happy halloween

hallelujia - the sun finally appeared today and just in time for trick-or-treating

i took these three goofballs around town to a few friends' homes and then it was off to church for trunk or treat

where wonderful people decorate their trunks with balloons and cobwebs and lights and pumpkins and set up a game for the littles (and some bigs) to play

after stopping at each trunk, ghosts and goblins, pigs, gnomes and replacement refs fill their bags with oodles of goodies.

the cuteness factor won them more than a few treats at each trunk they visited, resulting in bags overflowing with sugar upon arrival home.

and, after a quick skype chat with grams and gramps, the sugar high had descended into a crash and two overly-tired girls got their teeth scrubbed down daddy-style before snuggling into bed.

blow the whistle, ref!

i'm beat...game over

boo-ing!

okay - so, after my mopey last post, i've got something more upbeat tonight.  :)

we're all healthy as horses right now, so we're in a carpe diem sort of mood in the Wacek household.

which brings me to the heaps of fun we had "boo-ing" just the other day

i had never heard of boo-ing until last year, when we tried it for the very first time.

it was such a blast that we wasted NO TIME in getting our boo on this year.

if I've piqued your interest, here's the drill:

make up some yummy treats for your friends

(but PLEASE, read this post written by a dear friend of mine, before including any chocolate)

when your goodies are all ready to go, visit www.beenbooed.com to print the poem and instructions for the recipients

then, attach to the treats, jump in the boo-mobile and get your sneakiest face on

important note:  you MUST wear shoes that you can run FAST in

tip toe up to the doors of your best little munchkin friends, leave the treats on the door step, ring the bell and run away as fast as your legs can carry you!

breathlessly buckle up and speed away so as not to be noticed!

high five when you get around the corner and hope that someone sneaks to your house with something equally delicious before halloween.

happy boo-ing!

when life gives you lemons...

what to do....oh what to do when life gives you lemons?

i know that the expected response is, "make lemonade!"

okay...but what if you run out of sugar and the lemonade is disgusting?

it feels like that's kind of what happened to us this MEA weekend.

rewind to three months ago when my very closest friend, K, and I made plans to meet up over MEA weekend...this weekend.

now, i have to tell you that when plans like this get made, we both go bonkers with joy because we live far too far away from each other.

we email and call and i'm oh so grateful for the technology that helps us span the miles.  but there is just no substitute for the real deal.

and seeing each other face to face happens only once a year....sometimes we even have to wait longer

and she's not just any friend.  she's THE friend.  THE friend that i could call at any hour of the night.  THE friend that knows me better than I know myself and loves me to pieces any way.  

don't get me wrong - I have friends here.

and they are wonderful people who have been there for me over and over again.

but i'm learning that investing in friendships just isn't as easy now that i have a job, home, marriage and children, as it was way back in college.

and that is when our friendship grew....in dorm rooms and apartments and walks to class and late nights at the library.

back when i arranged my class schedule around my favorite tv shows and ate supper at 10:00 pm.  when was the last time I saw 10:00 pm?

back when I thought I was stressed...ha!

anywhoo...i had the time and energy to invest in her and she in me and those roots go down deep.

so, all that to say....there's just no one else like her.

and thoughts of seeing her set my heart a'dancin!

fast forward to last sunday....three days from when we were supposed to set sail on our voyage.

Peach throws up all over the vehicle on the way home from church.

conferences the next night.

are you kidding me?

nope.

lemon #1

but we still had 3 days, so i called K while hosing off the carseat and explained the situation, trying not to sound too panicked.

i should also mention at this point that the first few months of pregnancy #3 have been rough.  not terrible, but definitely worse than the first two.  strong smells seem to bother me the worst.  so, you can imagine how my stomach is doing at this point.  the biggest thing for me has been how tired i've felt.  and i know that there's nothing like a good friendship to revive a tired soul.

so i prayed....and monday went well.

we baked while i tried not to think about the fact that we might not get to go

(these are pictures of me trying to use the lemon to make lemonade...)

fact of life:  cream cheese frosting will fix almost anything

called K to say we were back in business.

Tuesday was even better.  Peach had her appetite back and I was sashaying around the house...literally...as i packed.

Reading stories that night, Tulip lost her lunch on the book I was reading.

Lemon #2

but Peach only threw up that once...so maybe it would still work out?

that night we were up all night with miss Tulip - J and I saw every hour of the clock as we changed and washed clothes, sheets and the babe.

Lemon #3

we prayed....and tired as we were on Wednesday, we were still clinging to a small string of hope.

called K to say things didn't look good, but that we'd see how the day went.  she and i both cried.

the day went well.  both kids kept down food.

we decided that if we didn't go, it would be a looooong time before we could go back.  no spring break this year.  tiny baby in May...who knows when we'd get another chance.

So, at 6:40 pm we set out on the 5 1/2 hour drive, hoping the babes would sleep most of the way.

i was scared, but i needed to see her.

the first 4 hours were awesome...the girls slept peacefully.  until we had to stop for gas.

the last hour and a half were not fun....lemon #4.

but we arrived around 1 am...exhausted and oh so happy to see our friends.

the next morning, we woke up groggy, but joyful.

Tulip refused to nap...lemon #5.

it rained all day...lemon #6.

when bed time came, Tulip was so exhausted, she screamed for an hour and a half before falling asleep...lemon #7.

and then woke up 5 times during the night...inconsolable.

lemon #8

i was so tired, i didn't even take pictures.

the conversations were foggy.

simply put - I was NOT myself

not the self that would laugh until my stomach hurt

not the self that would stay up late and reminisce

a crumpled version of the me i had wanted to be

i had a splitting headache....lemon #9

it rained all day Friday...lemon #10

i remember thinking how sweet it was that Peach and K's kids were playing so nicely...but other than that, it is pretty much a blur.

Friday afternoon Tulip vomited all over their bathroom.

Lemon #11

I knew we needed to cut our losses and head home.

So, we packed up after less than 48 hours.

K and I stood in her kitchen and hugged while we cried big, wet tears on each other's shoulders.

I do remember this.  I said, "I knew it was a gamble, coming here with her sick."

And she said, "I'm so glad you took the chance.  I would have rolled the dice to see you, too."

There it was...in the midst of all those lemons, a little sweetness.

Just to hug her...well, that was worth 11 hours in the car.

Through teary eyes we pulled away.  And there she stood with her littles, blowing kisses and Peach's face was pressed up against our window, waving "good-bye".  

She asked me why I was crying and all I could say was, "I wish we didn't live so far away."

But what I really wanted to say was, "I'm mad at God...and your sister."  (that right there is the ugly side of me that K knows all about...but she's the kind of friend that loves me anyway.)

I cried for the first 30 minutes of our trip.  Just silent tears as we got closer to home and further from her.

J was kind enough to offer to go back, but I knew it was the right thing to go home.

And after our petunias went to sleep, I sat there in the dark, wondering what you do when life gives you lemons...and the lemonade turns out gross.  

When you KNOW that being a mom is a wonderful gift, but you FEEL like it is downright UNFAIR.  When you are tired of giving away your time and energy and you just want to be selfish and drink coffee and not have anyone need anything.

I guess you just lift your eyes and give thanks.

For the husband who scrubbed the bathroom floor and let you cry and told you that he'd stay one more day or drive you home...

For the two blessings in the back seat who want you and only you when sickness comes...

For the fact that His mercies WILL be new tomorrow morning...

Because...really, there is always something to be grateful for.

Whisper thanks as we drove through our college town and all the good memories that cover me like a blanket when we're there.

Whisper thanks for each mile that they didn't wake up.

Whisper thanks that Tulip didn't get sick in the car.

Whisper thanks for that car...that it took us to a hug and back without any problems.

Whisper thanks for 11 hours of conversation with J and time to hold hands.  It's been a long time since we had that.

Whisper thanks that upon arriving home at 12:30 am, both girls happily snuggled into their beds and didn't wake until after 8.

Lift my eyes and whisper thanks for the guy who makes me coffee and offers to take me here the next morning....

oh, how can i feel sad amidst all this joy?

is it possible to be disappointed that God didn't answer the way i wanted Him to while at the same time singing His praises?

is it okay to feel sorry for myself when i can clearly see the ocean good in my life?

can i be sad and thankful?

can i praise the Lord and smile through the tears and be sincerely grateful even when my heart is saying, "it's not fair"

this weekend taught me that it is possible to have heartache and praise...sadness with joy.

so i whisper thanks for the pumpkins and the punkins

whisper thanks for these cherry gummis that really do make my heart feel a little lighter

whisper thanks for polka dot pants

and for her little wiggle

but i'm still tired.

and it still seems unfair.

so we go home to craft.

because another fact of life is that joy is bound to creep in when you're creating.

and i whisper thanks for spoon ballerinas and the clean garage that hubby had an extra day to organize

i whisper thanks for a trip to the park on a beautiful day and the monster cookies that another dear friend left on our steps

then say "thank you" again during our family dance party in the living room to our favorite Newsboys CD

i decide that there are lots of lemons in this life

sometimes you get what seems like more than your fair share

and even when you try to make the best of it - the lemonade can still turn out sour :(

back to work tomorrow and i don't think that J and I have truly recovered from our crazy break

but at the end of the day, I know two things.

#1:  He works ALL things for the GOOD of those who love Him.

#2:  I love Him.

And while I don't know how this all works out for my good, i'm hoping that my girls will see that we can give thanks when our plans don't work.

we can be deeply sad and still crazy joyful.

even in the midst of a pile of lemons.....

two little feet, one big joy

that's right....

our family is growing by two itty bitty feet

and sometime around may 4th, we'll be introducing you to our newest member

2 little feet

1 big joy

:)

home

it's going to take you about 10 seconds of looking at these pictures to know why i absolutely l.o.v.e. this time of year

i've said before that i feel blessed to live in a place where we experience all the seasons

each one gives my heart reason to flutter

summer is sweet 'cause it is lazy and we run around in flip flops and let the house fall apart while we load the car up for endless trips to the pool

winter has the whole Christmas thing going for it ;)

spring is renewing, refreshing

but fall.......ah, fall is home

fall is heading back to school and having a routine

football games under cozy blankets

leaves twirling to the ground and crunching underfoot

fall is when this girl made me a momma...

and when this one gave us her first true giggle...

fall is staying in jammies until after noon

and wearing favorite sweaters and the return of slippers

fall is a blanket of gold in our yard

and framing sweet little faces in adorable hats

fall is cherry red cheeks

and chilly noses

apple orchards, pumpkin patches and cider by the gallons

fall is "rake it up one more time, momma!", then heading inside for snuggles under an afghan made by my great-grandma

fall is digging out toys from the back of the closet that have been hiding since last spring, when we stashed them away and flew pell mell outside into warm weather, never looking back

fall is how a cold pumpkin feels when you get brave enough to sneak your fingers out of your sleeves

fall smells like home, tastes like home, feels like home

its slowing down and cuddling up

it is closing the windows and turning the oven back on

and getting ready to be....home

call me crazy - i know that bad roads and below zero temperatures are on the way

but i'm oh so happy.

pretty soon, the leaves will stop dropping

the trees will be bare

the snow will arrive

and we'll be all snuggled up under one roof

i'm looking forward to it.

thank you, Lord, for these yummy days at home

september extras

well, here it is - the second week in October and I'm finally getting around to writing about September

better late than never, huh?

september started out hot...just the right way to squeeze the last out  of summer

speaking of lasts...Peach got one last ride on her favorite horse, Rooster T, before we said good-bye to summer

and our garden yielded its grand finale

according to my girls, the carrots were worth the wait

and we got real brave, purchasing a pile of boards from a garage sale marked "bunk beds - $10"

we had no idea if everything was there or what it would look like when put together, but we took a chance and it was worth it!

J put them together and I helped paint - the girls LOVE them and Peach thinks she is soooooo big to be sleeping in a huge bed

in reality, I think it makes her smaller - tiny Peach in a queen size bed! :)

finally, my little Tulip girl has slowly but surely turned over a new leaf

for quite a while, she wanted nothing to do with books

i would try to read with her and she'd squirm off my lap as fast as her little legs could scoot

so, i worried that she'd be behind

i worried that she wouldn't like school

i worried that i would have to bribe her with chocolate and ice cream to get her to do anything academic

and i prayed....

and i was reminded once again that worrying accomplishes nothing

"who of you, by worrying, can add a single hour to his life?" - Luke 12:25

so I gave it a rest and suddenly, Tulip started venturing over to the book drawer in our living room

and that's where she's been every morning this month

reading....bringing me books to read....listening to her sister read

and emerging as her own little book worm self

on that happy note, we'll close the book on September

:)