...breakdown in communication. Roy and I have had one of THOSE weeks, and I think all married people know what I'm talking about. I don't have any reason why we are at each other. I hate it when we're like this, too. Nothing I do or say is good enough, and I'm sure he feels the same way. He doesn't hear what I'm saying to him; when I try to talk to him about something (like the testing Payton is going to start next week) he immediately loses his patience with me which stonewalls the conversation. I, in turn, shut down completely and just start not caring about things (like the testing Payton is going to start next week).
Today was probably the first time in our relationship that Roy and I didn't speak to each other more than once during the work day. That NEVER happens. Even when we are upset at one another we still talk throughout the day - at least until today. And I don't know how to fix it.
All of this being said, I am proud of the relationship that we have. For all of the bad moments, we have many more good moments, weeks, etc. I guess we need to refocus. I thought that's what we had done a couple of weekends ago when we went to Branson but I guess we either didn't stay long enough, didn't REALLY focus on us or need to focus on the Lord more. I have a feeling that it's probably the last one.
Lord, thank You for giving me Roy as a mate. I prayed for someone that would be the husband and father that Roy is. Please place a hedge of protection around our marriage and our family. Our priorities get out of order, Lord, and we need to remember that You are our only priority.
Roy, no matter what we go through as a couple, I am thankful for the trials that we are given because they are from the Lord. He knows what He has in store for us and I have trust and have faith in Him. Jeremiah 29:11
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
A Night Away
Just a quick post tonight. I spent an hour (and a TON of flour) making play dough last night for Payton which put my "to do at home" list behind. I didn't get to bed until midnight!! Uggh.
I wanted to capture here the wonderful weekend Roy and I had together. Our birthday gifts from his mom, dad and sister was to watch the kids overnight while he and I got out-of-town for a night. And we took them up on it quickly!! Jenny, Roy's sister, came up to the house at 2:00 on Saturday afternoon. We were pulling out of the driveway at 2:30. She spent the night so before we left I had to show her the "lay of the land" otherwise we would have been in the car waiting for her to get here!
We went to Branson for the afternoon/evening for some shopping, eating and reconnecting. It was a great time and I feel blessed that he and I had that time together. Roy surprised me with a suite at the Hilton Branson Landing which was beautiful! We stayed on the top floor with a view of the fountain and Lake Taneycomo. We got there, checked in, dropped our bags off and then hit the shops!! The hotel is basically right above the "strip" known as Branson landing which has several shops and restaurants. We shopped until they closed (with a quick stop at Macaroni Grill for dinner). We got back up to the room and sat on the leather couch and watched the Florida/LSU game. It was so nice to be able to sit and hear what we were watching on tv. On the way back to the room, we stopped at Marble Slab Creamery and got some ice cream. We ate our ice cream while we watched the game, and I got to eat ALL of mine!! Bliss!
We slept in on Sunday, got up and had some coffee in the room, got dressed and then hit the road, but not before we stopped and got some fantastic breakfast at a little restaurant on the downtown square. Yum! After that, a quick trip to Dick's 5&10 to pick up a few fun things for the kiddos, a drive down the "76 strip" to the outlet mall where I found some cute things for the boys at Carter's and a darling pair of shoes for Eli at the Stride Rite outlet. Payton lucked out at Justice the night before :)
When we got back, Roy's mom and dad were here. Their plan was to have Jenny come up Saturday afternoon and spend Saturday night and then "Nanny and Paw" come up at 8:00 the next morning and let Jenny go home. It was a PERFECT night away. Roy and I had such a great time and we really needed it. It was just the amount of time away. We missed the kids and if we were gone much longer we would have REALLY missed the kids and wouldn't have enjoyed ourselves as much. It really was the perfect amount of time. I'm sure as they get older the easier it will be for us to be gone longer. Right?
I love our marriage. I love my husband. I love my children. We are so blessed.
"To whom much is given, much is required." The Lord requires a lot from me and Roy because He has given us so much!
I wanted to capture here the wonderful weekend Roy and I had together. Our birthday gifts from his mom, dad and sister was to watch the kids overnight while he and I got out-of-town for a night. And we took them up on it quickly!! Jenny, Roy's sister, came up to the house at 2:00 on Saturday afternoon. We were pulling out of the driveway at 2:30. She spent the night so before we left I had to show her the "lay of the land" otherwise we would have been in the car waiting for her to get here!
We went to Branson for the afternoon/evening for some shopping, eating and reconnecting. It was a great time and I feel blessed that he and I had that time together. Roy surprised me with a suite at the Hilton Branson Landing which was beautiful! We stayed on the top floor with a view of the fountain and Lake Taneycomo. We got there, checked in, dropped our bags off and then hit the shops!! The hotel is basically right above the "strip" known as Branson landing which has several shops and restaurants. We shopped until they closed (with a quick stop at Macaroni Grill for dinner). We got back up to the room and sat on the leather couch and watched the Florida/LSU game. It was so nice to be able to sit and hear what we were watching on tv. On the way back to the room, we stopped at Marble Slab Creamery and got some ice cream. We ate our ice cream while we watched the game, and I got to eat ALL of mine!! Bliss!
We slept in on Sunday, got up and had some coffee in the room, got dressed and then hit the road, but not before we stopped and got some fantastic breakfast at a little restaurant on the downtown square. Yum! After that, a quick trip to Dick's 5&10 to pick up a few fun things for the kiddos, a drive down the "76 strip" to the outlet mall where I found some cute things for the boys at Carter's and a darling pair of shoes for Eli at the Stride Rite outlet. Payton lucked out at Justice the night before :)
When we got back, Roy's mom and dad were here. Their plan was to have Jenny come up Saturday afternoon and spend Saturday night and then "Nanny and Paw" come up at 8:00 the next morning and let Jenny go home. It was a PERFECT night away. Roy and I had such a great time and we really needed it. It was just the amount of time away. We missed the kids and if we were gone much longer we would have REALLY missed the kids and wouldn't have enjoyed ourselves as much. It really was the perfect amount of time. I'm sure as they get older the easier it will be for us to be gone longer. Right?
I love our marriage. I love my husband. I love my children. We are so blessed.
"To whom much is given, much is required." The Lord requires a lot from me and Roy because He has given us so much!
Thursday, October 8, 2009
Kids say the darndest things
We all know that kids say whatever comes through their brain. They are filterless and are understably clueless about tact. My boys are certainly no different than any other kids. I've told some friends a couple of things that the boys have said, and all those friends have mentioned that I should be writing these things down. So here goes:
Benjamin - "Ewwww, mommy. I can see that man's crack!" This was a couple of months ago in Walmart when we walked past a gentleman who was bending down to study what brand of pickles he should buy. Unfortunately, he pants kept "bending" after he had stopped.
Eli - "Mommy, I wanna watch putball." This was just a couple of days ago when Eli and I were watching the NFL on Sunday, and I was bored with the game. So I changed it to the Food Network. Eli wasn't pleased.
Benjamin - "Look mom! Yoda!" This, again, at Walmart. Only we were outside in the parking lot when a little old woman walked by us. Benjamin thought she resembled the much-adored, extremely wise Star Wars creature. I just prayed that she was old enough not to hear him.
Eli - "Oh muh doodness!" He just likes to walk around the house and say this in his sweet, little Eli sing-song voice. I love it!
Payton - "I didn't wash my body because there was no body wash." "Payton, there was a bar of soap in the shower." "I didn't want to use the soap because it was too slippery." Mmmmmkay...
Benjamin - "But mom! I haven't watched that movie in 30 years!"
More to come I'm sure!
Benjamin - "Ewwww, mommy. I can see that man's crack!" This was a couple of months ago in Walmart when we walked past a gentleman who was bending down to study what brand of pickles he should buy. Unfortunately, he pants kept "bending" after he had stopped.
Eli - "Mommy, I wanna watch putball." This was just a couple of days ago when Eli and I were watching the NFL on Sunday, and I was bored with the game. So I changed it to the Food Network. Eli wasn't pleased.
Benjamin - "Look mom! Yoda!" This, again, at Walmart. Only we were outside in the parking lot when a little old woman walked by us. Benjamin thought she resembled the much-adored, extremely wise Star Wars creature. I just prayed that she was old enough not to hear him.
Eli - "Oh muh doodness!" He just likes to walk around the house and say this in his sweet, little Eli sing-song voice. I love it!
Payton - "I didn't wash my body because there was no body wash." "Payton, there was a bar of soap in the shower." "I didn't want to use the soap because it was too slippery." Mmmmmkay...
Benjamin - "But mom! I haven't watched that movie in 30 years!"
More to come I'm sure!
Tuesday, October 6, 2009
Eli's Coming, Hide Your Heart Girls
So I'm only one day behind in getting Eli's birthday post up, but I could think of nothing better to write about on my birthday. Especially since I got to bring that sweet baby boy home on my 32nd birthday. Eli's birth was pretty uneventful; it was much quicker than Benjamin's - actually come to think of it, everything about my pregnancies, labor and deliveries for the boys were completely different - just like the boys themselves.
Eli - here's your story - so far :)
First let me tell you that I was pregnant with another baby before I got pregnant with you. Obviously, having that baby was not in God's plan for our family, because if we had had that baby we would not have had you. So although I am sad about that miscarriage, and think about that baby often, I have to be happy, too, because we have you. We found out that we were pregnant with you in January 2007, due on October 7th. Due to the miscarriage, I had several ultrasounds so we got to see you more often than most mommies :) I was so worried about you throughout my first trimester. I prayed for your safety and for a healthy baby.
One Sunday at church, I was sitting in the choir loft during communion (it was Palm Sunday I believe) I was praying to God that I would be able to carry you to term and that He would give me an answer to my prayer. Right then, I felt you squirm in my belly for the first time immediately after that! I just sat there and cried because God had answered my prayers when I got pregnant with you and he answered my prayers when I felt you move in my womb.
I went into labor with you around 3:30 in the morning on October 5th. I had gotten up to go to the bathroom and when I got back into bed, as I was about to lay my head down on my pillow, my water broke! I called the doctor's office because I wasn't sure what to do. Again, it was very different than my labor with Benjamin. Once again, Paw and Nanny came to the rescue, this time to retrieve Payton and Benjamin. We drove down to the hospital, they confirmed that my water did in fact break (um thanks - I already knew that) and we were ready to have our second son!
The hospital was incredibly crowded that night. There were three sets of twins in the nursery and a total of 16 babies! I thought nothing of it really; I mean I knew that was a lot of babies, but it wasn't going to affect me...ummm not really. Because of all of the babies that had been born, the babies that were about to be born and the babies that had just started the process, the really important doctor was a little busy. And by really important, I don't mean the one that was to deliver you, I'm referring to the doctor that had the medicine to numb me from the waist down so I wouldn't feel anything :) I had to wait longer ( a lot longer) than I would have liked to get my epidural so there was about an hour or so when I was in a TON of pain. I didn't really feel anything when I was in labor with Ben, but this was something completely different! Finally the doctor came (he looked exhausted) gave me my epidural and I became human again :) I got a little bit of rest, but you were excited about meeting us so the nurse told me that I could start pushing. I pushed with your daddy next to me counting to 10. The nurse checked me again, told me to push again. I did as I was told. She checked me again and then told me to wait. She then ran out of the room got the doctor. The doctor told me to push and out you came! Seriously - three pushes and you were here! You were born around 1:50 in the afternoon (it was a Friday) and weighed 9lbs and were 20 inches long. You had a lot of hair as well and I was so happy to finally meet you. You decided that you wanted to celebrate your birthday without anyone else so you showed up the day after Uncle Monte's birthday and the day before mine.
Eli- I want to tell you how much I love you and how much you mean to me. I will be honest and say that you were a difficult baby (due to your allergy to milk that we didn't know about until you were about 4 1/2 mos old) but you are now the sweetest, kindest and most loving kid! You love to give everyone kisses, and nothing makes my heart melt faster than seeing your face when I pick you up at school each afternoon. I love how you cradle my face in your chubby little hands to kiss my cheek, then my nose, then my lips. I love that you crawl up in the chair with your daddy to watch "putball" or how you crawl on the couch with me to play patty-cake. You have the sweetest demeanor, but you can also get a temper, which right now is adorable to watch.
I will tell you the same thing that I told Benjamin in his post. Your father and I pray that you will grow up to love the Lord and to seek Him in all things. We pray that you will be the spiritual leader in your family. That you will shepherd your wife and children to follow the teachings of Christ and that you will live as Christ did. The Lord never ceases to amaze me, and my amazement of Him was multiplied a hundred-fold on the day He let me be your mommy.
I love you and I am so proud that you belong to me. It is an honor for me and for your father to be your parents. You are going to be a wonderful man and I know that you will have much success in life. Please always remember the importance of family. Stay close to Payton and Benjamin. You will always be their little brother but they will look to you for guidance. Although I know there will be days in the future that you won't like this, you will always be my baby. I will love you forever!
Eli - here's your story - so far :)
First let me tell you that I was pregnant with another baby before I got pregnant with you. Obviously, having that baby was not in God's plan for our family, because if we had had that baby we would not have had you. So although I am sad about that miscarriage, and think about that baby often, I have to be happy, too, because we have you. We found out that we were pregnant with you in January 2007, due on October 7th. Due to the miscarriage, I had several ultrasounds so we got to see you more often than most mommies :) I was so worried about you throughout my first trimester. I prayed for your safety and for a healthy baby.
One Sunday at church, I was sitting in the choir loft during communion (it was Palm Sunday I believe) I was praying to God that I would be able to carry you to term and that He would give me an answer to my prayer. Right then, I felt you squirm in my belly for the first time immediately after that! I just sat there and cried because God had answered my prayers when I got pregnant with you and he answered my prayers when I felt you move in my womb.
I went into labor with you around 3:30 in the morning on October 5th. I had gotten up to go to the bathroom and when I got back into bed, as I was about to lay my head down on my pillow, my water broke! I called the doctor's office because I wasn't sure what to do. Again, it was very different than my labor with Benjamin. Once again, Paw and Nanny came to the rescue, this time to retrieve Payton and Benjamin. We drove down to the hospital, they confirmed that my water did in fact break (um thanks - I already knew that) and we were ready to have our second son!
The hospital was incredibly crowded that night. There were three sets of twins in the nursery and a total of 16 babies! I thought nothing of it really; I mean I knew that was a lot of babies, but it wasn't going to affect me...ummm not really. Because of all of the babies that had been born, the babies that were about to be born and the babies that had just started the process, the really important doctor was a little busy. And by really important, I don't mean the one that was to deliver you, I'm referring to the doctor that had the medicine to numb me from the waist down so I wouldn't feel anything :) I had to wait longer ( a lot longer) than I would have liked to get my epidural so there was about an hour or so when I was in a TON of pain. I didn't really feel anything when I was in labor with Ben, but this was something completely different! Finally the doctor came (he looked exhausted) gave me my epidural and I became human again :) I got a little bit of rest, but you were excited about meeting us so the nurse told me that I could start pushing. I pushed with your daddy next to me counting to 10. The nurse checked me again, told me to push again. I did as I was told. She checked me again and then told me to wait. She then ran out of the room got the doctor. The doctor told me to push and out you came! Seriously - three pushes and you were here! You were born around 1:50 in the afternoon (it was a Friday) and weighed 9lbs and were 20 inches long. You had a lot of hair as well and I was so happy to finally meet you. You decided that you wanted to celebrate your birthday without anyone else so you showed up the day after Uncle Monte's birthday and the day before mine.
Eli- I want to tell you how much I love you and how much you mean to me. I will be honest and say that you were a difficult baby (due to your allergy to milk that we didn't know about until you were about 4 1/2 mos old) but you are now the sweetest, kindest and most loving kid! You love to give everyone kisses, and nothing makes my heart melt faster than seeing your face when I pick you up at school each afternoon. I love how you cradle my face in your chubby little hands to kiss my cheek, then my nose, then my lips. I love that you crawl up in the chair with your daddy to watch "putball" or how you crawl on the couch with me to play patty-cake. You have the sweetest demeanor, but you can also get a temper, which right now is adorable to watch.
I will tell you the same thing that I told Benjamin in his post. Your father and I pray that you will grow up to love the Lord and to seek Him in all things. We pray that you will be the spiritual leader in your family. That you will shepherd your wife and children to follow the teachings of Christ and that you will live as Christ did. The Lord never ceases to amaze me, and my amazement of Him was multiplied a hundred-fold on the day He let me be your mommy.
I love you and I am so proud that you belong to me. It is an honor for me and for your father to be your parents. You are going to be a wonderful man and I know that you will have much success in life. Please always remember the importance of family. Stay close to Payton and Benjamin. You will always be their little brother but they will look to you for guidance. Although I know there will be days in the future that you won't like this, you will always be my baby. I will love you forever!
Thursday, October 1, 2009
Happy Birthday Love!
(This was post began on October 1st).
Today is Roy's birthday and I just have to spend at least a second to "talk" to him about how I feel about him.
I plan on doing a post about how we met, and I will so I just want to say that I know that Roy was put on this earth to be my husband, the father to Payton, Benjamin and Eli. He was the one that the Lord had picked out for me. I know that because I heard the Lord tell me, and to be completely honest, the first time I heard it I tried to ignore it. But I also know that the Lord has a plan for me and I finally decided that He knew best.
I think it's safe to say that when we started dating, we knew that we were "done." I didn't even look back. It's easy to do that when God tells you to :)
Roy, this time of the year is such a special time. Each day one of our children celebrate their birthday, I am reminded of how much you mean to me. We have such an incredible family, of which I am incredibly proud. I look at you and I think, "Wow. He and I did this." We have shared so many sweet, special moments as husband and wife and mother and father. I've said this before, but you truly are a blessing to me. You changed my life and made IT all happen.
I remember when I was a little girl that I wanted to be a veterinarian, a wife and a mother. Well, obviously the first one didn't happen (the Lord knew what he was doing there, too :) but because of you, the last two did happen. Being a wife to you and mother to our children is my passion.
Thank you for being a man who loves the Lord, seeks him daily and strives to be more Christ-like. Thank you for your giving heart. I've always believed that "to whom much is given much is desired", but you've taught me how to LIVE that.
I love you Roy. You are my best friend and I can't imagine going through this life with anyone but you.
Always yours,
Leslie
Today is Roy's birthday and I just have to spend at least a second to "talk" to him about how I feel about him.
I plan on doing a post about how we met, and I will so I just want to say that I know that Roy was put on this earth to be my husband, the father to Payton, Benjamin and Eli. He was the one that the Lord had picked out for me. I know that because I heard the Lord tell me, and to be completely honest, the first time I heard it I tried to ignore it. But I also know that the Lord has a plan for me and I finally decided that He knew best.
I think it's safe to say that when we started dating, we knew that we were "done." I didn't even look back. It's easy to do that when God tells you to :)
Roy, this time of the year is such a special time. Each day one of our children celebrate their birthday, I am reminded of how much you mean to me. We have such an incredible family, of which I am incredibly proud. I look at you and I think, "Wow. He and I did this." We have shared so many sweet, special moments as husband and wife and mother and father. I've said this before, but you truly are a blessing to me. You changed my life and made IT all happen.
I remember when I was a little girl that I wanted to be a veterinarian, a wife and a mother. Well, obviously the first one didn't happen (the Lord knew what he was doing there, too :) but because of you, the last two did happen. Being a wife to you and mother to our children is my passion.
Thank you for being a man who loves the Lord, seeks him daily and strives to be more Christ-like. Thank you for your giving heart. I've always believed that "to whom much is given much is desired", but you've taught me how to LIVE that.
I love you Roy. You are my best friend and I can't imagine going through this life with anyone but you.
Always yours,
Leslie
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