Babies

I was going through a pile of papers today and found this.... a quote that was cut out and sent to us by a family member when Sophie was born. It's one I must share.

"When God wants a great work done in the world or a great wrong righted, he goes about it in a very unusual way. He doesn't stir up his earthquakes or send forth his thunderbolts. Instead, he has a helpless baby born, perhaps in a simple home and of some obscure mother. And then God puts the idea into the mother's heart, and she puts it into the baby's mind. And then God waits. The greatest forces in the world are not the earthquakes and the thunderbolts. The greatest forces in the world are babies." ~ E.T. Sullivan

Merry Christmas!

In case you were wondering, she asked Santa for "purple lollipops, marshmallows, and Nemo". :)

Where's The Line to See Jesus...

I know Melissa has more or less taken over "my", I mean..."our" family blog, but I thought this Christmas Song captured one of the challenges that many of us have as parents. How do we capture the true meaning of Christmas along with all the childlike wonder our children have of Santa, Christmas trees and reindeer.

Look up Becky Kelley- Where's The Line To See Jesus- Official Music Video on You Tube
-or-
Go to the link below and read the story behind the song.

http://wheresthelinetoseejesus.com/

Merry Christmas,
Tim

Snapshots

I've been in such an introspective, bloggish mood lately that I haven't posted any pictures in a while. Here's a few, going all the way back to August. Oh, you know.... those summer days when sandals were the only shoes in the closet, play time was spent outside in the sun, and my little girl turned two.

These salt water sandals are definitely browner now than they are in this picture, but nonetheless, I'm declaring them to be one of the pairs of shoes I'll keep as a reminder of her toddler days. Adorable.

On to Fall, and "teaching" her about Halloween. She LOVED getting books from the library about pumpkins, costume parties, and trick or treating.

We painted pumpkins and Sophie was in heaven.
Jeremy got to join us for our Halloween fun. I'm so grateful that we take the time to take pictures like these....

After a bath for Sophie (her Mickey Mouse shirt sadly never recovered), we had a yummy chili dinner to celebrate my parents' birthdays.

Pumpkin Patch!

I picked up a few pumpkins from my parents' garden, along with a wildly rambunctious yet incredibly adorable little 2 year old.

Hausfrau Musings

I read this the other day in a book I'm reading, and I felt compelled to share. (I'm assuming most of you are like me and don't know a word of German, so I'll tell you in advance... hausfrau means housewife.)

"I think it's because there is a hausfrau amnesia - some magical mind eraser that blots out the struggles we experience on a daily basis. I believe it's the only way we can get out of bed in the morning and do it all over again. It's also why our species survives. But those struggles are precisely what we need to keep in mind, because our voices are lost when we don't tell the stories that make up our days." ~ Nicole Chaison, The Passion of the Hausfrau

Thank you to those of you out there who aren't afraid to tell the real stories behind being a parent. It's why I love blogs like www.rantsfrommommyland.com - although I don't personally know the two moms who write it, they're honest, funny and completely down-to-earth. Parenting is ridiculously hard. And I for one don't like it when I feel like I'm the only one who'll admit to that.

I'm apologizing now for all the blog posts in the past that have just shown pictures with one or two descriptive sentences. They were done that way because of a lack of time.... not a desire to deceive or share the real stories. Because what you don't know is that right after that "Sophie's first swim class" picture was snapped (this is coming soon, I promise), Sophie refused to do anything the teacher instructed and cried crocodile tears for 20 minutes. Immediately following the "Willamette Jet Boat Excursion" picture, we removed her life jacket to find a red blotchy rash all over her neck. Tim wanted to tell the boat driver to clean their jackets more frequently. I reminded him it was the WILLAMETTE river we were just drenched with. My germophobic side wanted to break down and sob on the spot.

The conclusion is this: I appreciate when your stories are shared..... the real, unedited stories. It makes me feel less alone in this hausfrau world.

The Place That Built Me

I went back to work this summer. For the first time since Sophie's birth, I navigated the waters of working mom - for three months. And among the things that surprised me was an overwhelming feeling of closure. It had been three years since I had worked at NW Natural, and that included a year of working at George Fox before Sophie was born. I had no lingering thoughts of needing closure. No issues to resolve, no strong desire to continue a career. I went back for the money. Period. And even then, there were tear-filled days where the money didn't seem nearly enough reason. But towards the end of the three months, something strange occurred. I'd drive into Portland, enter the parking garage across the street from my office, and like clockwork the same song would come on the radio. I found it oddly amusing at first. Can't the country radio stations around here come up with a little more variety? But after about four times of this happening, I finally stopped and listened. And then cried. You see, sometime during my journey back to work I'd felt something that I couldn't label. Maybe my stubborn "I'm proud of being a stay-at-home mom" attitude wasn't letting me acknowledge it. Coming back had changed me. Or maybe, it was the opposite. Maybe coming back had reminded me of how much motherhood had changed me. And in the process, some of those nagging questions stay-at-home moms have to to face were answered. (Do I have value beyond changing diapers and wiping noses? Do I still have what it takes to do this job well? And more specifically for me - do I still have the confidence to step in front of a large group of construction men and instruct, organize and delegate?) What a blessing it was to face those questions head on, prove that I can still do it, and then gracefully let go and slip back into mommyland. But above all that...above the proving my value to society beyond the four walls of my own house...I realized that coming back was a source of healing for me. You see, NW Natural is, in a way, my home. My dad has worked there for over 30 years. It is where I have grown up - both as a young girl accompaning my father on "Bring Your Daughter to Work Days" to an adult learning how to make a name for myself beyond "Charlie's Dauther". It is where I learned to assert myself, challenge others' opinions, and establish a voice of authority. That one company is a significant source of my growth as an employee and a confident woman. Leaving work to become a mom changed me. But leaving NW Natural left wounds that only coming back "home" could mend.

The House That Built Me
*excerpt from song by Miranda Lambert

I thought if I could touch this place or feeling
This brokenness inside me might start healing
Out here it's like I'm someone else
I thought that maybe I could find myself
If I could walk around I swear I'll leave
Won't take nothing but a memory
From the house that built me

You leave home and you move on and you do the best you can
I got lost in this old world and forgot who I am

Gym Classes

Sophie's been taking gym classes at the Little Gym in Lake Oswego this fall, and she LOVES it! It's been so fun to watch her confidence build as she interacts with the other kids and try new skills. She also really loves her teacher and will do anything for her. (When I ask her if she wants to try something, it's "no" about half the time, but for Teacher Angela, she'd scale a mountain!).