Too Many Boys!

A couple days ago one of our beloved fish died. I entered the boys' playroom to discover this and tried to prepare myself to tell the boys. When I finally worked up the nerve to tell them, I received a precious reminder that I'm just a girl in a house full of boys.

Their response to the dead fish?  "Awesome, he's floating upside down!" And, "Mom, can I pleeeeeease flush him down the toilet?" Sigh.
The next day they asked me if they could go fishing in their aquarium.

Which reminds me of quite a few other comments I've heard:

"Who is stronger, Hulk or the Thing?"
"Who would win in a battle between Namor and Thanos?"
Or Spider-Man and Abomination.
Or Thor and Captain America.
Or...      
It goes on and on.  Daily.  Nightly at the dinner table. And my husband is right there in the mix. I just stare at my food and try to focus on something else.

I serve them oatmeal for breakfast and they giggle and say they are eating hot poop.

In fact, they like to talk about bodily functions so much that I have now instituted a rule that we only talk about bathroom things when we are in the bathroom. So the next time I heard them say something about poop I shouted, "Boys!" and I heard one say to the other "All, right, let's go in the bathroom and talk."  Oops. Mom outsmarted. They play in there often now.

I take them to the park and overhear Jack say to a friend (whom he just met a moment before) "If you let me punch you, I can show you how strong I am."

We visit Bass Pro Shops for fun, just to look around. And it takes forever!

They ask me more questions, like "Which kind of throw up tastes the worst?" and "Do I have to wear clothes today?"

Jack chases lizards around to "pet" them and Parker wants to live in Ancient Egypt so he can use a bucket for a toilet.

When we eat, it's become a regular conversation (besides the super heroes) to discuss what animal we are eating. When I was a kid, that made me sad. It makes these little boys giggle!

They ask my husband constantly if they can smell his armpit.  Seriously.

They also have learned that I have this weird problem with eyes. Eye issues and all things about eyes kind of freak me out. Since learning this they have gone from doing weird things with their eyes and tricking me into looking, to talking about things happening to eyes, to now just simply shouting "eyeball!" randomly throughout the day.

Oh, I'll probably never get used to being the only girl around.  But, they do say things to make up for it sometimes.

Like, my favorite...  "Mom, if you make your hair red, you'll look just like Black Widow!"
Ha!  Yep, just like her. I wish.


Most of the time, I don't know what to do with these boys.
But I don't know what I'd do without them, either.

Houston - The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly

All right, so we’ve been in our new home for about a month now, and we've survived the lizard fiasco, I’m finally learning my way around Houston.  I figure it’s time for an update!

The Good –

Well, first thing that comes to mind is that everything is really close.  I mean, within a 5-10 minute drive in any direction, I can find a Wal-mart, Target, and HEB.  That’s all three within minutes in any direction!  Pretty amazing.  Did I mention how much I love HEB tortillas?

Also, this suburb has a super cute little downtown area with shops and restaurants and just fun, fancy places to go.  Not that I get to do it much, but knowing it is there in case I do get a date night - or a visitor - or anything is just exciting. 

Oh, yeah, that’s a better-than-good part of it... My babysitters!  My family is close by and are always begging to take the boys.  It’s nice knowing that people who love my kids as much as me are close by.

A few more “good” things come to mind – fast internet, at home and on my phone; a huge backyard to play in; a great neighborhood with parks and pools nearby; so many fantastic churches that we can’t even make up our minds where we belong; and a job for Stephen that doesn't involve much time away from our family.  Its been a while since we had that.

But you know there is The Bad, too –

The traffic is awful and Stephen has to fight a commute each way every day.  Everyone in Houston likes to drive, so there isn't much of a public transit system. What is in place now is mostly buses  and well, that doesn't really save any time on the road, you know?  BUT... we were living with one car since we got back and this commute required us to purchase another so.... I GOT A NEW CAR!  Not so bad, now, huh?  Remember when I sold my van? I was so sad. Well, we went out and bought the new one and it’s even better than the last! 

We don’t have any friends yet, and, as social as I am, that is weighing on me a lot, but we will. I know it.  We will.  AND... I have about oh, 3 dozen family members all within a 1-2 hour drive, so that’s plenty to keep us busy for now. We’d love to meet some other families, though. All the small groups we have been a part of in the past have been really special to us.

Everything is close by. I know I mentioned this as a “good” thing, but it can quickly become a bad thing, so I’m acknowledging that, too. It’s so easy to run out to Chick-fil-A for lunch or just head to Target for some browsing. It could be expensive if I’m not careful!  BUT... at least I have everything I need. I miss the military commissary, but only for their prices. In Cambodia, I had to make do with whatever I could get.  Here, I can follow recipes exactly as written and make crafts just like the ones I pin on pinterest, and well, do anything. It’s not such a bad problem!

The heat is awful.  Houston is hot.  Really hot.  And humid.  Cambodia was hot.  Really hot.  And humid.  Can a girl ever get a break?  Do I ever get a chance to wear my boots that have been packed up since I lived further north?  No positive spin on this for me.... COOL OFF, TEXAS!  I've been hot for like 2 years now!  Even little Jack was puffing air outside a couple weeks ago and when I asked what he was doing, he said "Blowing out the sun so it won't be so hot!" Maybe we need a Rocky Mountains vacation?

OK, The UGLY.

I’d take a picture if I could, but I’m usually too busy screaming and running to even think about a camera.  Its the roaches.  Ew.  They are big.  They fly.  They are everywhere.  EEEEEWWWW!  We had bugs in Cambodia, and we even had great big roaches, but I just can’t handle it here!  I called pest control to see if they could come and spray and the girl kindly said, “You aren’t from around here, are you?” Well, actually I am from close by, and I do remember standing on the toilet screaming (as a teenager) for my Dad to come kill a roach.  It’s just been a while, and I don’t care to do it again.  The sweet pest control lady told me that they can spray, but the roaches will still get inside.  They’ll just die when they get in.  Oh, okay, ew again.  Dead roaches everywhere?  I just don’t know what to do.

But at least there aren’t bugs in my food.  In Cambodia I often found myself just scooping the ants out of my coffee or cereal so I could finish it.  I can live with non-harmful giant monster roaches if I don’t have to eat them.

Ha.  Haha.  It’s the little things...

Leapin' Lizards

Tomorrow I’ve been invited to speak at my Grandma’s church and tell others about my experiences in Cambodia. I’m nervous and excited but most of all, as I was practicing my words today, I felt a longing to be there. I had just texted my friend Erica that I was missing Cambodia when God decided to give me a little glimpse of it. 

I stopped by my sister’s house to pick up some things she had for me. She’s moving to a new place and was giving away her fish tank and some other things to me and some cute little nephews of hers. She said I could take her plants from the backyard, too, and I was super excited. I have a huge back yard at my house now and no plants!  “I would love to have them,” I told her. So while she was at work, I headed over to grab them from her backyard.

There were about 7-8 plants, I think. Plenty of room in the back of my Explorer to fit them all. I was a little nervous about what could be inside them... my sister has a track record of seeing snakes in her backyard... so I shook them and kicked them hard before moving them. 

It wasn’t good enough. 

As I set the last one inside, something green and slithery caught my attention. Now, I hate snakes, so I was happy when I realized that it was, instead, a lizard. A pretty big green one, but still, it had legs. I could handle it. The boys were standing there as I jumped when I first saw the little creature and they giggled. I said I was going to be brave and grab it. It took me a few seconds to gain up enough courage to grab it, and I did, right there on the tail. 

You know what happens to a lizard when you grab its tail, right?  Not only does the creepy thing fall off, but it scares the rest of the lizard into hiding! That little big guy jumped over the backseat and into Jack’s carseat.  At this point, the kids stopped finding it funny and started screaming and crying. As I’m comforting them and trying to swat a lizard with random toys from the back seat,  a sweet neighbor – remember I’m not at my own house, I’m at my sister’s  - came over and asked what in the world was going on. I told him and he goes “Oh, geez, not lizards, those things are creepy!”

He brought over his broom and helped me a little. Then he (conveniently) had to leave once the lizard disappeared deeper into the car, and left me the broom. About that same time I saw another one.  In my car.  Yep.  Great. 

I opened all the doors and started pulling things out. The kids were running up, peeking in the car, and running away screaming. Over and over again. Yeah. I wasn’t sure if it was for fun or from fear, but it certainly didn’t help me any. 

At some point I decided to take the plants out of the car. I mean, all I could think was that if there were lizards then there might be a slithery snake in one of those pots. As I grabbed the second or third one, I saw another lizard on the pot. I knew it was a different one because it was smaller than either of the others and brown instead of green. I figured would stay on the pot while I set it outside. 

Of course it didn’t, though. It, too, jumped inside the car and immediately hid. With two carseats, toys everywhere, and yeah, I admit, some trash on the floor, too, it became impossible to find those lizards. 

And then I saw one, one who still had a tail. He was on the door so I used the broom the neighbor had left and swatted it away. It went flying across the driveway and slammed into the garage door. I became the coolest mom ever at that point.  The boys watched it as it crawled away, unharmed.  (Thankfully for the kids sake!)

Okay. One down, two to go. Or at least I thought. I couldn’t let myself imagine how many there really could be. I found the second one, which was the largest one, aka Mr. Tailless, hiding in between the seats. With some poking and prodding I got that guy to run out of the car on his own. More giggling and screaming from the kids. They thought they were all gone because I hadn’t told them about the baby one I saw last. 

And when I kept looking and couldn’t find that little guy, I outright lied to my kids and told them there were no more. I know, I shouldn’t lie to them, but come on!  I had a 30 minute drive back home and didn’t need them to be freaked out.

Yeah.  The drive.  I was so worried about driving away with that lizard still in there. Without the plants, of course, because there was no way I was keeping those things inside my car after all that. Sorry, sis. The kids were begging me to never put "leaves" in the car again.  

  

And that’s how it was like Cambodia. But it wasn’t. In Cambodia there were geckos and lizards everywhere. They over and beside us as we ate at restaurants, they came into our kitchen and bedrooms, and they likely rode in tuk tuks with us. It was expected, so it wasn’t all that strange. I guess I’ve adapted now, though, because the thought of driving away with that little guy stuck inside my car, my closed up, moving vehicle, driving on a 4 lane freeway, freaked me out.  I almost couldn’t do it.

But I did.  I lied to the kids again as I buckled them in their carseats.  And I drove.  But every little flicker of light made me jumpy because I thought it was a moving reptile... my mind was still imagining a snake being in there, too.  At one point one of the kids threw a toy into the front seat and I jumped.  They thought that was so funny that they did it again a few minutes later. 

We finally made it home, with no sightings of the lizard. Thank you, Jesus. Because if that thing had run across my lap or jumped on my back while I was driving, I’m sure I’d have closed my eyes, let go, and started singing “Jesus, take the wheeeeeel!”

Whew.  What a day.

I don’t miss Cambodia anymore for now.  
And I'm not driving that car again for a while.  

Maybe That's What It's All About

I’m sitting here in my new house in Sugar Land surrounded by boxes and pieces of furniture that aren't put together yet, and using internet that is coming through my phone because I waited too long to order it, and my eyes are filled with tears.  It’s not because of the boxes, though.  Or the furniture.  Or the internet, though I could use a faster connection.  It’s because I am starting to figure out what it’s all about. 

“It” being the right now.  I’m so happy to live here, in a great house, in a great neighborhood, and so close to many of my loved ones, but I couldn’t help the feeling of wondering if all this is enough.  After being in Cambodia, which seemed like such a “big” thing for me, this feels almost small.  I catch myself wondering how I can do more.  More for God.  More for others.  More for sweet young girls and boys caught in the nightmare of human trafficking.  Just more.

And today God brought comfort to me in the midst of it all.  He sent me a nice man to connect my gas so I’d finally have hot water.  I’m thankful for that, for sure, but He did even more.  He made both him and me stop what we were doing and have a conversation that changed the way we both look at our current circumstances.

“Mike” asked me where we were moving from.  It’s funny because I never know quite what to say to that, and I just answer simply, “Cambodia.” Of course, that always leads to a million questions and this time was no different.  Before I knew it, he was hearing my whole story and his eyes were moist with tears.  I felt God nudging me to find out more from him so I started asking him about his life.  I couldn’t believe what he said to me. 

He’s been feeling a call to missions for quite some time but his wife isn’t ready.  They have boys the same ages as ours and she, understandably, just can’t fathom taking them away from here to become strangers in a strange land.  Well, I don’t know if you remember how I reacted to my husband’s revelation, but let’s just say I completely understand his wife’s reservations.  I then shared how God had changed my own heart and how much the boys and I fell in love with this place we never wanted to go. He smiled and told me he was inspired. 

And after he left, I realized that maybe that’s what it’s all about. 

Sharing my story.

Listening to others.
Encouraging.
Inspiring.
Or, what I should be doing anyway... Just yielding to God when He tells me what to do. 

That’s not a little thing at all.  That’s what it’s all about.  That’s what life is all about.

Mercy Project - a guest post

There’s an estimated 7,000 children who work in the Ghana fishing industry. Some of
these children are as young as 5 and 6 years old.  All of these children are slaves.

–Mercy Project

Today many in our country will take a day off from our jobs to celebrate the social and economic achievements of American workers.  No matter if we’re celebrating at home or at the beach, we’re entering into a tradition that has largely been shaped by Labor Unions - organizations that are dedicated to protecting workers’ interests and improving their wages, hours, and working conditions.  Today as we lounge around or hang out with friends and family, we’re not only celebrating hard work, we’re honoring fair, ethical working practices and the laws that prevent discrimination, abuse, and child labor in our country.  Without these laws in place (and enforced), the most vulnerable members of society suffer.  Who are the most vulnerable? Children. 

Today as we’re celebrating the systems in our own country that strive to prevent injustices like child trafficking and child labor, we’re mindful of the many child slaves around the world who are unprotected and the organizations, like Mercy Project, who are working to free them.

As a mother, it’s difficult for me to imagine my children working 14 hours a day, 7 days a week.  I’m unable to wrap my brain around the thought of my children engaged in long, hard days of physical labor, eating one meal a day, and then falling asleep at night on a dirt floor filled with other slave children.  Yet this is the daily reality for kids who have been trafficked into the fishing industry in Ghana, Africa.  As with much of Africa, there is a great deal of poverty in Ghana. Unfortunately, this leaves many mothers in an unimaginable position: sell their children to someone who can take better care of them or watch them starve to death. Most of the mothers are told their children will be given food, housing, and an education. Instead, the kids are often taken to Lake Volta where they become child slaves and their mothers never see them again.  Thankfully, Mercy Project is working to break the cycles of trafficking around Lake Volta by providing alternate, more efficient, sustainable, fishing methods for villagers – ultimately eliminating the need for child slaves.  Because of the work Mercy Project is doing in Ghana, the first group of children will be freed this month from Lake Volta.

We invite you to watch this moving, 10 minute documentary about the issues surrounding child labor and trafficking in Ghana and most importantly the hope Mercy Project is bringing to children and entire communities in Africa.  Mercy Project is the only NGO working on Lake Volta addressing the injustice of child labor and child trafficking at its root - by strengthening the Ghanaian economy and eliminating the structures that cause the demand for trafficked children.

Whether these ideas of child labor, child trafficking, and modern-day slavery are new to you or you’re aware of these injustices, but need to hear some good news every once in awhile, we invite you to become a part of what Mercy Project is doing in Ghana.  When Mercy Project frees their first group of children this month, we can all celebrate together.

Learn more and get involved by –

• Watching Mercy Project’s short documentary (above)

• Following Mercy Project on Facebook. 

• Connecting with Mercy Project viaTwitter.  

• Spending some time on Mercy Project’swebsite.  

• Sharing about Mercy Project’s work in Ghana with your friends.  

Although child trafficking, child labor, and the unstable economies that result in these injustices are a tragedy, we’re grateful for what Mercy Project is doing to protect the vulnerable and for allowing us to be a part of this story.   While we’re commemorating labor laws and ethical work in our own country today, we invite you to follow along on this journey with Mercy Project to protect and free children in Ghana.

The ultimate test of a moral society is the kind of world that it leaves to its children.”

-- Dietrich Bonhoeffer

"...in serving the best interests of children, we serve the best interests of all humanity."
-- Carol Bellamy

“When the lives and the rights of children are at stake, there must be no silent witnesses.”--Carol Bellamy

"God does not want us to merely give the poor perfunctory help, but to ponder long and hard about how to improve their entire situation." -- Tim Keller in Generous Justice  

"If slavery is not wrong, nothing is wrong." -- Abraham Lincoln

NEW LIFE FOR CHILDREN

www.mercyproject.net

What's Next?

It’s the most common question I get. Day after day, I hear it asked and day after day I answer that I don’t know. “Just waiting to see God’s will,” I say, or something like it. Well, after a couple months of praying, pondering, and hoping for a new adventure to emerge out of the unknown, we have an answer. 

And the second most popular question in my life these days is “Why haven’t you updated your blog?”.

So here goes the answer to both.

It’s been a long (but great) few months. We have been able to travel a bit, visit many friends and family members, and spend time together as a family.  It’s been a little hard at times, not having much time and space for just the 4 of us as everyone is so excited we are here that they always want to join in. But that’s been a great change in our lives, too. For our entire married life we have lived at least a plane ride away and having friends and family here to enjoy (and babysit!) has been refreshing and fun!

Which is why we are thankful our next adventure begins in Texas.  Home.  Or, rather, what used to be home. I’m not sure where I call home anymore. Most of my heart is still in Cambodia, and I don’t think that will ever change. But as a young Army wife staying with my husband at JAG school years ago, a General’s wife gave me the best advice about moving and the military that I’ve ever received.  She said “Wherever you are, make it home.” I’ve tried to do that with every move, whether I’ll be there for 4 months or 4 years. 

So “home” will be Sugar Land, TX.  Sounds sweet, huh?  Haha, that’s from my friend Mari. 

Stephen accepted a job at the Attorney General’s office in downtown Houston and we – this very weekend – will find ourselves in a rental home in that sweet suburb. Stephen has already started working in the consumer protection division in a supervisory role and is enjoying it very much.  I’d explain more what he does but I’m still trying to figure it all out.

As for me, well, I’ll be busy. I want to continue volunteering, homeschooling, and trying to do what I can to help victims of human trafficking by becoming voice for the voiceless. God has given me some visions of ways I can help and I plan to follow where He leads.  More on that to come. I plan to reopen my photography business, with a fresh new goal of serving others with the talents He’s given me. More on that to come, too.  I’m thrilled that I’m in a country where many speak the same language as me.  That was the hardest obstacle to overcome in Cambodia, and I never did overcome it. 

Over these past few months, I have learned ways we - as in YOU and me - can still serve others in need, like my friends in Cambodia, from right here in America.  More on that to come too.

This weekend is our big move and we will be busy loading, unloading, unpacking and arranging things. Things we haven’t seen in over 15 months. Even amidst the craziness, you’ll hear from me. I’m participating in a big blog project Monday, so stay tuned for that exciting update.

If you don’t see it, there’s a theme here... I plan to do more updating to this blog than I have done this summer. (That's not saying much, I know...sorry about these past months!)  I can’t wait to share with you what God has been showing me over this time. 

Thanks for your prayers as our family’s adventure continues!!

On the Road

Well, over 3 weeks ago we set out for a short trip. And we still aren’t back yet. Our little one asked as we strapped him in his car seat one day “Where are we going to live today, Mom?”

Half the time I don’t know. But that’s ok because we’re having a blast! I mean, nothing at all is going as we planned, but we’re trying to just remember that God knows the plan and is in control. I think I posted once about Navigating the Interruptions in Life. There have been some interruptions lately but we’re making the most of the tough ones and loving the people we get to see in between. Loving that part so so much!

We headed first to North Carolina to see loved ones at Spout Springs Church and in the area we lived in just before leaving for Cambodia. One of our biggest priorities was to get the house cleaned up after the renters moved out and find new renters.

That brought interruption #1 :  The renters weren’t quite out as we thought they were, so we just hung out with friends for a week while listing the home ourselves for rent. After a week of no potential renters, we were able to get in and do some work on it. During the second week we got a couple views but some leading from the Holy Spirit – including a call from a realtor who sought us out and set up an appointment – prompted us to list the home for sale instead of rent. My home!  It was hard leaving the home I’d loved so soon after leaving the Cambodia that I’d loved. But we did. We pulled away with nothing left inside but a “for sale” sign. Pray with us that the sale happens quickly.

We planned to leave from there to drive to Washington DC and meet Stephen’s sister and family from further up north, since it was a good meeting point. On the way we wanted to stop and see a friend in Richmond. If my husband hadn’t decided to power wash the deck an hour before our scheduled departure time, we might have made that trip on time (interruption #2 – the neighbor informed us rightthatminute she had a power washer). We did make it, though, ending up in Richmond area at dinner time and able to see our friends at a Cracker Barrel and play for a few minutes before continuing the drive.

We had lots of fun in DC with my niece and nephews, visiting the Smithsonian National Zoo and Smithsonian Natural History Museum. The next day we went to the National Arboretum before leaving town and saw some beautiful gardens. Do I count the major 3 year old meltdown we witnessed here as interruption #3 or is that just normal life?

We left DC that day to head to the Lexington, Kentucky area to see another sister and her family. Did I mention that we drove all these roads with no GPS? Just an old fashioned atlas and me as navigator. That led to a few interruptions too. We’ll just pretend those didn’t happen and not give them numbers.

We stopped for the night at New River Gorge. Also known as “the Grand Canyon of the East,” by some brochures, anyway. It was so gorgeous!  We got up the next day and did a little hiking, driving, and exploring. After lunch we set off for the short 4 hour drive to see my niece and nephew in KY!

Interruption #4 – the MAJOR one (so far!). See, we bought an old car for this cross country trip because we wanted something reliable and big enough for all our stuff, but we also didn’t want to go buy something expensive because we don’t know what we are doing next. If we are moving overseas again, we certainly don’t need an expensive car to get rid of. If we aren’t, well, we can buy a nice car later, when we have an income again! So, we are driving in a 95 Ford Explorer that rocks a bit after 60mph. Well, it did anyway. Sometime that day it started shaking too, and it started at 30 instead of 60. At the border of WV and KY we stopped to have a mechanic look at it. He told us that something or other was wrong and that we learned that we could make it to my sister in law’s house but should keep the speed down, at 30mph or so. Great.  150 miles to go. At 30mph.  That’s what, 5 hours? And doesn’t count all the red lights on the little roads we had to take. Or the navigation errors caused by whoever was reading the map (ahem, me). We realized it was going to be a long trip, and it was already 5pm. 

Then the interruption was interrupted.

Interruption #5.  Just as we came off a winding road in Eastern KY with not much civilization around, we heard a pop and stopped to see that the tire had blown. We were thankful that we were only going 30mph when it happened, and thankful that it happened where it did, because just a few miles earlier we would have been in the middle of nowhere. Here we pulled into someone’s driveway to change it. Good thing, because we had to unload everything, car seats included, to get to the parts of the jack. Very poor design, but we were just thankful it was all there in such an old car! An hour later we were back on the road.

We made it to the house late that night and have been enjoying our time ever since. Except for the sore muscles I have from going to a jazzercise class my sister in law taught a couple days ago. She’s a great teacher.  Whether you judge that by how fun the class is or how sore you are afterward, she wins both ways. I think even my fingers are sore as I type!  And I just yawned and it hurt everything in my body.  Gosh, I need to get back into working out!

As we prepare to depart KY and drive back to TX, with the car repaired and perhaps with a stop on the way at a dear friend’s house, please pray for our family. Here are some specific requests:

Pray for safe travel in this old car (it has the same mileage as when we left TX!)
Pray for the kids who seem to be adjusting well but may be dealing with stuff we don’t realize
Pray for each visit we have with friends or strangers to bring glory to God
Pray for the job search and for God to reveal His plan for our family soon
Pray always for the victims of trafficking.  And for Cambodia.  I miss it like crazy today.