So Let Me Tell You About Our Weekend...

First, the short version: We all had a fabulous time at the Revolve Tour this weekend, especially Christianne.



Now for all the details and drama. :)



We left Friday afternoon and headed down to the Denver area for our Girlies' Weekend - Chris, me, and Memaw. We were cruisin' down the 25 chitting and chatting and POP. Got nailed by a piece of gravel, leaving a nice pock-mark in my windshield. Grrrr...



My friend Jessica had told us about a place near Denver called Cinema Grill, so we had lunch there and watched Marley & Me. The place was kind of funky but cool. Our pizza rocked. The movie... well... I'd hate to spoil it for you, but you know... anyway... yeah...



So after the movie we checked into our hotel in downtown Denver. Now let me tell you that I made the decision for this hotel after doing some careful research. I checked out the weather forecast, the distance to the Convention Center, and parking prices. You have to pay to park everywhere in Denver, so if we were paying for parking at the hotel, we thought it would be cool to be able to walk to the event and thus avoid paying for parking there. Makes sense, yes? Especially since the weather report said 54* and sunny.



So we checked in and chilled out for a few. The event didn't start for awhile but they had lines open early so you could get a ticket for autographs, and Christianne didn't want to miss that. I channel surfed while we kind of puttered around getting ready, and I landed on the local news. I noticed - hmmm - that the weather report was somewhat different from what I'd planned on - but - hmmm - Mom was sitting right there and didn't say anything, so...



We decided to head on over. I had bought this very cool new sweatsuit (I don't really know what it's called but it's a workout thing - like I work out, ha - in, what? nylon?) that came with a lightweight windbreaker... and that's what I wore. Chris decided she didn't want her heavy jacket and wore pants and a hoodie. Mom had on her usual 77 layers.



So we started walking. Before we got one block we kind of noticed that it was pretty much freezing outside and very windy. Christianne began the dialogue: I don't see why we couldn't drive. Well, it's only 0.4 miles away, that's why. But it's cold out here. Yes, but parking is expensive.



Mom wasn't participating in this discussion. She had her head down and was just trudging along behind us.



At two blocks I pretty much lost all feeling in my face. Soon after we were able to turn the corner though and the buildings provided a wind-break for a little bit. Eventually we approached the Convention Center.



And I noticed that there was no one there.



I said, "Wouldn't it be funny if we had to walk all the way around it to the other entrance?" and I received glares in reply.



We went in, glad the doors were unlocked. There were a couple of people here and there and a lady at the information desk yelled across the room, "Can I help you?"



Which meant, "What are you doing here?"



I was beginning to regain feeling in my face. It was starting to tingle, and maybe even redden. I said, "We're here for the Revolve Tour."



And the dreaded reply: "What's that?"



So Mom pulled out the tickets and the wonderfully sweet lady examined them to announce to us proudly that the Revolve Tour was at the COLISEUM, not the Convention Center.



Nor within walking distance of our carefully planned hotel.



Yep. I did it. Mom of the Year nomination coming up again soon!



So... we walked back to the hotel. Mind you, the sun was now setting, the wind was up, and the temperature on one building read 28*. Ahem.



We got our car out of the valet parking which had only taken it about an hour before... and found the Coliseum in plenty of time for the event... but not for the signing lines.



But can you believe that? And oh yeah - 2 days of Coliseum parking = another $20.



But we made it... and our seats were good... and Christianne was having a blast even though she was there with her mother and grandmother.



And did I tell you we forgot to bring these?

Man, I am confessing to you that I am beginning to feel old. It's not like I haven't been to a concert or two in my day, but this was SO loud... SO loud that it hurt my ear drums. So loud that you can't tell if the music is rap or pop. SO loud that your purse is vibrating in your lap.

Oh... and it wasn't just the music and stuff coming from the speakers... Did I mention that we were there with thousands of screaming young girls?

And young girls don't scream in a normal pitch. This was dog-whistle-pitch screaming all around me.

But did I say Christianne was having fun? Because that's what it was all about, right?

Yeah... and then Friday's event was over. And we walked from our perfect seats toward the glass doors which comprised the exits. And my mom said, "Is that rain?!?!!!!" in her own high-pitched voice.

Did you know my mom doesn't do precipitation?

I said only one word - "snow" - and pulled up my hoodie, ducked my head, and walked as fast as I could to the car.

Snow.

When it was supposed to be 54* and sunny.

Thank the Lord the event *wasn't* at the Convention Center after all. I think she might've killed me.

So most of the "fun" was on Friday... Saturday's conference wasn't as eventful. Chris did get to get a few autographs and jumped her way all through the day, quite literally.

I'm not sure I can hear as well as I could a couple of days ago... but hopefully the condition is temporary. ;) Mostly I'm just tired. But Chris had fun.

And that's what it was all about.

The Line of Which She Speaks

Impressive, yes?

Finis, Finally

Extreme Makeover, Chris Edition

Done except it probably needs some more wall decor that we'll probably have to pick up over time. I want to make some sayings or Scripture verses for the walls with my Cricut, too. You might remember this project began when Deb was here. Yes, it's taken us this long to hang the shelves, get a chair, and finish the curtains. Yeah, well, it's done. Ish. :)

So the room is two-toned, and Christianne picked out the colors - a deep deep purple and a lavender. She also chose a lime green as kind of an accent color, along with the existing white on the closet, trim, and new desk and cubbies.

I love this chair. I saw it when we began working on the room for $30 at Target and kept it in mind all these weeks. Today we finally made it over there - and they had one left, on clearance for $15! Score! No, I wouldn't like it anywhere else, but I think it looks great in her room.

The cubbies to the left of the desk kind of zig-zag downward toward the closet. I didn't get a good picture of them.

Found the bedding at K-mart and a shower curtain to match, which I made into curtains. I think it'll look better if I get some tie-backs for them.

So what do you think overall? Does it capture a soon-to-be teenage girl's persona, do you think?

Thanks again, Deb, for getting us motivated on this project. xoxo

Your Divine Valentine

A Valentine may play a love song for you,
But God sings you the sweetest song in the universe.

The Lord your God... will rejoice over you with gladness,
He will keep you quiet with His love,
He will rejoice over you with singing.
Zephaniah 3:17

A Valentine may give you flowers,
But God sent you the most beautiful rose of all, Jesus.

I am the Rose of Sharon, and the lily of the valleys.
Song of Solomon 2:1

A Valentine may take you out to dinner,
But God has invited you to the most amazing feast ever given.

Blessed are those who are called to the marriage supper of the Lamb!
Revelation 19:9

A Valentine may bring you chocolate,
But God provides you with something even sweeter, His Word.

How sweet are your Words to my taste,
sweeter than honey to my mouth!
Psalm 119:103

A Valentine may be far away,
But God is always with you.

I am with you always.
Matthew 28:20

A Valentine may give you something,
But God has given you everything.

God gives us richly all things to enjoy.
1 Timothy 6:17

A Valentine may love you for a lifetime,
But God loved you before you were born, and will love you for all eternity!

Yes, I have loved you with an everlasting love...
with loving kindness I have drawn you.
Jeremiah 31:3

-- Holly Gerth

Praying that you know God's love in a profound way today. Happy Valentine's Day.

xoxo

Some Chuckles to Usher In Your Weekend

... featuring my kids of course!

~~~~~
The other day Josh was telling me all about the girl trouble his buddy T was having. You know how it is - being a 9yo boy - you like the girls but you sure don't want anyone to know about it! So when word got around that T had a crush on so-and-so, Joshua told me, "He completely denied it, just like my book said he would!"

What book?

Joshua's guide to life in general, relationships, humor, and pranks on his parents: The Big Book of Boy Stuff.

~~~~~
Grace just came upstairs announcing that she is Santa Claus.

"Oh," I said, "do you say, 'Ho Ho Ho!'?"

"Ho Ho Ho," she said.

I said, "Did you bring me a present, Santa Claus?"

She said, "Mom. It was just a JOKE."

~~~~~
One more for Josh. (I'm sorry I can't come up with anything Chris has said recently! I'll have to pay better attention this weekend. All my kids have a great sense of humor.)

Josh was telling me about how at school they were discussing future plans - where they'd like their lives to be, say, in 10 years.

Joshua started rambling on to me about all the things that he wants to be: A farmer, a poet, a school janitor...

"A school janitor?" I said.

He replied, "Mom, do you know how many keys they have?!?"

~~~~~
Happy Friday ~
xoxo

Baby Blues

I wanted to share a comic strip with you today but I can't get it to copy into my Blogger notepad. It probably is copywritten anyway. So jump over here and tell me if you can relate.

This is a short post - I'm wiped out. I did post an urgent prayer request over here, though, so if you have 30 seconds - please jump over and pray. Thanks.

'Nite.

Shame on Me

You know, as in:

Fool me once, shame on you.
Fool me twice, shame on me.

Josh got me again today, the second time in about a week, with the old rubber-band-on-the-kitchen-sprayer trick. Both times I've been shocked by a spray of freezing water when I went to turn on the kitchen sink.

After the initial shock, I can't help but laugh.

Whilst I plot my revenge. Mwaaahaaahaaa!

~~~~~
Snowing, finally - big, beautiful flakes. I hate that I have to go out tonight and tomorrow morning. This is the kind of weather that merits a fire, a good book, and hot chocolate. At least I'll have the book I guess - got Bible study.

I Think We're In For It

So, I'm driving to church yesterday and Grace is being... Grace.

I said to her sternly, "Grace! You need to be nice today!"

And do you know what she said?

You have to imagine this with all the attitude of Christianne - er, I mean, an adolescent. She said:

"WHATEVER!"

And she said it to me again, later in the day.

And she told Robert, "Whenever you're mean to me, I'm goin' say, 'What-ever!'"

He said, "Boy, we are going to have trouble with you when you're a teenager!"

And she said,

"I already knew that!"

This Bugs Her

Grace woke up 3 times in the middle of Thursday night. The first time I went in, she said she was afraid of the bugs.

"Where's a bug?" I asked.

"In the station," she said.

I reassured her there was no bug and she went back to sleep. Half an hour later, she was crying again. This time she said the bug was on her knees, and she thought it would eat her. We inspected, and of course found no bug and she went back to sleep.

The third time I gave up and put her in bed with us.

Last night we put Grace down and within about 10 minutes she was crying about the bugs again.

I said, "Grace, there are no bugs here. They are only in your imagination."

Her face fell and she began to cry. She said, "Noooo, I don't want them to eat my 'magination!"

I Figured Something Out, and Good Eats

So, one of the problems I do have with my unspecified business endeavor is carving out time to get things done during the day while Miss Grace is usually running around behind me un-doing everything I do. Sure, I can work during her nap, and sometimes I do, but I actually really cherish that time to be able to do other things - a lot of times even other unfun things.

But yesterday, I had, as Grace says, a super idea! I put her in the tub! She played happily while I was able to work and make a lot of phone calls! It was great. She was happy, I was happy, my unspecified business customers were happy... it's all good!

Speaking of which... let me just put this out there... I took some time off from my unspecified business endeavor and now I am finding myself in the pickle of needing about $185 more in orders before the end of the month, or I go inactive. That's not a horrible thing, but I would lose my recruit and my career sales would start all over again (and I'm more than halfway to the point where I would get a 2% raise). So ~ if there's anything you need, or if you'd be interested in sharing a catalog or six with family and friends, please e-mail me and we can work out all the details! Thanks!

So, I just recently finished reading The Hunt Club by John L'Escroart. I loved the story - it was great, but I was intrigued by one scene in which the protagonist's character makes him dinner that he just raved over. It was a simple dish called spaghetti carbonara, and the details in the book made it sound delish!

Have you ever had it?

Well, Google is my friend (aren't we amazingly blessed to have many of life's answers literally right at our fingertips?), and I found this recipe for it and made it last night. (If you Google it there are dozens of options!) Oh my... this was yummilicious, simple, fast, and filling. I loved it.

Does anyone else make this? I'd never even heard of it until this book.

I Am Looking Forward to Today

The last three days around here have been bust-my-butt busy.

I'm sure I've mentioned a hundred times before my housekeeping worldview. I try to keep the house picked up in case of unexpected doorknockers but I don't worry about the real cleaning of it very often ~ until someone is coming to visit or I just can't stand it any more.

Well, it was getting to the point of not being able to stand it any more when I raised my big hand and offered to host our Lifegroups this month.

That'll get you to clean your house.

So that was a chore... and on top of it I added a couple of activities to my daily routine *and* began two Bible studies. One was Tuesday night, the other Wednesday morning, so on top of everything else, yesterday was just one of those days where you are literally running from one thing to another from the time you wake up 'til the time you drop dead in bed.

That said, I enjoyed the studies and the fellowship of the Lifegroup last night and my house is CLEAN! Last time it was this clean would have been... before my people came in December. Wait... No, I don't think I bothered dusting and stuff that time... so it hasn't been this clean in a long time! :)

So today... guess what I'm doing?

Not a stinkin' thing.

Well, I guess that's not really true, is it? There's always stuff to do. But the chores are few today - very few - and I'm planning to scrap, scrap, scrap, and do some Bible reading and homework for my studies.

If I can get my headache to go away that I've had since yesterday morning. :(

Happy Thursday, People.

Blog Hop

Last month, the 35th anniversary of Roe v. Wade quietly passed. The numbers of babies who have been killed in the name of convenience is staggering. And saddening. Very saddening.

I hope you'll take time to read 4 Reasons You Might Be Aborted.

Interested in points to use when discussing abortion with those who are pro-choice? You might consider checking out 15 Talking Points About Abortion.

~~~~~
I told you so. It's not just me - Check out Start Your Day. Thanks for sharing, Mom.

You might be inclined to think that since I am writing this blog in the early part of the day, that you are my frog. But it's not true, really. I'm just waiting for the laundry to finish.

~~~~~
And, if you've got nothing else to do... would you mind popping over to my prayer blog and praying for my friends and their friends? There is much to pray about and some of the older requests are still unanswered - Dr. Sakkour and Jessica are a couple of examples that come to mind. Thanks for praying!

~~~~~
I miss you, Gram. I miss the way you laughed until you peed. I miss your cobblers and jams and all the other goodies you made. I miss the way you adored Christianne, and I'm sad that you never got to know Josh much and Grace not at all. I miss your long fingernails, playing games, your sense of humor, shopping, talking, talking, talking... And mostly... I simply miss you.

xoxo

Spell Chick

Check out my girl here.