Life | Page 28 | Minivans Are Hot

To my son on his birthday

December 16, 2009 by Kelli

Today marks two years since Landon entered our lives. I’m filled with recollections of that day. The snow, the cold, the quiet hospital room, the super easy labor, the painful delivery, and the weight of my son as he was laid on my chest.

It is never far from my mind how close we were to losing Landon. I will never be able to escape the memory of watching his little figure kick and dance on the ultrasound as the doctor explained to me the signs of miscarriage and the likelihood of that happening.

I’ll never forget the fear I felt driving home that day knowing that my child was perfectly healthy, but my womb might fail. It was true terror.

And yet here he is. I am filled with such gratitude that the Lord sustained my body and brought his life to fullness here on earth. Because he is one spectacular little boy and he is by far the best Christmas gift I’ve ever received.

And so, on this day, I share a few things that I want my son to know as he continues to grow.

LANDON

You are loved.

You have an older brother and sister that adore you. Lean on them for protection, wisdom, understanding and companionship.

You will, however, need to know how to defend yourself. I’m proud to say that you’ve already begun using the word “No” liberally, particularly with your sister.

You’ve also learned to hold your own in a wrestling match with your brother.

If, when you are three, your sister comes to you and asks if she can cut your hair – RUN. Run away screaming. Heck, call 911 if you need to. Just don’t let her near you with scissors.

And if she ever asks you to cut her hair – again, run for your life. Seriously – get the heck out of there. Just trust me on this one.

Your older brother will be your protector. He will be your best friend, your mentor and another model in your life. He’s a great kid.

Your sister also adores you. She will be the one that you will torment as the years go on, but she will also be fiercely protective of you. Just make sure you look after her too.

You are more than content to have a sippy cup in one hand and a ball in the other, but one of these days you’re going to need to start eating.

You have a love of sports that is uncanny for your age. Particularly the sports that involve a ball. Your daddy is thrilled.

While you love all sports, you show a particular affinity for football, which makes me a little nervous. If you see me with my eyes squeezed shut at your games one day, don’t be offended.

Your second love, however, is basketball.

If you want a model of Christ, look to your daddy.

If you need advice, tap into your daddy’s wisdom.

You also have two grandfathers who are full of wisdom. Know them and listen to them. You will be a wiser man for it.

But just know, without a shadow of a doubt, that if you ever need a hug, I’m here waiting. I will snuggle you close for as long as you will let me. And as you grow, I will continue to love you unconditionally.

You are my miracle baby, forever and always.

Happy Birthday, Landon Lee.

Filed Under: Family, Landon, Life, Motherhood Tagged With: Happy Birthday

Wherein I leave you with more photographs

December 11, 2009 by Kelli

Today, as the temperatures are hovering in the teens, I am longing to be back in this lovely place. Yes, loooooonging…

This adorable little boy will be two in five days. Excuse me while I go sob in the corner for a bit.

Turns out Tia has a knack for gymnastics. After only a few weeks of lessons, she was bumped up to a more advanced class where she is the only three year old in a group of four and five year olds.

She’s perfected her cartwheel and now does it off our ottoman whilst pretending that it is a balance beam. She is freakishly strong and has no fear. But really, does this surprise anyone? Remember this picture, which I took when she was not yet two years old?

Then, of course, there was this post which described the catalyst for us actually signing her up for a gymnastics class.

Mmm-hmm…We’re not shocked that she’s got some talent in the gymnastics arena. Unfortunately, she’s going to be way too tall for the sport, but we’ll let her keep it up for as long as she enjoys it.

And speaking of Tia – wasn’t it just yesterday that she looked like this standing next to her not yet four year old brother? She is now less than two months away from being four herself.

If anyone has discovered a way to make time stand still, please pass on the secret. Pa-leeeeaaase.

And this one just because. Oh he’s yummy…

Happy weekend everyone!

Filed Under: Kids, Landon, Life, Motherhood, Random, Sloan, Tia

It’s Been One of Those Days…

December 10, 2009 by Kelli

It’s a busy week. It just is. And today kicks off an extremely busy weekend. I started the day off with an adjustment by a chiropractor because I’m going on almost two weeks with limited mobility in my neck and shoulders. I’m not sure what I did, but whatever it was, it’s left me a bit like Frankenstein as I have to move my whole body in order to look side to side or up and down.

So I did that. Then I headed to drop Tia off at gymanstics, noticing on the way that I had no gas. My Distance to Empty button was ticking down the miles as I raced to get her there in time. I coasted up to the gas station on fumes, then headed to a party store to purchase cups for tonight’s Christmas musical.

I finally found the much needed cups and went to pay only to discover that I was missing my license. Apparently some two year old took it out of my wallet yesterday when he was playing with it. And because I had nothing else with a picture ID on it (and no cash – who carries cash?!) they wouldn’t let me purchase the cups. Never mind that I completely emptied my wallet and showed them all manner of identification, they refused to let me pay by credit card or check.

I left very annoyed. I mean, I get it – you have to be safe, but come on! It’s 16 degrees out and I have a toddler with me! Show a little bit of compassion. I even offered to call my husband and have him verify my identification. But they still refused. I’m not going back to that store.

So in the car on the way home from gymnastics, I had to call the person who asked me to buy the cups and leave a message explaining that I was unable to get them. And while I tried to talk, Tia and Landon were yelling in the background.

I was already frustrated and this frustrated me more.

So I overreacted, which necessitated an apology to my children when we returned home.

Then I went to make lunch and realized that while we have a lot of food in the house, very little of it is quick and easy to prepare (remember, we’re trying to overhaul the eating habits here) which means I had to come up with something fairly easy and healthy that my kids would still eat.

I failed. They did not like the tuna fish, crackers and cheese I fed them – well, Sloan did, but the other two were not impressed. They ate crackers and a piece of our ginger bread house for lunch.

Now it’s time for naps, then russian school, then opening night of the Christmas musical. And I may still have to swing by another party store to buy cups. At some point I need to fit in a shower as well. *I may be starting to hyperventilate a little here*

It’s just going to be one of those days…

Filed Under: Christmas, Family, Holidays, Life

Because I only have time for bullet points

December 8, 2009 by Kelli

– I have just a short amount of time to spend on the computer today so this is going to be a random bullet list of all the things on my mind today. Aren’t you excited?!

– I was at church until 11:00 last night rehearsing for the musical which opens this Thursday! Please come watch it if you’re in town. It’s going to be great. Tonight is dress rehearsal, tomorrow we have the night off and Thursday we open. There are six performances you can attend and you can purchase tickets here. There are only a few tickets left for the Thursday evening show and the Sunday afternoon show, but Friday night, Saturday night and Sunday night all have plenty of seating still available! Bring your kids – it will be fun for everyone!

– It’s amazing how productive I become when my schedule is jam packed. Already this morning I’ve bathed, fed and dressed three kids; I’ve vacuumed the floors in the entire house; I’ve folded a load of laundry and I’ve cleaned a bathroom. I will be gone most of the morning helping set up for the musical, then I plan to stay busy this afternoon getting my house in order before going back to church. Whew – it’s like running a marathon.

– When I gave the kids their gluten free cereal with Almond Milk the other day, Sloan asked me if I was feeding them poison. Nice.

– On the plus side, I did manage to get Landon to eat an entire plate of Salmon yesterday! And Sloan and Tia both polished off a large helping of broccoli last night. Landon took one bite and gagged, but at least he tried it. We’re making progress.

– While I’m done with a majority of my Christmas preparations, I still have a lot to do. Next week will be as crazy as this week trying to prepare.

– I went to a Bible study yesterday morning that really convicted me on my need to be more intentional about educating my kids on the true meaning of Christmas. I came home with a ton of ideas. Now if I could only find the time to implement them…

– I really want to send out Christmas cards, but I’m not sure it’s going to happen this year. We’ll see how next week pans out.

– Every morning after Sloan gets on the school bus, I let Tia watch Handy Manny and the Imagination Movers. I feel a little guilty about allowing her to sit and watch TV for that long every single morning. But it allows me to get things done like blogging, showering and cleaning up so I push the guilt aside. Is that terrible?!

– I feel sad about the Tiger Woods situation. My heart hurts for them.

– I just sneezed all over the keyboard. I need to go get some cleaner and wipe this up. Have a happy Tuesday and get your tickets for the Christmas dessert musical theater at First E-Free this weekend!

Ba-Bye.

Filed Under: Christmas, Holidays, Kids, Life, Random Tagged With: A Time for Christmas, First Evangelical Free Church St. Louis

The Miracle of Adoption

December 1, 2009 by Kelli

I love the process of adoption. I have several friends who have either already adopted children or who are in the process of adopting and I am always amazed and awed at how beautiful it is to watch a child go from a future of uncertainty into a future of love and protection. The process of adoption is truly a miracle.

Last night, I got a call that one of my dearest friends was headed to the hospital to pick up an 11 day old baby boy who needed a home. She and her husband had been patiently waiting for several months for a call that there was a child that needed them and last night, God brought that yearning to fruition in a miraculous way.

They were not expecting an infant. They were planning on an older child. But God had a different plan. At 4:30, they got a call from their adotion case worker and by 9:00 they were home with a precious 6 pound baby boy.

Isn’t God miraculous?

This morning, as I was reflecting on last night’s events I read this in Galations – “But when the fullness of the time came, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the Law, so that He might redeem those who were under the Law, that we might receive the adoption of sons. Because you are sons, God has sent foth the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, crying, ‘Abba! Father'” Galations 4:4-6

Whenever I look at a child who has been adopted into a loving family, I am reminded once again of our adoption as heirs to the throne – we are the adopted children of God.

What would this tiny baby’s life have been like if Amy and Andrew had decided not to give him a home? If no one had given him a home? How desolate would life have been for this child to have no one to love him? No one to open their arms and give him the full rights of a son?

But, indeed, there was a home for him. A home ordained from the beginning of time by the Creator Himself. And with that home come all the rights of a full fledged son. This child will always know love. He will always know acceptance and grace, mercy and community. And he will be raised to know who his true Father is by two parents are fully committed to teaching their children of God’s grace.

Isn’t that beautiful? Do you understand the picture that paints for us – followers of the God above all creation? We too have been adopted unto Him. We are His children and with that come all the privileges that are bestowed upon a child from his Father. We don’t deserve it. We could have been left alone, desolate, without the knowledge of unconditional love and acceptance.

But we were not left alone. Just like this child was not left parentless in a hospital. Just like the Chinese boy that our friends adopted was not left in an orphanage. Just like Andrew and Amy’s first son was not left in a foster home. No, we were not left alone. We were brought into the fold; called out for a purpose and given the title Child of God.

Yes, adoption is a beautiful thing. I find myself moved every time I look at these adopted children and I see their faces light up as they look at their parents. They’re young now, so they don’t understand the miracle that’s taken place in their lives. But someday…someday they’ll know.

I sometimes forget the miracle that’s taken place in my own life. It is a miracle to be a child of God. It is a miracle to be grafted from darkness into the light of a family. It is a miracle.

Rejoice with me today in the miracle of adoption, will you?

Filed Under: Adoption, Family, Life, Random Tagged With: Adoption

I am a Black Friday Convert

November 30, 2009 by Kelli

I hate shopping. Really, truly hate shopping. It ranks just below going to the dentist or the gynecologist. I just don’t find it to be enjoyable. Unless, of course, I have money to spend (which is rare) which makes it just slightly more fun.

I’m the kind of person who usually knows what she wants, runs in the store, picks it up and I’m out again. I am not good at finding deals because I don’t have the patience to sift through racks of clothes. I admire people who can do that.

So I never thought I would venture out on Black Friday. You know, because it involves shopping – and shopping in the dark, no less. Thursday afternoon I laughed at all the Facebook status updates as people exitedly proclaimed they were getting up at 2:30 am to go shopping. Ugh. Sounded miserable. I sat in my little comfy office chair and scoffed at their foolishness.

Then I talked to a friend who brainwashed convinced me that there were really good deals to be had and that it was fun to get up early and save money. And, against my better judgement, curiosity got the best of me and I began to wonder if maybe, just maybe, I should give it a try.

“You should make a list,” she suggested. “Write down the things you want so you’ll be organized and can really hit the best stores.”

That was a brilliant idea. Except that a list requires organization. And organized I am not. I tried to make a list – I really did. I got on the Black Friday deals website – but the sight of all those stores completely overwhelmed me and I began to panic and gave up on the list making. I was just going to wing it.

So I decided, despite my lack of a list, to go for it. But I was not going to get up in the middle of the night. No sir. Because I am smarter than that.

I set the alarm for 5:00 on Friday morning. As I did so, I once again questioned my sanity. Was I really going to get out of bed at the crack of dawn to shop?

But, having made up my mind to try it, I shut down the little Jiminey Cricket in my head and pushed set. And true to my word, the next morning I rolled out of bed around 5:15. Five minutes later, I turned my frigid car on and tried to warm up. Then I looked at the clock.

It said 4:22. It said 4:22 IN THE A.M. What?!

Then it hit me. The kids were messing around the day before with the alarm clock. They must have set the clock an hour ahead. So there I sat – one of those looney people who gets up in the middle of the night to go shopping. I briefly considered going back to bed, but decided since I was up I’d better make the most of it.

And you know what? I had a blast!

I did score major deals and got the kids some great gifts that I wouldn’t have gotten otherwise. And the other people that were shopping with me weren’t a bunch of crazy robots – they were just enjoying the experience. We laughed and talked as we waited in line. There was a fun energy in the air. We were all hopped up on adrenaline. We compared items, talked about our families, laughed at how crazy it was to be standing in line at 4:45 in the morning. It was fun!

At one point, as I stood in the longest shopping line I’ve ever stood in with my cart full of crazy cheap items, I got a little light headed. It was a combination of the money savings, the adrenaline rush and extreme fatigue. It was awesome. Better than any drug.

At 8:15, Lee called as I stood in my fifth line of the morning and told me he needed to leave for work in a half an hour. So I raced home, picked up the kids and headed back to the mall.

Because I wasn’t done. Me – the girl who hates shopping. I wanted more. And I got more!

But only a little more because I forgot a stroller and I can only wrangle three kids for so long before the experience becomes miserable for all involved.

And then we went to see Santa. Because, you see, I bought the presents the kids have been asking for and, knowing my kids, it would not be entirely unlikely for them to change their minds before Christmas and say they wanted something else.

So I made them give their wish lists to Santa so that when they change their minds later I can say, “Oooohhh…Sorry – you already told Santa what you want. Can’t change it now.”

So at 11:00, I came home for good. My shopping is all but completed and I saved close to 300 dollars in the process. Just typing that makes me get all giddy and shaky.

I, my friends, am an official Black Friday convert.

Filed Under: Christmas, Holidays, Life, Random, Thanksgiving Tagged With: Black Friday

Re-post: The Pilgrims Have Landed: A Brief History

November 26, 2009 by Kelli

I originally posted this on November 21st of last year, but it bears another posting mainly because I don’t feel like coming up with anything original today and because sometimes you just need to laugh at yourself…

When I was fifteen years old, I went on my first mission trip to the former Soviet Union. We spent two weeks in Belarus and Moscow. Part of our program was to go to different schools and show pictures of our every day lives and explain what life was like for us as American teenagers.

One of my pictures was of my family celebrating Thanksgiving. The first time it was my turn to speak, I was very, very nervous. I wanted to make sure I spoke slowly enough for the students to understand me and I was afraid of leaving out important details. I should have been more worried about giving false information…

When I got to the Thanksgiving picture I was on a bit of a roll but was still dealing with my nerves. As I spoke about Thanksgiving, suddenly our leaders and interpreters in the back of the room started laughing. As I went on, I noticed them laughing more and more visibly. After the program was over, I came over to them, wondering what on earth I’d said that was so hysterical. Apparently, my explanation of Thanksgiving was this:

“This is a picture of my family celebrating Thanksgiving. In America, we celebrate Thanksgiving to remember…the…pilgrims landing, um, on earth. So we get together and have a big meal together…”

Seriously? The pilgrims landing on earth? That was my first legitimate and real blonde moment. I’ve only had a handful of those in my lifetime, most between the ages of 15 and 20. Needless to say, I have never lived that down. People still bring it up – namely my parents.

So here I am, much older and wiser. And to comemorate my wisdom and the Thanksgiving holiday, here is a brief history of Thanksgiving:

*In 1621, the colonists of Plymouth and the Wapanoag Indians shared an autumn harvest. Gathering together for a large feast, everyone pitched in to prepare the meal. Historians can’t say for sure what foods were actually consumed during the feast, but they know that venison and wild fowl were on the list due to journal records. *

Gathering to give thanks for the harvest was actually a longstanding tradition with the colonists, and there are several recorded events that took place before the 1621 meeting. Nevertheless, the feast of 1621 has long been acknowledged as the first official Thanksgiving and it is this meeting that we celebrate yearly. We celebrate to thank our Maker for the blessings He has bestowed upon us, for the way that He has provided, for the bounty that we are all blessed to share.

And we thank Him that the pilgrims landed on earth…

Geez.

*For more information go to this website.

Filed Under: blast from the past, Holidays, Life, Thanksgiving Tagged With: History of Thanksgiving

Taking Care of Business

November 23, 2009 by Kelli

– First of all, I am going to announce the winner of the Testament Focused drawing. I now know why I don’t like doing giveaways. I wish every one of you could win and I hate that I only get to pick one winner – or that Random.org only got to pick one winner for me. If I could afford it, I would buy and ship a book out to every one of you.

But I can’t afford it, so you’ll have to buy your own! Ha!

Anyway, drumroll please…

The lucky winner of the Testament Focused drawing is…

Number 9 – Nicole from Here’s the Diehl!

Congratulations, Nicole. I’ll get that book to you as soon as it comes in and I’ve had a chance to look through it myself 🙂

To the rest of you – thanks for playing and I am really sorry you didn’t win. But you can still get a copy for yourself and don’t forget that 100% of the first 25 copies sold goes to Soaring Wings Ranch.

– It was another busy weekend for the Stuart family. Daddy was out of town, which always lends itself to insanity. We watched the movie Up on Friday night. I laughed to not cry through the first half hour of the movie, then genuinely laughed the second half. It’s a very sweet film.

– While Lee was gone, I noticed it was rather frigid in our house and realized the furnace was blowing cold air. so, with Lee talking me through it over the phone, I managed to relight the pilot light on the furnace thereby restoring warmth and order to my home.

Because I am She-ra.

– Saturday we got to stay home in the morning and I got some laundry done while the kids attempted to drive me insane played quietly around the house. Then we headed out the door to visit with a sweet friend who’s in town for a little while before going home to greet her husband who is fighting for our freedoms in Afghanistan!

We love you Jeremy!

– Sunday I woke up to discover that my voodoo face cream apparently works by burning the skin off my face. I guess I got it too close to my eyes because both eyes were swollen shut and the skin was rather enflamed. An ice pack and a lot of lotion later, I headed out the door where I spent the next 11 hours at church leading worship, making Christmas crafts with Sloan, singing Christmas carols for the craft workshop and previewing scene one from our upcoming Christmas musical!

Whew – I’m still exhausted.

– When I returned home, I wrote this article for the St. Louis Blogger’s Guild in which I took a rather unpopular opinion on an incident that took place here in St. Louis. You’ll have to read the article to know what I’m talking about, but I still firmly belive that while Kurt Greenbaum may be known as a bit of a jerk around town, the person posting the comment had no business doing so from school grounds and I therefore think he is suffering a dreadful consequence for his foolishness.

Not many people agree with me. There is widespread belief that Kurt Greenbaum violated an unspoken code of conduct on the web and he is being slaughtered for it. Perhaps that is the case, but the fact remains that this school employee still made a foolish choice.

It’s a tough situation.

If you haven’t read the article you have no idea what I’m talking about.

– Now I’m home, still nursing swollen eyes and trying to gear myself up to put away the mountains of laundry I washed this weekend. I also may pull out a few Christmas decorations, much to my husband’s chagrin. He has this crazy idea that we shouldn’t start celebrating Christmas until after Thanksgiving!

I know, right?!

Filed Under: Blogging, Christmas, Giveaway, Holidays, Life, Random Tagged With: A Time for Christmas, Kurt Greenbaum, Soaring Wings Ranch, Testament Focused

Mature Woman My BLEEP

November 19, 2009 by Kelli

I went to the dermatologist the other because I’m having this little problem with my skin. The problem?

My skin is breaking out worse than a prepubescent teen! That younger looking skin we’re all looking for? Yeah, I have it…but not in a good way.

I’m pretty sure I’ve never had breakouts like this before – ever. And I have bad skin. I’m chalking it up to severe hormonal imbalances. Here is my completely unsubstantiated, non-scientific reasoning:

In the last ten years, I have either been on birth control pills or I have been pregnant. In the nearly two years since I’ve had Landon, my body has had to figure out how to regulate itself. And it’s failing miserably.

Actually, I hate being on birth control. It makes me into a crazy lady. I took the Pill for only 18 months after Lee and I got married, then stopped because I felt like a nut on it. And eight months later, I had a baby in my belly.

After Sloan was born I didn’t take the pill again and 19 months after he came, I was pregnant again. I got pregnant for a third time only 13 months after Tia was born.

And here I am, two years out of having my third child and my face is all wacked out, my stomach is acting weird and a whole host of other hormonal related issues are taking place.

Awesome.

So I went to the dermatologist and I asked him for voodoo medicine that would make me all better. Do you know what he told me? Do you KNOW what he told me?!

“It’s your age,” he said, his eyes inches from my face. “Generally the more mature woman has issues with breakouts along her jawline.”

I’m sorry…did you just say the more mature woman?! The more maTURE WOMAN?

I am far too young to be described as the “more mature woman!” No sir. The more mature woman is in her sixties. And that’s what I told him. And he laughed, then shrugged and said maybe.

And then he saw that I wasn’t laughing – I was serious. And he laughed again, but it was a more nervous laugh. Then he said, “You know…it’s just a common problem I see for women in their thirties.”

Hmph…more mature woman. Clearly he doesn’t know that I’m only 29 plus a couple of years. Poor man.

Then he gave me my voodoo cream and out I went, my near two year old on my hip, to buy a miniskirt and a crop top, which the more mature woman would not wear but a young woman would!

Okay, I didn’t buy a miniskirt or a crop top, because I’m a wise YOUNG woman. I merely took myself home and slathered on the aformentioned cream and waited for it to work it’s magic, while repeating to myself over and over:

You’re young, you’re young, you’re young, you’re young…

More mature woman my *BLEEP*

Incidentally, I really like my dermatologist. He’s a very nice man. Clearly a little misinformed, but nice nonetheless.

Filed Under: funny stuff that happens, Life, Random

Photos and Links

November 11, 2009 by Kelli

We’ve had a beautiful Indian Summer this past week, but alas, I know it is soon to draw to a close. My hydrangea bushes still have some beautiful blooms on them and rather than see them shrivel up in the coming cold and rain, I decided to enjoy them just a little bit longer:

-My sister-in-law, Becke’, has just finished her first book and it’s amazing! It’s called Testament Focused and it combines her love of God’s Word with her love of photography. It would make a great Christmas gift. You can preview the book here. I highly, highly recommend it. And, bonus, 100% of the profits from the first 25 books sold go to an amazing ministry called Soaring Wings Ranch.

– I am participating in our church’s Christmas musical called A Time for Christmas and it opens in just a few weeks. It’s a broadway style musical filled with singing, dancing and a whole lot of Christmas music! It’s been a pretty big commitment but I think it’s going to be worth it as the play is really starting to come together. Tickets went on sale this past Sunday. You can purchase them here (just click on the link that says Purchase Tickets). The show runs from Thursday, December 10-Sunday, December 13. I would love it if you could come! I’ll be the one singing the high D and shattering all the glass in the room. Good times…

– The Tooth Fairy made a second appearance in our home the other night after I pulled out Sloan’s second wiggly tooth. And, for the record, I don’t like pulling teeth out of someone’s mouth – even if that someone is my kid. It’s gross and it set off my gag reflexes big time. Here he is sporting his large window.

Notice the crooked smile? Yeah…Guess who has massive amounts of orthodontic work in his future?!

– And finally, I got my hair colored yesterday and I was feeling brave. So I told her to make me a brunette, and that she did!

You only get to see the back of my head because I haven’t washed or painted my face yet today and yes I’m vain enough to know not to put a scuzzy looking picture of myself on the interweb!

Happy Wednesday!

Filed Under: Christmas, Gross, Holidays, Life, Random Tagged With: A Time for Christmas