National De-Lurking Day

I was reading one of my favourite blogs earlier, and discovered that apparently today is National De-lurking Day.


So, in the spirit of such a day, I ask you to show yourselves.  Or, to de-lurk yourself, if you will.  


I don't know if I have many readers or not.  It doesn't really matter.  But quite often, I'll have someone say to me, "I read on your blog...", which baffles me because I really had no idea.  None.  It's all because of the lurking...  But don't worry, we're still friends.  I still like you.  


So today, YOU tell ME something.  Maybe tell me why you lurk in the first place.  :)  Or tell me your deepest, darkest secret.  (Because the internet is always the right place for that...)  Or just say hi.  


Or do none of it, and continue to lurk...  and the mystery will remain...


That's okay too.  I kind of like mysteries.  

Dancing in the Minefields

This is my new favourite song:




One of the things I like most is seeing elderly people holding hands and being in love.  There's something about seeing their hands - old hands that have been held in courtship, rocked babies, spread peanut butter on bread, helped with homework, cuddled grandbabies, and brought comfort to so many - together in such timeless love.  That would be why I fell even more in love with this song after seeing the video.  I've always been intrigued by elderly couples who are still so much in love.  I want to be one of those couples.


So I'm going to say some things I don't say nearly enough.


I love my husband.  And I just really like him.  I like his heart and his mind, his feelings and his thoughts.  God has done (and is doing) something amazing in that guy.


Also, I'd like to say that I am married to a man.  And I don't mean that he is of the male gender - that's obvious (except when he's knitting or wearing Lululemon pants).  He is a man.  He stands in front of me, and protects me.  He respects me, is gentle with me, and treats me the way he would want his own daughter treated by a man.  I feel safe with him.  I hope our boys will be husbands and fathers just like Kris, and I hope our girls (if we have one someday) marry men like him. 


After having 2 kids and being caught in the whirlwind of bottles, baths, poop, Legos, and the Backyardigans (a whirlwind we love!), God has really rekindled something here.  We've allowed the Holy Spirit to come like fire through our lives - into the deepest parts of our hearts, and into our marriage.  It was good before, but now?  I can't even describe it.  And I'm so excited for the future. 


I think (I know) it's easy to caught up in playing the good Christian wife.  The good Christian husband.  The good Christian family.  The good Christian, period.  I used to think that those things would somehow "save" Kris and I from future problems, that would save us from inevitably ending in divorce.  But they don't, and you only need to google "Christian divorce rates" to see that point illustrated all too clearly.  


Christians can have faulty marriages.  And Christians can have mediocre marriages.  The great news is, is that God isn't a mediocre God.  He's a God who's extravagant.  And that is what has couples dancing and - dare I say it?! - having great sex well into their old age.  


So, all this just to say, thank you Lord, for being extravagant in our lives, and changing me, changing us.  For raising the bar and saying, "I'm not a God of 'good enough'".  And thank you to my husband for allowing the Holy Spirit to do a work in him too.  You are truly my knight in shining armour.  


Hardships will come.  There will be trials.  But I hope that in the midst of it all, we can dance together in those minefields.  

The Mullet Lady in all of us

Kris and I are terrified of The Rut lately.  You know the one - where you cling to the style you had in your early 20s, because that was your prime.  And THAT, my friend, is how things like this happen:

Now let's not judge Mullet Lady too harshly.  She just got stuck in The Rut.  And if I maintain the style I had in my early 20s, I will be Mullet Lady in 10 years.  I could easily end up in someone's blog post about terrible fashion.  Maybe I've already done so, and don't even know it.  (But that's the topic of a fear-mongering post for another day.)  

This exact fear is what drove Kris to get his hair cut.  He's been complaining the last little while about looking like a doof.  A doofy dad who's gotten stuck in The Rut.  Kris has had the same "hairstyle" (sorry, honey, the quotation marks were kind of necessary), in various lengths, for as long as I've known him.  So, I made him an appointment at a nice salon downtown for last night.  

So he went in, and upon being asked to remove his hat, Kris said, "Are you ready for a laugh?!"  The stylist replied that it couldn't be that bad.  He removed the hat.  She howled with laughter at the messy poof of hair that had been hiding in the safety of the ball cap, and then told him that she'd seen worse.  I guess that's a relief.  Long story short, Kris came home with a smile on his face, and an awesome new look.  I love it.  My husband is super hot.  He was hot before, but now he's hot and stylish.  (Because I'm sure women who's partners have mullets think they're hot too.  But stylish?  Mmm... maybe not.) 

So, here's to another step out of The Rut. 

My boys and I

My good friend Avey came a few weeks ago and took some family photos for us.  She did an amazing job.  Thank you Avey!

 The family 

(and please excuse my terrible hair - I have since had it fixed...)

 Sam "playing" with Jack

 Ugh!

 Sweet little boy.

Getting the tired crankies. 

Yes - that is bacon in Sam's hand.  You may or may not recall 

how much Sam loves bacon.

Brothers make the best buddies!

Sam loves his apples!

I am so blessed, with a great husband, sweet little boys, and good friends.

A Year in Review

2010.  Pregnancy.  Praying for a new little person being formed.  Sam's 2nd Birthday, and thankful for 2 amazing years.  Nudgings from the Holy Spirit.  Spring, and a feeling of change.  Cranky and sore as 41 weeks approached.  Jack Robert - "God is gracious".  Potty training.  Blessings in the form of 2 perfect little boys.  Beach days.  Chubby baby.  Freedom.  A preschooler who knows and sees Jesus.  Having our sons teach us about the character of God.  Lessons in parenting.  Restored relationships.  Wine and movie nights.  Good books.  Dreaming Planning big. Learning to love.  Rediscovering my husband.  Playing trains and Playmobil.  Tickling chubby legs.  Sweet laughter.  Daily evidence that Jesus lives and saves and redeems.


2011?  It's going to be even better.  You just wait and see.


"I have come that they may have life, and have it to the FULL."  ~ Jesus