!

Now, this may not seem like such a HUGE deal.... but in my life, IT IS! I don't know how you're wired.... but I often think that fun EQUALS work. You see, as I sat on the toilet, debating about whether I would step outside into the world of MUGGINESS and join in, a part of the debate that was rolling through my head was the fact that my joining in would create even more work.... more showers, more grassy mess, more mud, and more laundry.

However, I have to say: IT WAS COMPLETELY WORTH IT! The boys are both cleaned up and in bed, the laundry is now already in the dryer, and my heart is happy because I HAD FUN!

So.... how about you?!!! Have you had FUN today?!!! And maybe the better question.... HOW are you going to have FUN for the rest of the day?!!! I'm asking myself that question as I think about tomorrow as well.... hmm, anything but CandyLand!!! HA!

10,000!

WHOO-HOOOO!!! Okay, I have NO idea who you all are.... but my hit counter just passed the "10,000" mark!!! Thanks for reading along about the Greene-family journey! I hope that it has been an enjoyable journey for YOU to see pictures of two adorable kids (yeah, I'm certainly biased, but YES.... they ARE adorable!) and hear about the adventures of one plain, momma and wife who is loved by one INCREDIBLE God! My hope has been that this blog would be an encouragement to someone, somewhere, in the midst of something as well!

Blessings to you, today.... my precious blog reader!

We're BACK!

Hi all! We had a wonderful weekend in Indy.... just the two of us! It was such a great, and much needed, getaway! We enjoyed relaxing, relaxing, and MORE relaxing!!! Thanks to the joys of Priceline (and the name-your-own-price-feature), we stayed in a wonderful hotel for way LESS than half the price (YEA! We're so cheap!) We enjoyed some yummy meals out, some great movies, and a great hot tub and pool back at the hotel! We enjoyed just walking at the mall and "people-watching" and hanging out at Borders, too (yeah, that's one of our favorite things to do!) We had some wonderful, MUCH-NEEDED conversation, too! A HUGE thank you to my mom and dad for watching the boys so that we could getaway for the weekend! Aaron and Isaac had a wonderful time with Grandma and Grandpa AND their cousins, Abby and Zach.

One of the extra blessings for us this weekend was that we were able to visit Baby Kate (and her mommy and daddy, too) in the PICU of St. Vincent's Children's Hospital. She is such a gem! She was still sedated because of all of the lines coming in and out and because of her vent, but she started kicking her little legs while we were there! Krista reports that she even woke up a little bit and started clapping later on this weekend! Our hope is that we were able to be a bit of an encouragement to Andy and Krista during our visit.... even if it was just through a hug or two!

Thankful Thursday...

Today, I am thankful for...

1) Our friends, the Pierce family! Nanette kept Aaron and Isaac for me yesterday while I went to the meeting. They are ALWAYS so willing to help and love on our boys! We're meeting for lunch today, and then, Aaron will be spending the afternoon with Nanette and Austin! He is SO excited!
2) FOR THIS WEEKEND! Scott and I are getting away to Indy and can't wait!
3) For my cell phone. I don't use it a lot as it was a gift from my parents "for emergencies" mostly, but when I need it, it sure is wonderful to have! Such a blessing!
4) For great talks with Scott over the past couple of days. It's been fun to just process this thing called life together!
5) For my friend, Kim. She stopped by to chat and look at scrapbooks (which I love to show off but no one usually looks at!) We had fun chatting about how much our kiddos have grown!

Have a great Thursday everyone!

Fearless!

Yes, it's been confirmed.... we have a fearless 4-year old! He ATTACKED the high dive at Camp Adventure last week.... over and over and over.... It's actually quite astounding to me. Last year (yes, when he was 3!) he watched his older buddy, Jacob, swimming without a life jacket or floaties and just decided that he was done with his, too. Then, same thing with the diving board.... Last year, he did actually get a bit fearful on the high dive and started changing his mind about jumping once he was at the top. Yeah, this year.... that didn't happen once!

Enjoy the pictures! This is a 5-picture sequence (just all cropped differently so that you can see different facial expressions!) I love this feature on our camera.... I haven't figured it out but Scott has it mastered! Very fun!

Ladies and Gentlemen....

Yes, my friends, it's REALLY happening! We just received Aaron's letter in the mail from Presby Preschool!!!!!!!!!! August 21st is THE DAY! He's pretty excited..... and I think that I'm getting there, too! It was so fun to show Aaron a picture of his teachers (Mrs. Seiffert and Mrs. Fall, for those of you who are wondering!) and to read through the list of goodies that we need to take in (I was thrilled because the list isn't too long.... I wasn't thrilled to read about the amount that we owe at orientation, but I know that IS a part of the schooling process, and I also KNOW that Presby is worth it!) The most fun part was seeing his class list.... WOA.... his first classmates! So fun.... and there is an awesome crew of kiddos from our church so we are all pretty excited about that as well!

Pray for Kate- Part 2

Kate has had a rough couple of days. They tried to take her off the vent which caused some significant problems in her lungs. After the doctors all consulted with each other, they decided that they need to go back in to fix the hole in her heart that formed when some stitches gave way (I believe....) Anyway, her surgery will be around 10:00 AM today.... PLEASE PRAY! Two open heart surgeries in a week.... she's such a little fighter! Krista- love you, friend!!!