Wii Fun

For all those unaware, I'm a Wii professional bowler. Yes........it's true. It's an achievement I'm REALLY proud of. Actually, our family does enjoy playing Wii together. Wii Sports is our favorite. We love to play tennis, bowling and golf. It's crazy fun. Something about those medals they give out keeps bringing us back for more.


Our family does a lot of trash talkin' too. Tonight as we were talkin' smack, Daddy said that he was going to beat us all. Miss G said,




"I'm going to win."


I said, "Not tonight, baby. Bring it on!"




Miss G, inclined to state the obvious said, "But Mommy, you have to TURN it ON before we can play!"


"It's on now, you little smart aleck. Ohh.....it's go time!"




That's her "YOU can't beat me" face.


Ahh....good times. Wii trash talkin' on a Monday night. What could be better?

Expect Goodness

My mother gave me a gift that I have only recently come to appreciate. Her gifts were that she had an unswayable positive outlook on life and that she expected goodness from everyone. She tried to pass both of these traits on to me but I only caught the later.

I try to have a positive outlook but I let things get me down too easily. I do expect goodness from everyone though and I'm genuinely surprised when people behave badly. I know what you're thinking...."She must not get out much!"....but I do. Although, in my old age, I have learned to surround myself with good people.

Today, someone I know well, was ugly to me and my daughter. Since I always expect the best out of people, sometimes I don't even realize what just happened until several minutes later. The full impact of their insult sometimes isn't realized for hours. I think, "They couldn't have meant that. Surely I misunderstood." The more I dwell on it, the more angry I become. Their hate planted a seed in my heart that grew into full blown fury. After much counseling from my husband and good friends and after many, many prayers, the fury subsided and God showed me that the problem isn't me or my daughter, it comes from the person that harbors hate in their heart.

It's upsetting when such occurrences happen to you. It's exponentially upsetting when it happens to your child. I think that is what bothered me the most about the scolding this woman gave Miss G and then ultimately to me.

This woman hates homeschoolers. I have actually heard her rant that anyone who would homeschool their children are "absolute idiots". I believe, at the core, this was the reason for her attack. My daughter, who was not in the public school system as she should be AND who was on the tennis court in the middle of the day, had the audacity to tell her that she was doing wrong. As this lady was exerting herself, she exclaimed, "Oh, my gosh!" In our household, we try really hard not to say that because we feel that gosh is just a slang term for God and we try really hard not to take the Lord's name in vain. Miss G, being shocked at hearing such language, blurted out, "We don't say that! You shouldn't say that." Unfortunately, I was on the next court over and didn't hear this exchange. The woman quickly told Miss G that she didn't say "Oh, my God." and that Miss G was not to tell her what she could or couldn't say. Miss G may not say that in her house but she could and would say that if she wanted to. Needless to say, Miss G was shocked into silence, which is rather hard to do.

I know all this because this woman kindly told me the conversation word for word and then scolded me for having a daughter who would dare to tell an adult what to do. I quietly listened to this woman not knowing quite what to say. The woman kept asking me what we teach in my house about "gosh" and "God" which I knew better than to get into with her. As she continued to rant and since I'm the world's worst debater, the only thing I could think of to say was, "You certainly have the right to say 'Oh, my gosh' if you want." But, I couldn't help think that Miss G also had the right to say what she wanted to. My daughter was standing up for what she believed in. She was standing up for God and for probably the first time, but certainly not the last, she was being persecuted for it.

The maternal side of me feels like I let my daughter down. I wasn't there when she was being scolded for her beliefs. My wise husband said that Miss G will have to face those kinds of people all her life and that we should be proud that she stood up for what she believed in.

Will I still expect good from people? Yes, I will. Will Miss G? I believe so. Although Miss G isn't biologically related to my mother, she caught both her optimistic outlook and her expectation of good. Miss G has a zest for life that can't be squelched by a woman whose heart is full of hate. I do believe that this woman has done some good. Miss G has survived her first defense of our Lord and has come out the other side unscathed and undaunted. I'm one proud Mommy!

Our Darling Enigma

These are the "toys" that Miss G picked out at the store today. They ARE quite lovely.....I'm sure ..... yes.....quite. Miss G tries really hard to be a girlish-girl, but it doesn't come naturally. Please check that picture again. Anyone notice the dirt under her fingernails? Now that is truer clue for understanding our fascinating enigma named Miss G.




Remember, this is our dirt lover. This is the girl that was fascinated by watching her Daddy and Popaw clean birds this weekend. She wanted to see their hearts. Where were their heads? Why do you take their wings and legs off. When she's older, Daddy can take her hunting too...right?!?



And then she plays for hours out of a dress-up doll suitcase from Grandma's cool stuff.



When discussing the endless costume possibilities for an upcoming Halloween event, I threw out several suggestions that were quickly shot down.

"How about a princess or a fairy or an angel? See how pretty they are?"

"No. I don't think those are right."

"Well, what DO you want to be?"

"I want to be a pirate with an eye-patch. May I have a sword too?"

So you see, she tries really hard to be a girlish-girl when she'd really rather have an adventure on the high seas, preferably covered in dirt. I guess she's a tom-boy in a pink skirt. It's like she always tells me..."God makes you just the way he wants you."

Life Comes at You Fast...

...sometimes it's best to duck.

I've ducked and dodged several things in the last couple of days. Yesterday a ducked several high velocity tennis balls during drills. I was only hit once which is about normal. I always say that it hasn't been a good day at doubles unless you get hit by the ball. The very nature of doubles requires you to aim for the net person. Getting hit is inevitable. It's part of the challenge and part of the fun.

I made another good dodge yesterday. While trying a new apple pie recipe my dear daughter threw up while helping to make it. Nothing kills your appetite faster than having your child throw up. She missed the pie but got the stove and floor. Thankfully I jumped back in time to save myself another shower. I almost scrapped the whole pie but continued making it after cleaning up and bathing her. It's not a recipe I think I'll keep. I think my opinion has been tainted and it's probably not fair to the recipe but I still can't keep the recipe or the pie. Yuck!

For those that aren't aware, the U.S. Open tournament is underway. My favorite player, Roger Federer, dodged a tough opponent yesterday to remain in the tournament. Go, Roger! I'm afraid my tennis preferences are transferring to Miss G. She watched some of his match yesterday and decided to draw a picture of him.





The lines above his eyes are his sweat band.



And this is how she feels when he wins!! Go, Roger!

The things I'm not dodging right now but trying to face head-on and head-strong are homeschooling and a Fall Festival I'm organizing for our church. Both are proving to be fun and fulfilling. Miss G is enjoying "doing school" even though she grumbles sometimes. The light in her eyes and joy in her smile when she "gets" whatever we're doing encourages me like nothing else could. What a blessing to be home with her.

What are you ducking and dodging lately? Sometimes you need to duck and sometimes you need to face things head-on. Sometimes it's hard to decided which to do.

There will be times when you take a hit and it may leave a mark. Sometimes you can miss the full blow but still be negatively affected. Sometimes you just need to be brave and take that leap of faith into the unknown. That leap of faith is a whole lot easier if you'll rely on God. Don't know what to do...pray. God can resolve situations in ways you can't even imagine.

What's the moral of this story? Be aware and duck incoming shots. Be wary and dodge negative influences. Be brave, rely on God and pray...a lot. Life is so good when we walk in step with Him.

A Girl and Her Daddy

I'm feeling a little sentimental this morning and wanted to take a trip down memory lane. Please forgive my indulgence.



What spurred this sudden emotional trip? I went over to a girlfriend's house last night so Mr. Reserved and Miss G went on a date. There's something about a daddy and his daughter on a date that tugs at your heartstrings.



They have always been close. They have a bond that was initially grown through their love of napping. No...seriously...their hearts are just connected by that strong Daddy/Daughter bond.



Mr. Reserved has always been good with her.



Last night they went to dinner and ice cream followed up by a healthy dose of football.



I have been indoctrinating Miss G into the ins and outs of tennis, especially some of my favorite pros. Mr. Reserved has some catching up to do with his favorite sport...football.





I love watching them together.



Especially when they're both asleep.



They snore in unison.



And Miss G snores louder than Mr. Reserved.



They love to wash the Jeep and go for a drive together. Doors off, top down and wind in their hair is their favorite ride.



Mr. Reserved has passed on his love of computers to Miss G. They spend hours playing computer games together.




What a blessing they are to me. What a blessing they are to each other.

The Ant Killer

From Miss G's bedroom....

"Oh...my...stars! It's an ant!"

I hear little feet running down the hall to the kitchen. The pantry door opens. After much rummaging, the pantry door shuts and the little feet return down the hall.

From Miss G's bedroom...

"Smack. Smack, smack, smack."

Evidently, she has found the fly swatter. Then she says,

"That's my first one. MOMMY, I killed my first ant!"

More running feet enter the study.

"Mommy, I killed my first ant and it's my first one. Isn't that great?"

"Way to go, baby! Where was this ant?"

"It was in my room on my armoire. I killed it dead."

"Excellent. You'll make a great ant hunter."

"Yeah...I will. Watch my moves."

An overabundance of self confidence in a four year old is a good thing. Right?




That's what I'll keep telling myself.

A Day at the Water Park

Our church group had a wonderful day at the water park this Saturday. We stayed the entire day and despite the layers of sunscreen, all had slight sunburns to show for it. It was the good kind of sunburn. The sun kissed checks and noses that remind people of God's golden creation. Our youth group plus the younger children played and laughed and reveled in the day.

Thank you to all who went and all who made the day possible. It was a great day!