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We just got back from a short 24 hour vacation to Santa Cruz. We left at 2:30 on Sunday afternoon, and got home around 4pm on Monday afternoon (although we did stop at the chiropractor’s on the way home). We had such a good time, and it’s just too bad we couldn’t have stayed longer.
I’d been toying with the idea all summer of us taking a family vacation to Santa Cruz. Then when we returned home from Wisconsin, I found a message on my answering machine telling me that I had won tickets to the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk from my local grocery store thanks to a drawing I had entered. Yay! The stars lined up perfectly for us to go.
For our drive down to Santa Cruz, we drove the scenic route along the coast on Hwy 1. Those views – wow, they are amazing. It truly is just beautiful. When we got to Santa Cruz, we first drove down by the Beach Boardwalk, just so we could get a bit of an idea what we were getting into. It looked like a lot of people, a lot of activity, but it looked like fun!
First, however, we checked into our hotel. We knew it had an indoor pool; that was one of the main criteria for my selection of a hotel. However, once Lyd saw the pool that’s All She Wanted To Do. So, after reasoning that it probably was the best time for us to go into the pool during our short stay, we all got our suits on and went into the water. And, I have to say, it was just about perfect. The water wasn’t too cold, but it wasn’t too hot either. It never got more than 5 feet deep, which was good. And, despite her refusal to even put a toe into a hotel pool while in Wisconsin, we managed to convince Curious J to give this pool a try. A beach ball and a floatie helped. 
After our dip in the pool, we rinsed off, got dressed again, and made the short drive over to the Boardwalk, where we parked in the lot closest to the kiddie rides (thanks to directions from some kind parking attendants). We got in, went to the ticket counter, and exchanged the four passes I had won for four wristbands good for unlimited rides. Score! Those wristbands cost $30 a piece, so it was a $120 value that I won! Very nice. 
After getting our wristbands, we bought a simple supper: fried chicken with corn on the cob and a few fries. We tried to go as easy on the grease as we could, but it was difficult.) Then it was off for some kiddie rides. The girls did great, and Curious J did some rides that were quite a bit faster than the ones at Bay Beach. Lyd, however, noticed some of the faster rides, and asked to go on some of those. Specifically, she wanted to go on the ferris-wheel-like ride where people sit in oval-shaped cages that the riders can make spin around even as the cages go around in a big circle. JJ at first wasn’t sure about that, but when he realized that the individual cages didn’t HAVE to spin around, Lyd and I gave it a try. And, of course, she LOVED it!
She and I did a number of more “big-kid” rides. There was a roller coaster that’s made for kids that still goes at a pretty good clip. Lyd wasn’t sure if she wanted to go on it at first, but after the first run down the track, she couldn’t stop laughing and wanted to go again and again. I always went with her, and I have to admit: it went at a good clip. We did more rides with Curious J and JJ, but she and I did a number of rides ourselves, too. Lyd went on one ride with her Daddy, too, but he’s not so big into fast spinning rides as he used to be, and he’s not keen on roller coasters. But we still all managed to have a good time.
Although Lyd was too small, I decided to go on the famous Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk roller coaster by myself: The Giant Dipper. I believe it’s one of the oldest roller coasters in California? America? Something like that. It’s old. It doesn’t go upside down, but MAN, that thing goes FAST!!! I was glad I had gone, but I was also glad to see the chiropractor today to be put back to rights.
We didn’t leave the Boardwalk until 9pm, closing time. When we got back to the hotel, it was no big surprise that Lyd announced that she was hungry. So, I brought out the PB&J sandwiches I had packed, along with some applesauce cups and string cheese. I even popped up the bag of microwave popcorn I had brought from home, so we were able to have a nice late-night snack before bed. Everyone except me conked out by 10pm, but when I got to bed at 10:30, it didn’t take me long to go to sleep either.
We all slept in late this morning, exhausted from all the amusement park fun of the night before. We managed to get out of the hotel by 10am to get to Roaring Camp for our authentic steam train ride at 11am. It only took about 20 minutes to get there, and the train ride was just lovely. We were surrounded by redwoods, the weather was perfect, and it really is a beautiful sound to hear a steam train whistle echo through the hills. It was lovely!
After a stop for a late lunch at a local diner we noticed on our drive in called Heavenly Cafe (SO GOOD!!), we drove back home taking the faster freeway route. It was, in fact, disturbingly fast; we couldn’t believe how little time it took for us to see familiar landmarks. Here we had thought we were so far away!
But it was a wonderful trip, and 24 hours away is better than no hours away. It’s nice to realize that Santa Cruz actually is pretty close; we hope to go visit there more in the future. A high school friend of mine lives in Santa Cruz, and gave us lots of ideas for things to do with kids. I’m hoping we can try out some of those ideas soon.
A few months ago, a big story appeared on the national news scene. Gov. Mark Sanford, governor of South Carolina, disappeared for five days, came home, and admitted to having an affair with a woman in Argentina for the past year. Sanford said he and the woman exchanged e-mails and the relationship began as a “casual” friendship.
This story reminds me of how easy it is to become involved in an affair. In our short lives, my and my husband’s circles of existence have already briefly touched a number of people who have been involved in affairs, or have been cheated on. Those are always sad situations. Most people’s basic reaction is to criticize the cheater and feel sorry for the offended spouse. Those emotions may be very appropriate, but I suspect that it’s not always that simple. I suspect there are times when an affair began with no thought of where it would eventually lead. While there are, of course, habitual cheaters, I believe that some affairs begin as a simple friendship. However, at some point that friendship crosses a line, and those involved don’t recognize the change until it’s too late. Emotional attachments can be strong; one can know what the right thing to do is, but have difficulty actully doing it.
So, without cutting oneself off from every person of the opposite gender outside of one’s spouse, how can a person keep from crossing that invisible line in their friendships with the opposite gender?
Recently, I came across this article called “Can Men and Women Be Friends?” written by Rabbi Shmuley Boteach. I thought it had some interesting ideas worth sharing.
If a person isn’t married, Rabbi Shmuley says it’s perfectly all right to have friends who are members of the opposite sex. Society has moved away from polarizing the sexes, and today, men and women work together, go to school together and should be able to be friends, he says.
Things are different if you are married, Rabbi Shmuley says. It is possible to have an opposite sex friendship, but you cannot compromise certain borders:
1. You can’t go out to late night dinners together. You can have lunch together in a public place, but you should not order alcoholic beverages. “The embers of attraction really can grow in situations like that, and suddenly it’s not so innocent, it’s not just friendship anymore,” Rabbi Shmuley says.
2. You can’t take long drives or long flights with the other person, even if it’s for work. “Even if you have to work with a colleague [of the opposite sex], there are still certain boundaries you need to preserve,” he says.
3. You cannot place yourself in any situation where romance can grow. “Romance grows when people are alone; romance grows when people tell secrets,” Rabbi Shmuley says.
4. You can’t share secrets with a platonic male or female friend that you don’t share with your spouse. “Because then you’re sharing an exclusivity with a member of the opposite sex that you’re not with your partner, and that can lead to a big no-no,” he says.
5. You should not be friends with ex-lovers.
As a Christian, it’s important to recognize that we are not immune to infidelity issues. In fact, the devil works harder tempting Christians than non-Christians. As long as we live on this earth, we will never be free from the temptations of the devil. Yet it’s a comfort to know that if a relationship does cross the line, it’s still forgiveable, and it’s never too late to give up on a sin and try again to live a God-pleasing life.
Christians know and believe that God is the one who joins two people together in marriage, and if God has joined those two people together, then he will also provide whatever they need to make their marriage work, as long as the hearts of the couple are receptive to him and his Word. As Matthew 19:6 says, “Therefore what God has joined together, let man not separate.”
It’s easy to mentally throw stones at someone like Sanford and think “How could anyone DO such a thing?” But all of us are guilty of sins, sins that we should have known better than to do, and sins that we commit repeatedly. For most of us, those sins are more private than public. But we all are born with a sinful nature that makes sin seem natural, and which makes it all too easy for us to commit sins of thoughts, word, and action every day. Given the “right” opportunity or the presented with the “right” temptation, each of us sin-full individuals are capable of doing practically anything wrong. So, it’s important to never regard sin lightly, but always know that it’s forgiveable. As the old phrase goes, “There, but for the grace of God, go I.” Thankfully, God has forgiven our sins at the cross. Jesus’ perfect life was done on our behalf, and we now know that when God looks at us, he doesn’t see our sins. Instead he sees Jesus’ perfect life.
We all sin every day. We’ll never get over that until we die. But we are thankful to God because of Jesus, through whose sin-free life and innocent death, we have an eternal home waiting for us in heaven, free from sin and its effects. We’ll be free at last! What a day to look forward to!
(This is a guest post from a friend of mine named Mandy. I love how she wrote it, and I absolutely agree with her. You can also read an edited version of this article here at OregonLive.com)
I have a couple of confessions to make and perhaps confession isn’t really the right word. Unlike a typical confession, I really feel no guilt over these aspects of my life. In fact, I’m really unapologetic about them. Also, for those who know me these items really aren’t a confession. They would come as no surprise to my nearest and dearest. Let’s just call them tidbits then—a little something about myself.
First, I am a conservative. I am proudly a conservative. I love being an American. I love that being an American gives me the right to hold whatever political belief I wish. I was raised this way and have only grown stronger in my convictions as I’ve gotten older. In fact, I recently pinned a Ronald Reagan button to my purse and it is awesome!
I could talk for hours about why I hold to this political philosophy but the intent of this note is not really to discuss, debate, or defend my conservatism. I mention this tidbit about myself mostly to discuss another: I shop at Whole Foods. I was raised to be a Whole Foods shopper. We gave up trans-fats long before all the cool kids did. We try not to eat things made in labs, preferring natural, preservative-free, garbage-free alternatives. Once upon a time these were called “health foods.” Nowadays they are called, “stuff you get at Whole Foods.” When Whole Foods came to our town we discovered that the health foods we were getting from our local grocery could be purchased from Whole foods for much less and normal grocery items such and beans, pastas, and snacks were quite comparable. Sure, if you buy specialty foods, premade meals, imported cheeses, and fancy schmancy wines at Whole Foods one could very well see why some folks call it Whole Paycheck (hardy har har). And there certainly are items that we buy elsewhere (as much as my husband would like for us purchase some of those fancy schmancy wines). But, if one goes for ingredients to cook from scratch and chooses the Whole Foods store brand foods one can shop there in quite an economical fashion. We are infinitely thankful for this store. We can shop in a way that allows us to feed our family the healthful foods we feel are so important for a price that is better than or equal to our other grocery options in the majority of cases. Now, what does all of this have to do with me being a conservative? Absolutely nothing…and completely and totally everything.
When I am at Whole Foods, I’m a bit of an outsider. I’ve gotten dirty looks more than once when I’ve parked my conservative-bumper-stickered-gas guzzler, toting my carbon emitting, population overloading little boys in between a Prius calling upon me to “co-exist” and a Smart Car pleading that I “give peace a chance.” Inside the store are frequent pleas to save the planet with my shopping choices. And while I’m all for caring for this beautiful planet with which God has so blessed us (we recycle excessively, use chemical-free products when available, and compost out the wazoo), I refuse to jump on the “Love Your Mother,” “Green is the New Black” bandwagon. And here’s a confession for you: In the Whole Foods’ bathroom, they ask you to take part in the “One Paper Towel Challenge. “ I use two. I like to use two paper towels. I just do. I’m sorry if someone out there thinks that my use of two paper towels the three times a year I use the Whole Foods bathroom is going to lead to the demise of the planet. I just like to use two! And I like to stick it to the Whole Foods Man.
Ah, yes, the Whole Foods Man—John Mackey. Now we are getting somewhere. John Mackey, as I recently learned while reading a food magazine on vacation, is one business savvy dude. What started as a tiny health food store in Texas has grown to become one of the world’s largest grocery chains. For the years that I have shopped at Whole Foods and even while reading said article about him recently, I assumed that in most ways Mr. Mackey and I have nothing in common. In fact, I still think this is pretty true. Whole Foods under Mr. Mackey as CEO has done plenty of things with which I don’t agree. While I haven’t confirmed to what extent, it is reported that Whole Foods contributes to Planned Parenthood. They take part, of course, in the aforementioned enviro-guilt. And I’m sure if I looked into it I would find other items that bother me. But I continue to shop there because Mr. Mackey has given us a well-run, clean, organized store with helpful, friendly staff and easy, affordable access to the foods I want to feed my family. I have never considered not shopping there because of the philosophies of those in charge, because, quite frankly, I really like Whole Foods. I really like that I have the opportunity to shop at this store. But, I also like that if for some reason Mr. Mackey totally ticked me off, I could choose to stop shopping there.
Unexpectedly, Mr. Mackey and I do happen to a have something in common. His recent op-ed discussing the current healthcare debate I felt was very thoughtful and quite impressive. I was pleasantly surprised to find the he has many of the same feeling that I do. Unfortunately, not everybody liked what he had to say and many folks have decided to boycott Whole Foods. Now, since I haven’t yet decided to turn my back on this store despite our other differences, I don’t think I would be compelled to make this move even had his article been titled, “John Mackey Loves Obamacare and He Thinks You Should Too.” But the awesome part about living in this country is that the boycotters have the freedom to boycott. If they don’t want to shop at Whole Foods for any reason at all, they don’t have to. My current patronage of Whole Foods is in part a protest of my own against the boycotters and I have every right to do that. These freedoms that we have in this country that allows us to have opinions, express those opinions, shop where we want to shop, eat what we want to eat, these freedoms are what make this country great.
But we have a little problem going on these days. In the case of Whole Foods , for example, we have gone beyond people choosing not to shop somewhere to folks calling for the removal of John Mackey as the company’s CEO. It’s sort of funny, isn’t it, that the boycotters can hold the opinion that they don’t want to shop at Whole Foods because they disagree with Mr. Mackey, but Mr. Mackey isn’t allowed to have an opinion on a most important discussion going on in our country. Now, those calling for his resignation argue that he has harmed the company by alienating a key portion of his base. And to that I say, tell them to stop being such babies!! Er, um, no, I mean, to that I say, fine, perhaps he has alienated some of his more liberal customers. But he has added a plethora more who have seen his op-ed and wish to support his business. They are the counter-protesters, the anti-boycotters, and they are, I have been told, coming out in droves. I think once all the numbers are crunched, we will find that Whole Foods wasn’t actually injured by Mr. Mackey and we may even find that business has picked up. After all, if it is now all the typical, filthy-rich conservatives that are shopping in counter-protest the money should be pouring in, right? One also has to consider the amount of time that has passed since the op-ed was written. I’m not entirely sure a matter of weeks is enough to determine the damage done to the overall business of Whole Foods. And are we actually to believe that those calling for his removal are really worried about Whole Foods’ bottom line?
No, I don’t really think that this is about the bucks. It really comes down to ideology. This isn’t a matter of attempting to remove Mr. Mackey because he hurt the business (the business that he made this successful to begin with, let’s not forget). Rather, it is an attack on Mr. Mackey because he doesn’t tow the liberal line. Nowhere in his op-ed does he say, “And as CEO of Whole Foods I do declare this to be the official statement of Whole Foods.” He spoke as a successful businessman using his well-run employee health plan as an example. He spoke as John Mackey the human being with an opinion. He spoke as John Mackey the American. Last I checked one’s level of success, ones business title, does not exempt one from the same rights as the boycotters or the anti-boycotters. Every citizen has the right to express an opinion just as every citizen has the right to disagree with the opinions of others.
Mr. Mackey is a prime example of the American Dream. He had an idea years ago. He used his talents and resources to make his dream a reality and his reality became a wild success. If success suddenly becomes unraveled because the dreamer has his owns opinions we are no longer America. When success is suddenly determined by whose thugs have the most tug we are no longer America. And if successful men are no longer entitled to an opinion, how can we be sure that we, the lowly protesters will be entitled to our opinions? How long will we be able to make our own decisions? How long will we be able to dream our dreams? Because when that is all gone we are truly no longer America. And I will no longer be me. I am a conservative because I can be. I shop at Whole Foods because I can. I can because I am an American.
Check out this video of the Rick Astley song:” Never Gonna Give You Up” with descriptions of what’s happening in the video playing at the same time. Think “Mystery Science Theater.” It’s hilarious, plus it’s Totally 80’s!
In a similar vein, watch this youtube literal video version of the Bonnie Tyler song: Total Eclipse of the Heart . They change to words of the song to reflect what’s happening in the video. I laughed so hard that I almost peed my pants watching it!
This video of With Arms Wide Open is done along the same lines, and also quite funny, as well as this video of the Starship song: We Built this City on Rock and Roll .
There’s more videos along the same lines there for you to enjoy as well. So, enjoy!
Tonight I got fed up with something Lyd had been repeatedly doing, despite my admonitions to the contrary, and she earned herself a big old dose of corporal punishment applied to her behind. After that, I firmly instructed her to sit facing a corner of the kitchen until I told her she could get up.
With mighty sobs over her situation, she carried out my instructions, probably feeling unloved and rejected by her world.
Yet, all hope was not lost.
For lo, her little sister, seeing her adored big sister’s distress, and wanting to do everything her sister did, proceeded to also head to the kitchen corner, sit down on the floor, and howl away in unison. She offered her sister clumsy hugs, hugs which Lyd was happy to return and which calmed down her crying significantly.
“Yes, J, I love you, too,” were the words that Lyd sobbed out as she held her sister. (J probably babbled out the same thing, but I can’t understand her too well yet.)
Meanwhile, I, the Momma whose punishment instigated this weeping and wailing, watched this from a dish-laden kitchen sink, and inwardly smiled at the situation. Because, you see, Lyd had gotten punished for her attempts to resist her little sister’s efforts to imitate her. But now, as her little sister continued to want to be just like her big sister, she realized that perhaps imitation wasn’t so bad after all. Thanks to her little sister’s determination to imitate her in everything, she didn’t have to sit in the corner alone and feel unloved.
Perhaps having a little sister isn’t so bad after all.
About a month ago, I posted a link for a trailer for the upcoming movie The Time Traveler’s Wife. I really wanted to see it, and Friday, August 14, was opening night for the movie. We were on vacation at the time, meaning we had free babysitters. (Thanks, Mom and Dad!) So, JJ easily agreed to go along with me, and for the first time in my life, I saw a movie on the night it opened.
I enjoyed the movie and thought that it was a good adaptation of the book. As the title suggests, there is a lot of time traveling involved in the original novel, and I thought the screenplay managed those many difficult shifts well. The actors did a fine job, and the movie achieved its ending in a more-or-less believable fashion. All that said, it isn’t going to win any Oscars for any of those involved in making the movie. But, I would deem it a solid 3-star movie, and I would recommend it for those who like a tear-jerker movie.
Those of you who know me in real life will not be surprised when I say that romantic dramas with tragic endings are my favorite kind of movie. Those of you who know my husband will not be surprised when I say that those are JJ’s least favorite kind of movies. (Yet, somehow we have managed to be married for nine years! Ah, love truly does conquer all.) After the movie, JJ asked me why I think the genre of the tragic romance is so appealing to me, and I wasn’t quite sure how to answer. The best answer we could come up with is that because my life has been devoid of tragedy and true hardship, I enjoy vicariously experiencing it via a story.
That’s absolutely true; I DO love a good tragic love story. My favorite movies and/or books include: The Thorn Birds, Gone with the Wind, Roman Holiday, The English Patient and Possession (to name a few). None of those have happy endings, so Yes, I definitely enjoy the love story with a sad ending. Not that I’m against happy endings (I could give you a long list of happily ending books and movies that I also enjoy), but I thrill to the painful feeling in my gut given me by heartbreak in a story. (Yes, there’s a little bit of Anne of Green Gables in me, too.) For some reason, the idea that two people meant to be together will not spend their lives together (even when it’s all entirely fictional) moves me deeply, and I thoroughly enjoy spending a few hours in the shoes of those fictional characters. (By the way, if any of you have recommendations for other romance movies with sad endings, please leave a comment. I’d love to hear them!)
JJ suggested that if my life had had more sad episodes and more sad love story endings, perhaps I wouldn’t be so intrigued by those kind of stories. I suspect that he’s right – I did have rather a Mary Poppins upbringing, with hefty doses of “Mister Rogers Neighborhood” and The Sound of Music thrown in. But, life is what it is. It’s not that I haven’t experienced sadnesses and disappointments in my life; I have. If and when true tragedy strikes my life (not that I’m wanting it to strike!), I suspect my taste in movies might change, too.
If you’d like a passionate review of the movie with more details, read this review, posted over at Velveteen Mind.
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I read the book The Time Traveler’s Wife about 2.5 years ago, when I was pregnant with Curious J. I picked up the book at the library, purely because I was intrigued by the title and by the cover picture. I read the book and could barely put it down. In some ways it’s a harsh book, with plenty of four-letter words and more than one uncomfortable scene, but despite it’s unreal premise, the story is written in so real a way that one can’t help but be drawn in. I don’t latch onto stories easily, but this story caught me and wouldn’t let me go. I couldn’t stop thinking about the story for about a month; it made quite an impression on me.
I found this interesting quote from Audrey Niffenegger, the author of The Time Traveler’s Wife, on Amazon.com:
[On wondering whether her work centers on the theme of loss:] My work is about time passing, and things that go away and you can’t get them back, and death. And, of course, it’s also about birth and music and art and running around like a maniac without your clothes on. But, it is true that I write about loss a great deal, and I think that I do that because it seems like the most profound thing that happens to us. In addition to gaining things and falling in love and having children, everything that we do is potentially going to be lost. And so I think it’s important to enjoy everything while it’s here and pay attention while it’s here, so that’s actually one of the main themes of the book.
I understand that constant feeling of a sense of impending loss. It’s a blog post for another day, but suffice to say I often try to mentally prepare myself to lose the things I love most. This blog is one example of that. I know that life can change in a moment, and if you don’t enjoy and make use of the moments you’re given now, you may never have another chance.
Perhaps that’s why I’m drawn to the tragic story. I trust that God knows what is best for me and my family, and I’m not expecting to leave anytime soon. But I know that the future is always uncertain. Perhaps I have that sense that, in a moment, just like the character Henry frequently does in The Time Traveler’s Wife, my life could simply … vanish.
Apparently, I am one sexy Momma, and I don’t even have to try.
Just before leaving for my 11am chiropractor appointment this Monday morning, I discovered that Curious J had a majorly poopy diaper, leaking all over, mess-o-riffic. So, already feeling the need to hustle, I had to completely clean the baby, dress her in a new outfit, and get everyone out to the car. I don’t usually dress up for chiro visits, and today was no exception: jeans, red “Coca-Cola” T-shirt, hair pulled back in a hasty ponytail, and no makeup (not that I ever wear makeup anyway, but today was no exception).
While driving on the freeway, I noticed a Hispanic guy pull up in a red pickup truck alongside of my minivan. He beeped his horn gently, and I looked around to see what was wrong. I noticed the guy grinning at me. When I looked at him, he put his hand up to his mouth like he was drinking, and then pointed back and forth between himself and me. I didn’t know what he meant, so I just looked away. However, he beeped again, and did the same actions, this time a little more emphatically. I shrugged my shoulders, attempting to say that I didn’t know what he wanted, and I slowed down my minivan.
Remember, I’m driving a minivan, with my daughters in carseats in the back. I have no makeup on. I have just been practically up to my elbows in poop. (In fact, two and a half hours later, I think I may still smell like poop. Yes, it was a bad one.)
The freeway was five lanes wide at that point, and I had been in the lane second from the left, so I moved over to the far right lane and kept my slower speed. I also managed to put a delivery truck between the ardent suitor and myself, so that he couldn’t see me. I really didn’t know what the guy wanted, although I figured it had something to do with drinking.
When I got to the chiropractor’s office, I told the two ladies in the front office what had happened, and asked them waht they thought that was about. One said, “I think he was asking you out for a drink.” That seemed to make sense, but why? I’d never seen that guy before in my life, and dude, I was driving a MINIVAN! And it was 11am on a Monday!
So, apparently, I am one sexy hot momma, that a guy would actually honk at me on the freeway going 70 mph and attempt to ask me out.
Hmm. Can you say “desperate”?
(But, honestly, the whole story makes me laugh. I don’t know if I should be flattered or disgusted that someone propositioned me in that manner, but it sure makes for a great story! Kind of like the guy who left his name and phone number on a napkin at the restaurant where I worked in college, telling me to give him a call and that he drove an Arctic Cat [snowmobile, for those of you non-Midwesterners]. I laminated that napkin and laughed about it for years…)
During our recent trip to Wisconsin, my husband and I attended the first Green Bay Packers pre-season game on August 15 at Lambeau Field in Green Bay. JJ had eight tickets for the game, so he sold the other six tickets to cousins of mine and their spouses. While I love spending time with whole families and seeing how much the kids have grown, it was good to spend time with just the adults. We tailgated before the game, and it was fun to be part of the Lambeau experience, surrounded by 69,000 enthusiastic Packer fans.
Most exciting to see (outside of the Packers 17-0 win over the Cleveland Browns – my first time seeing a win at Lambeau!) was my cousin K’s reaction to being at his first Packer game. He owns a dairy farm in northern Wisconsin, and had never been to a professional sporting event. His enjoyment of the experience was so neat to see; I compare it to a little boy seeing his first Christmas tree. :) Everyone had a good time, the weather couldn’t have been more perfect, JJ and the rest of us had a marvelous time being surrounded in the Green Bay aura, and the Packers won! It was a good night. Here are a few pictures from the evening:
Our party of eight is at the bottom of this picture, all facing the camera.
JJ and me. I'm wearing a pink Packer hat and a shirt with a pastel iridescent Packer logo. I'm such a girly Packer Backer!
Me and my cousin J, who was the closest thing I had to a sister when I was growing up. It was so fun to spend some time with her again!
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As far as the Brett Farve saga goes, I think this shirt says it all:
After many years of experience in switching to Central Time on vacations and having to switch back to Pacific Time upon returning home, JJ and I have learned two things:
- It takes a week to fully switch onto a new time zone. We spent two weeks in WI this past trip, so we were able fully acclamate to Central Time.
- Coming from east to west to return home has its advantages. Our whole family is going to bed earlier, getting up earlier, eating earlier, and as usual, we’re hoping some of these changes will stick.
This time zone shift coming right at this time in our lives is especially nice because I was wondering how it was going to work for our family to get back into the school groove again. With our whole family waking up routinely at 8am (or later!) this past summer, an 8:30 school starting time was looking pretty grim. However, thanks to our switch to Central time, it’s just gotten a LOT easier!
JJ and I are planning to stick with this waking up by 6:30/7am for as long as possible. Not only will this aid the start of school in less than two weeks (Ack! How did summer fly by so quickly?), but it will also be helpful for getting to bed by 7:30/8pm at night. Our bedtimes had been getting pretty late, both for the kids and for us, so this recent time zone shift has been extremely helpful in getting us ready for the new school year.
The biggest trick, of course, will be for JJ and I to get to bed at a reasonable time. Both of us have problems with time management, so we end up staying up late at night to finish necessary tasks (or in my case, to waste time on the internet.) But, the start of a new school year feels like a good time to make some changes, and hopefully we can stick to them. Nothing ventured, nothing gained, right?
At least, thanks to our recent trip, we’re off to a good start.
To everyone’s great delight, Curious J achieved some important developmental leaps while on our recent vacation. It was neat to see her finally doing these things, and even more wonderful that she started doing them while amidst our extended family. I feel bad that J’s grandparents get to witness so few of her milestones because we live on the other side of the country. So, it was pretty neat to have her first time doing these things be now.
We first noticed it during our evening prayers. In our family, we speak some prayers, and sing others. One night, early in our trip when I was putting J to bed alone, she started singing with me during prayers. I was surprised, and I wondered if it would continue when the whole family was praying together. Often, JJ and I will do prayers with both girls at the same time, and when we’re with my parents, we sing our evening prayers in four-part harmony, which is lovely. I was pleased to see that later in the trip, when all of us (including my parents) were saying prayers together, J sang along with us. While she wasn’t even close to being on pitch, it was obvious that she was trying to sing. Yay!
Another similar trick that Curious J has really started doing is – talking. Ahh, finally! :) She’s repeating words more intelligibly than before, more frequently than before, and with less gobbeldy-gook mixed in with her speech. She’s not doing sentences or anything close to that yet, but we all can see definite progress. For example, the other evening I was wearing a hat, and J came in the room holding a hat of her own. She looked at the hat in her hand, looked at me, and very clearly said, “Hat!” Once she gets a word, she still likes to repeat it a number of times, which she did, but she’s finally getting new words on her own! She also added these words to her vocabulary: drink, bacon, mine, fork, spoon. She’s definitely making progress in the speech department.
(I should add that she’s getting very good at saying “No!” very well. She has even added a right hook to drive home her point of “No!” Fun times. We strongly suspect that Curious J will be a “spirited child.” Frankly, we’ve suspected that since J was two weeks old, so it’s not a big surprise. It’s more that we’re seeing her spirited-ness shift to a new level. We’re sure that she’ll use that spirit to do great things in the world someday; our goal for now is to help her learn to control and channel all that spirit in good ways. Pray for us!)
Perhaps our favorite phrases that she’s learned are “High five!” and “Go Pack Go!” When she says “high five,” it’s very clear; she also knows that you put out your hand when you say “high five.” We almost wished she wasn’t quite so understandable when, during Sunday morning church, she said “high five!” quite enthusiastically with her hand held up high. I think we gave the older couple sitting behind us a test in maintaining stoicism. :)
Curious J’s love of saying “Go Pack Go!” whenever she sees a Packer “G” makes my Green Bay Packers-loving husband’s heart sing with joy. She doesn’t have the pronunciation right on this one: she technically says “Go Gee Go.” But when she saw all the Packer gear that JJ was wearing to the Packer game that we attended, she could hardly stop saying, “Go Gee Go!” JJ was highly gratified.
Curious J gets more difficult when she’s off her regular schedule, and although we tried to protect her schedule as much as possible while we were on vacation, it’s impossible to do it all the time. Making memories takes time, you know! But despite the shortened naps, late naps, or even naps missed altogether, she always slept well when given the opportunity. That was a real blessing.
She’s growing so much every day! I’m glad her grandparents got to witness these small but important steps in her growth.
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