The pool

It finally got warm enough (in the sun) to play in the pool this week. It was a spur-of-the-moment decision on mommy's part, so I just put Benjamin in the pool in his clothes :) As you can tell, he wasn't thrilled with it at first but, as mommy and daddy have always expected, he became thrilled with it VERY quickly.

Look how tall and skinny my little girl is! It's amazing how much she has thinned out since her round baby days (not that it was something that I was concerned with). And yes, her hair is getting really long!

The backyard...

Pretty fun, huh? :) Between the playsets and the sandbox, they can actually play in the backyard while I continuously trim the lilac bushes (that's a topic for another blog...) I love it! Maybe by the middle of July we can have a few pool days (not pictured). If only they could go back there by themselves... It will be a glorious day when I can just let my kids go outside to play by themselves. Our fence doesn't completely enclose the yard, and even if it did I still wouldn't feel comfortable because I can't see the backyard from the kitchen/living room. But, I want to be outside most of the time with them anyway!

The Levi Update

With so much activity in the house, sometimes it is easily to neglect the pregnancy updates. I'm finished 27.5 weeks of the expected 40 weeks. Yes, less than 90 days to get the house in order, random organization done, scrapbooks updated (and finished!) and some rest thrown in for good measure. I told a friend yesterday that the 90 days seems like forever in terms of pregnancy (I was ready to be finished around week 10!) but seems like tomorrow in terms of having a new little person in the house! I'm feeling fine apart from the fatigue. And I've been pretty good lately about going to bed, which doesn't get any of my work done. Jeremy is fabulous and has been working hard to get projects finished, which blesses my heart. All of those unfinished things drive me nuts when I'm stuck in the house from November to June!

Anyway, Levi is quite the active little baby, much like his sister was during pregnancy. Hannah was very active and by contrast I never knew Benjamin was alive exept when he had the hiccups. If Levi will continue to mimick his sister, then I'll have an active little Benjamin sandwiched between two mellow siblings. I wouldn't mind that at all during this stage in life! Of course, mellowness can lead to laziness, which may drive me nuts in the pre-teen and teen years...oh well. God knows best, right? :)

Benjamin and Hannah both love to pull up my shirt and kiss my belly (Benjamin especially!). And they talk to him and pat my belly and want to "see" baby Levi. Hannah even pretends that her baby dolls are baby Levi sometimes. Hopefully the affection will continue through the next, oh, 70+ years! HA!

My Family

Because we all like pictures of our friends....

I think it is funny when Benjamin pushes his cars around in the stroller!

And Daddy scored extra points last weekend when he found these Veggie Tales slippers (in addition to the playsets!)

Mary--check out the jar of pickles on the picnic table. We may not have one in the car, but they are always in the house! (At least these are edible!!)

I know you need a good laugh...

If you ever feel a little bit stupid, just dig this up and read it again; you'll begin to think you're a genius.
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(On September 17, 1994, Alabama's Heather Whitestone was selected as Miss America 1995.) Question: If you could live forever, would you and why?Answer: 'I would not live forever, because we should not live forever, because if we were supposed to live forever, then we would live forever, but we cannot live forever, which is why I would not live forever,' --Miss Alabama in the 1994 Miss USA contest .
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'Whenever I watch TV and see those poor starving kids all over the world, I can't help but cry. I mean I'd love to be skinny like that, but not with all those flies and death and stuff.' --Mariah Carey
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'Smoking kills. If you're killed, you've lost a very important part of your life,'-- Brooke Shields, during an interview to become spokesperson for federal anti-smoking campaign .
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'I've never had major knee surgery on any other part of my body,' --Winston Bennett, University of Kentucky basketball forward
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'Outside of the killings, Washington has one of the lowest crime rates in the country,' --Mayor Marion Barry, Washington , DC .
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'That lowdown scoundrel deserves to be kicked to death by a jackass, and I'm just the one to do it,' --A congressional candidate in Texas .
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'Half this game is ninety percent mental.' --Philadelphia Phillies manager, Danny Ozark
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'It isn't pollution that's harming the environment. It's the impurities in our air and water that are doing it.' --Al Gore, Vice President
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'I love California . I practically grew up in Phoenix .'-- Dan Quayle
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'We've got to pause and ask ourselves: How much clean air do we need ?'--Lee Iacocca
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'The word 'genius' isn't applicable in football. A genius is a guy like Norman Einstein.' --Joe Theisman, NFL football quarterback & sports analyst
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'We don't necessarily discriminate. We simply exclude certain types of people.'-- Colonel Gerald Wellman, ROTC Instrutor.
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'Your food stamps will be stopped effective March 1992 because we received notice that you passed away. May God bless you. You may reapply if there is a change in your circumstances.' -- Department of Social Services, Greenville , South Carolina
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'Traditionally, most of Australia 's imports come from overseas.' --Keppel Enderbery
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'If somebody has a bad heart, they can plug this jack in at night as they go to bed and it will monitor their heart throughout the night. And the next morning, when they wake up dead, there'll be a record.' --Mark S. Fowler, FCC Chairman,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

The straw

"All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance. And they admitted that they were aliens and strangers on earth." Hebrews 11:13

I'm an alien and a stranger in a foreign land. This place is not my home. I've tried. I tried when I first moved here and then got suicidal and gave up. Then God moved me to Korea, nursed my wounds, gave me an unmatched spiritual environment of encouragement and community. And then He moved me back.

When I found out we were moving back I spent three months crying out before the Lord in Starbucks and into a journal trying to prepare myself and my heart for coming here. I thought I did a good job. It lasted six months and then I hit depression so hard I really probaby should have sought a medical prescription. Everyone in my family would have benefited.

Things got better with the hope of spring. Not even with spring, but the hope of spring. That hope continued until April when spring finally arrived. And when the spring brought terrible weather and rain and 16" of snow, I clung to the hope of summer. I tried to cheer myself up with the possibility of green grass (amazing how I took that for granted as a child!). I even had a little vacation to Atlanta as a boey to keep me afloat. And I even did ok for the two weeks after my trip, which I was suprised about. But then the weather continued to average in the 50s, I couldn't plant over half of my plants in the ground (they are in containers) because of the cold temperatures. Half of the trees in Great Falls still don't have leaves on them. It's bleak, dark, cold, depressing.

All of my resolve is gone. Almost all of my fight is gone. All of my "bright sides," all of my "silver linings," everything I've used to encouragement myself have disappeared. I have restrained myself from actually praying that God would let us move until this morning. I woke up and looked out the window.

It's snowing. In June.

I told Jeremy that after over a full year of struggling with all of this that I thought that maybe I would be allowed to actually blog what has REALLY been going on in my life. No more pretending. No more Mary Poppins attitude. It is only because I love Jesus and love my husband that I am here right now. I think this is why I didn't blog much in the past year. I always felt so fake sitting at the computer and posting little pictures of my kids playing and this happy little family in Montana when I was fighting so hard just to make it through a day without being in bed in a ball crying.

I know that Montana is home to many people. And I know what home feels like. I'm glad you have a home here because if you didn't you would feel like I do, and that is pretty crappy. I'm in no ways saying that this place is unfit for people to live in and to love. It just isn't my home. And after over 4.5 years, I'm ready to go home. I'd ready to wear sandals in April and go swimming in June. I want to have a real garden with a four month growing season. I want to see flowers at Easter and pack away the sweaters in March. I want to sweat and lay outside in the sun and be blazing hot. I want my normal back. So please don't take this blog offensively. I rejoice that your heart is happy. And I have tried so very hard to make this place home. I just don't have any fight left in me.

I live with hope and pray that I am not like those in this verse--who see their dreams at a distance but don't get to have them until they die. I comfort myself with the fact that eternity will cover-up the 50 years of living here. That's 18,250 days. I only have 16,608 to go...

HE PASSED!!!!!!!!!!!!!

We got Jeremy's test results in today.

HE PASSED THE PROFESSIONAL ENGINEERING EXAM!!!!!!!!!

No more studying. No more tests. We can finally submit the paperwork to be reimbursed for some of the costs. We'll have to celebrate when the money comes back and have a pizza :)

Look at what Daddy bought!

I sent Jeremy off to a few yard sales this morning. At the first yard sale he found this for $15. At the next yard sale he got this with this attached for $80!! (The second has been discontinued, so I couldn't get a picture of the two together.) I wasn't expecting this item to be as large as it was, and if I had gone to the yard sale I may not have bought it. And if we had gotten the big one first, we probably wouldn't have bought the small one. But how fun that we DO have them both now!! Between these toys and my sandbox, I am building my own compound like my friend Rachel.

I have those days

I have those days when living in Montana just gets to me. So for therapy I either imagine what my house in North Carolina would look like, or I go online and look at MLS listings in the mountains and foothills of NC. The good news is that if we do move (one day in the very distant future) and we move during a housing "slump" then we can get a comparable house in Jeremy's hometown. I found a lovely four bedroom with an acre of ground and 2500 square feet that would be less than what we would sell our current house for. For that matter, I can get a comparable house in my girlfriend's neighborhood of Atlanta. Houses are too expensive in Montana.

I'm realizing that, contrary to the desire of most Montanans, the winters don't bother me so badly. (Most of the Montanas in my last workplace almost took pride in people not liking the winters here.) It's April, May, and June that make me want to pull my hair out. By April, I'm really for green grass and flipflops. In May, I want all of the leaves on my trees to be out. In June, I want to wear shorts from the time I wake up until the time I put on my pjs. None of those things happen in Great Falls, Montana.

I'm thankful that in Heaven everything will always be green. We won't have to wear sweaters and closed-toed shoes. And I can have coffee with my mom anytime I want. Heaven. Such a wonderful place. I'm glad I'll be there for eternity. It makes it easier to not live at home while living on earth.

Standoff resolution

From the online newspaper today:

"The second armed standoff in Great Falls in less than a month ended peacefully when a man walked out of a house and gave himself up to police at about 10 p.m. on Saturday night, police said.

About a dozen officers surrounded a house at 3433 6th Ave. S. shortly before 5 p.m. on Tuesday in response to reports of an armed, suicidal man at the address.
Police did not give the name of the man inside the house, but said he was speaking to them during the standoff. It wasn't clear if he was speaking by phone, out the window or by some other form of communication.

The man was taken into custody by police after he walked out of the house. Police closed off a two-block section of 6th Avenue South, as well as the alley that runs behind the house. Neighbors who were home at the time were asked to voluntarily evacuate, but those who tried to go to their houses Tuesday afternoon were turned away."

— Zachary Franz, Tribune staff writer

As I type!

A helicopter flew over our house about 15 minutes ago. Not unusual. Then it circled around. A little out of the ordinary. Then it kept circling. And kept circling. And we watched and watched and speculated....then we got out the binoculars and couldn't read what it said. Finally I looked at the local newspaper online. This is what is happening, five blocks from our house:

"Great Falls Police say they believe an armed man is in a house on the 3400 block of 6th Ave. S, and have cordoned off both ends of two-block stretch. Police say they’ve spoken to the man, who they believe is suicidal. They say they don’t think anyone else is in the house with him. The man’s name has not been released."

No, we aren't in any danger. No, this isn't a "bad part of town." It's almost like a 40 year old blue collar worker with an RV who got drunk, locked himself in his house and someone called the cops. And it's five blocks from our house! Strange.

My Trip

So many well-wishers have inquired about my trip. And since I've been playing catch up for the past week, the responses have been short, if at all. Unfortunately for me right now, God gave me a much better command of the language of numbers than the English language, so I must say from the start that no matter what I write it won't do justice for the time that I had.

I got to ride a plane. By myself. No one squirming in my lap. No thoughts of having a drink spilled on the person next to me. Only one bag to check through security. No dirty diapers to change in little bitty airplane bathrooms. And no one to entertain but myself (which is VERY easy to do).

And then a layover with Sbarro pizza. Man, I miss that place.

Arrival in Atlanta! I felt the humidity as soon as I was off the plane and I almost started crying. It was fabulously refreshing. It was 11pm and I didn't need my sweater. Or my shoes.

I saw Becca for, really, the first time in two years! She looked terrific! And then we started talking and didn't stop until Monday at approx. 4:30 when she left me at the airport :)

I crashed at about 12:30am local time. I woke up to see Micah, the little boy who made two two-page spreads in Hannah's baby book as her closest buddy and near-brother. What a fun kid! And I met Elisha, the sweet little girl whose unexpected arrival turned my friend's life upside down. She was definitely worth it.

Lunch at an international supermarket where I could literally buy produce native to India, Mexico, and Korea all in one stop. Then we had Bibimbop and Kimbop. Man, I miss Korean food. It was my first time eating it in 11 months.

Then there was a 2 hour nap, a thunderstorm so powerful and southern that I started crying on the front porch (in a rocking chair, of course, which added to the tears...I miss porches...). Then there was church at Becca's house which was so reminiscent of the Hospitality House that we went to together in Korea.

Then some sleep.

And then the scrapbooking started. But not before I had some Dunkin' Doughnuts coffee and a bagel with salmon cream cheese. Man, I miss that place. We scrapped for over nine hours in her mother-in-law's craft room with a break for Chick-Fil-A for lunch. Man, I miss that place, too! Then we went back to Becca's house, had some dinner, put on a pot of coffee and scrapped some more. (This became a small theme of the weekend.) And we talked so much and dumped so much emotional bagged that all day Sunday we felt like we had hangovers.

Sunday. I went to Michael's and got some wonderful baby paper for Levi's scrapbook. I wish that my Michael's sold that brand of paper. Maybe if I requested it....Then I had another long nap, and then I stayed home while Becca and the crew went to another house church. I listened to "Emma" and an old musical, the name of which has escaped me. And I scrapbooked. Becca came home, we giggled and chatted and went to bed WAY too late.

Monday. I didn't need to leave for the airport until 3pm, so we went to Hobby Lobby. Man, I miss that place. Got a 180 count pad of terrific patterned paper, helped Becca think through some decorating for her house, and then went back to Becca's house to...scrapbook. Yes, I got 13 2-page spreads of pictures made and then I "premade" 17 2-page spreads to use in books right after Levi is born when I have too many pictures and no time to scrapbook. It's a beautiful thing.

Then the hard part--leaving. Of course, we had to stop through the drive-through at Chick-fil-A one more time :) I got two John Grisham books read while I was gone, too!

Most importantly, I got fresh perspective, new ideas, confirmation of purpose, and a good ol' spiritual cleansing while I was gone. Not to mention a fresh connection with my beautiful friend. Thank you, Becca, for the wonderful trip! Thank you, Lord, for a husband who is so supportive and great with the kids. Thank you, Delta, for the frequent flyer miles!!

My Life in Pictures

As I've mentioned, I know that people look at blogs to see pictures of people's lives. So, here you go! These are pictures of our small group potluck at our house this past Sunday. We had eighteen adults & kids and with the dishwasher we had the kitchen clean in 15 minutes. It was glorious. We realized that due to the size & layout of our house & yard that during the summer we could have as many as 50 people over to eat. Sounds like a graduation party to me....just 15 years away! HA!

It's really happening!!

I'm really leaving! I really do get to be by myself for seven hours of traveling--oh the reading, people watching, journaling, silence-enjoying I get to do! I really do get to visit with my friend Becca and meet her daughter! I really do get to spend an entire day scrapbooking with her! I really do get to FINALLY have some Korean food and go to HOBBY LOBBY!!!! I get to have Chick-fil-A! I get to go to their house church and meet all of her friends!

And I really do get a full four days of mommy-vacation!!!

THANK YOU, JESUS!!!!!!!!!!!!

The Start of our Garden

We have decided that our vegetable garden is going to be a family affair. Last night we got most of our plants into the ground. (We haven't figured out where to plant the miniature pumpkins and it is still too cold to put out the pepers.) The kids played in the dirt (and the baby pool!) and Hannah helped to plant seeds. We were out there for almost two full hours after Jeremy got home from work. I'm really hoping that I can actually GROW things. If I am able to, I can easily see gardening as being theroputic for me in Montana. The short season of warm (and shorter season of hot!) is something that is very hard for me to cope with. I need something to connect me to the outside world as intensely as possible before I have to hybernate again! I've even thought about a greenhouse just to give me a place that is humid and growing in the winter time! We'll see how it goes :) For now, gardening seems to be giving me and Jeremy something fun that we can enjoy together during the week, an element of our relationship that we both identified as lacking.

Grow, grow zucchini, grow, grow squash, grow, grow beans!

As a side note, if anyone in the Great Falls area knows of someone getting rid of a pressure cooker and/or a canner, please let me know! The optomistic side of me needs to develop a plan for what to do with my delicious veggies when I harvest them!

Because there's nothing else to do...

Because there is nothing going on in my life, Jeremy & I decided to try our hands at gardening this year. So, we've bought some starter plants, potting soil, seeds, etc and tonight Jeremy dug up part of the yard where we plan to plant. Why is it that the best place for the garden is where the grass is growing well?? I'm excited to have something to do outside while the kids are playing apart from digging holes in the sandbox. But I sit at the computer tonight and think "if we hadn't started this vegetable garden plan of ours, maybe the bathroom would have FINALLY gotten painted...after 10 months of construction..." Hopefully before September I'll be able to announce that the bathroom is finally finished. Maybe. But if not, we'll have fresh zucchini, cucumbers, tomatoes, peppers, and strawberries to blame!

My life

I was thinking this morning that since I'm not very regular in my blogging, as some of my fabulous friends are, I don't know that I have a picture of my life painted in the world of blog. And as I continued thinking I don't know that I have a regular life yet! I feel like I'm getting there. It's been almost 11 months since we moved to 3805 5th Ave South. I can't believe it. It has been a very physically and emotionally exhausting year. But, things are starting to finally settle. I know, just in time for Levi to arrive! But, here is kind of what life looks like for me right now :)

5:45am--try to force myself out of bed and take a shower, have a quiet time, drink coffee by myself sitting at my lovely island and looking out the window at GREEN GRASS (that deserves another blog all by itself!)
7:00ish--kids wake up; or, if kids have woken up against my will before 7am I finally allow them out of bed. I have a "no kids before 7am" rule unless they are sick or nursing!

Morning time--there is breakfast making and cleaning up (of course) but now there isn't 45 minutes of dishes to do! YEAY! Since it is warmer outside, we go for a morning walk 2-3 times a week and then start piddling either outside or in. Sometimes I do some cleaning, depending on what is driving me crazy on that particular day. I learned a long time ago that I could never have a cleaning schedule...I'm wanting to add some fun weekly activities to the mix. Bible study is over (and there are no Bible studies in the summer, much to my chagrin). I'm planning to start a weekly playgroup the first Wed of June. I still haven't really connected in my church yet (this deserves another blog!)

Lunch time--more food prep, mess making, and clean up. We've been eating in the kitchen, though, which requires less prepping and clean-up!

Naptime--I either work my job or sleep during naptime, depending on how much I think I can handle when the kids wake up.

Post nap--all depends on how much "work" for GVF I need to do. This past week I was in the basement working from 6pm til' bedtime while Jer feed/played with/bathed/put the kids to bed. Usually by dinnertime I'm all done mommying. I feel so depleated that I don't think there would be anything else to give other than a body to sit in the rocking chair in their room while Jeremy reads stories!

Recently I have been trying to do a little reading right before bed. I have found that it helps to shut off my brain. There are three Grisham books that I haven't read yet, and I'm hoping to make some dents in that list this week and on my PLANE RIDES TO ATLANTA!!! Yeay!! I'm going to Becca's house next week!!!!

I know. There are a ton of details out of the mix. And in many ways it probably sounds very similar to the lives of most other stay-at-home-moms. But I hope it helps!

Today is a playdate with a friend named Heather. I made some yummy cucumber sandwhiches for the mommies that I'm VERY excited about! (Thank you, Scott, for the Chapel Cookbook!)

Mortgage

I hate having a mortgage. I love having a house, but I hate having a mortgage. I've never experienced the feelings of financial bondage talked about in Proverbs in regard to debt like I've felt since I've been back in Montana and have had my eyes open to the fact that a mortgage is in fact being in debt. (What American brainwashing I had had before!) I owe Washington Mutual six figures of money.

Now when I think of having extra money, I think of getting rid of a chunk of debt. When I see the "win $10,000" contest at Burger King I think of how much closer I'll be to getting rid of that stupid mortgage. But, alas, money doesn't come into my life that way. Instead, we cut back, spend less, apply more money each month to the principle in hopes that one sweet day we will be free from the chains of this enormous monster.

The kitchen!!

For those who haven't seen the pictures, here are the updated before-and-after pics of the kitchen. Almost everything that we have planned to do is done. (Well, the tiling of the countertops and the new fridge will wait for 2011...). I LOVE it! What a Mother's Day present! I never want to leave the kitchen now. Not that I get to do much outside of the kitchen anyway :) It was, by far, the biggest project that we "had" to get done before Levi comes, and now that it is finished, both Jeremy & I feel so liberated!

My Cute Kids

I do it, too. I check the blogs of my friends so that I can see pictures of them and their kids. And then I never end up posting pictures. Shame on me! So, here are a few pictures of the kiddos at quick glance--without having to look at a web album!

Caring for the Poor

My friend Becca and her family went to India to work with Pastor Daniel, a native of India who cares for poor children in rural India. Pastor Daniel runs the Mercy Home ministry (a link is below). I'm on Pastor Daniel's email listing, and I wanted to pass along an easy way (and small) way to care for the poor. God has really been impressing on my heart just how easily I can spend money on myself (for things I want not things I need) while believers and unbelievers all over the world don't have the money to feed their families or send their kids to school. Caring for the poor is not a choice in how we spend our money. We are commanded to take care of the poor. Here's a way to fulfill that command!

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Dear Friends and partners

Greetings from the Mercy home ministry in India. God has blessed us with 800 children in our Mercy Homes and 300 children in our Kids club who come every week to worship the Lord and study the word. The schools in India are opening on June 1st after the summer vacation. Every child has to be sent to school with new uniforms, schoolbags, lunch box, umbrella, shoes and school stationary. Each child needs about $20 towards his school expense. Please visit our web site www.mercyhomes.org to know more about Mercy Homes . If you can sponsor any number of Kids it will be a great blessing. Please let us know as soon as possible. Thanking you so much for standing with us always for His Kingdom and the needs of the poor.

With love Pastor Daniel

Congratulations, Sissie!

My sister is the beautiful graduate on the far left. On Saturday she not only graduated from Indiana University with her Master's degree in Arts Administration, she gave the commencement speech! Way to go, sissie--wish I could have seen it!

More Randomness

1) Busy season is over. I'm two weeks into "normal" life. I love it. Still sleep deprived, but happy!

2) We had a fabulous "family vacation" to Missoula the weekend before the 15th:

3) We bought our first brand-new vaccum cleaner EVER last month. In addition to saving over $50 on the purchase (a great sale!), it works beautifully :)

4) A small group Bible study started meeting at our house on Sunday nights. We aren't sure how long it will last (Montanans typically don't meet for Bible study in the summer time) but we have enjoyed it so far.

5) The kitchen got painted!

6) We found out that we are having a boy! 'Twill be named Levi Andrew Rhodes and he is currently measuring on time. That makes this mama happy :)

7) Alisha got married and I almost cried. It was the closest I've ever come to crying at a wedding--including my own! And, of course, Hannah was beautiful!

8) Jeremy got the dishwasher installed in the middle of the kitchen. Next step is to build the island around the dishwasher. For now, it is literally in the middle of the kitchen floor and when it is not is use we keep the box over it so that the kids don't play with the insilation!

9) We are driving to Kellogg, Idaho, tomorrow (a five hour drive one way) to trade in the Impala for a mini-van. The functionality of the vehicle has taken over and I'm getting a mommy car. We were able to not only trade-in the car but we are ultimately getting a little money back into our pockets. Always a great thing! We only have three payments until the Impala is paid off, so we are making them all tomorrow and we will only be left we a mortgage as debt. Thank you, Jesus! "Before and After" pictures will follow. The best part of all of this is that we found a babysitter and we are going BY OURSELVES! This is the first time since July 2006 that Jeremy & I have spent an entire day together without the kids. We are THRILLED!!

10) On a similar note, in less than three weeks I get to fly to Atlanta to visit my dear friend Becca Mooney. I get to fly BY MYSELF to visit Becca. I haven't seen Becca in almost two years (and we've both had a baby since then!). And I haven't flown by myself somewhere since November 2004. It's time. It's really time. The anticipation of this trip helped me fight depression in January and February, and now it's almost here!! Chick-Fil-A, Hobby Lobby, and Korean food in addition to alone time, little-to-no responsibility and, of course, time with my sister-in-Christ. Does it get any better??

11) My dear friend (and college roommate) Mary had Thorson baby #3 this week. Welcome to the world, Jesse!

Correction

I reported falsely on yesterday's post. As of yesterday I had 19 hours left in this week, not left in busy season! Bummer, I know :(

Still pluggin' away at tax returns. I enjoy doing tax returns. I really do. But I feel like I've been gorging on them. It's much the same feeling (I'm sure you won't believe me) that I get after I've scrapbooked for hours and hours on end. It's enjoyable, but there is a limit!

I'm ready for spring. My North Carolina self knows that the weather is suppose to be 60 degrees with flowers planted by now. Not 30 degrees with snow on the ground. But somehow in His amazing ways, God is giving me a good attitude through the ice.

My newest project to add to Jeremy's list--we are going to paint our refrigerator. It's too small for what we will (eventually) need and it is a terrible almond color that does not match the kitchen, but it does work. Might as well continue using the thing until it either dies or we truly outgrow it. Just for the record, it is smaller than a 18 cu ft. That's pretty tiny for a girl who likes to cook! Need I tell you that Jeremy has 16 projects on his list before September? :)

Off to more work!

19 to go

In 19 chargeable hours I'll be on my way to a vacation with my family!! (Well, apart from the 8 hour test that Jeremy has to take.) And when I get home from my vacation, I'll be back to a 10 houra week schedule and, hopefully, a more normal life where I can have people over for dinner, go to a small group (or start one!) and see my husband for more than the 20 minutes that we are trying to get food into the kids' mouths at dinner and the 10 minutes we are getting ready for bed. I'm ELATED! I think it is propelling me through the fatigue :)

No work has happened on the cabinets in the last few days, but I promise to have pictures up when I do!

Easter Pictures

Just a few shots of the family on Easter morning. Somehow this past week Hannah turned into a turn little girl. Amy & Scott came to visit and spent a lot of time playing with the kids while Jeremy & I painted the kitchen cabinets. The work isn't quite finished, but when it is I'll have some pictures up.

Only 29 hours of busy season left!!

There's a reason it feels so early...

Easter this year is: Sunday March 23, 2008

As you may know, Easter is always the 1st Sunday afterthe 1st full moon after the Spring Equinox (which is March 20).

This dating of Easter is based on the lunar calendarthat Hebrew people used to identify passover, which is why it moves around on our Roman calendar.

Found out a couple of things you might be interesting!

Based on the above, Easter can actually be one dayearlier (March 22) but that is pretty rare.
This year is the earliest Easter any of us will eversee the rest of our lives! And only the most elderly of our population have ever seen it this early (95 years old or above!). And none of us have ever, or will ever, see it a day earlier! Here are the facts:

The next time Easter will be this early (March 23)will be the year 2228 (220 years from now).

The last time it was this early was 1913 (so if you're 95 or older, you are the only ones that werearound for that!).

The next time it will be a day earlier, March 22, willbe in the year 2285 (277 years from now). The last time it was on March 22 was 1818.

So, no one alive today has or will ever see it any earlier than this year!

My little man

We have finally convinced the boy to start walking. He isn't there yet, but he actually WANTS to learn now. He likes toys too much for his own good and gets so occupied by them (and crawling very quickly to and from them) to bother himself with learning how to walk. I have a feeling that our visit by Amy and Scott in two weeks will push him over the edge. They had the same effect on Hannah when they came to Korea to visit.

The Facts of Life

Come on...sing it with me...

"You take the good, you take the bad, you take them both, and there you have, the Facts of Life, the Facts of Life!"

Here is the good and the bad of February at our house. Both pictures are equally priceless, as is the daughter captured in them. Never a boring day at the Rhodes house!

More "normal" every day

I must just shout out to the world that I'm feeling more like "myself" everyday. It is such a GREAT feeling! I've missed me :) he he he :)

Fun news--the administrator of the Christian school in Korea (the Petersons) are moving to Great Falls to be the administrator of the Christian school here! It was quite a big surprise to get an email from Dianne saying they would be here in June. And it is so exciting to be "the person" who gets to help them in their move! I've been able to email her with a lot of information about Great Falls, churches, housing, etc. And since we lived here for almost four years prior to our time in Korea, we know someone in just about every area they need help (realators, loan officers, etc). The REALLY cool thing for me is that they (family of parents and two college-aged kids) will be staying with us until they move into their house! It may be a week, it may be a month, but I'm SO EXCITED to have them staying here! Our basement is pretty much perfect for what they need for their temporary stay (well, just a note--if you are in the GF area and know of a futon or twin bed or bunk beds that need a home, let me know so that Amy isn't sleeping on an air mattress the entire time), and it is so awesome to be able to bless people in such a tangible way that takes very little effort on my part. (I mean, really, I just need to clean the basement before they get here!)

So, Alisha moves out the last week of April, my sister comes to visit in June, and then the Petersons will be here this summer. Version #3 comes in September along with a two week visit from my mom. (Amy, would you like to come in October????) We get to fly home for Christmas. 2008 is full of people in my house!! YEAY!! I suppose that August and November are wide open, so if you know of transcients in need, let me know! I'd love a live-in nanny during busy season 2009, too....oh the dreams I have!

Although I should have been downloading my pictures off my camera, I was looking at old pictures of Hannah instead. Can you believe that she was three weeks old here? Look at that hair? It still amazes me that she sleeps the same way now, at 2.5 years old as she did then with her mouth open. It was a lot of fun to look at the pictures, to see how similar (but not identical) that she and Benjamin look in their earlier baby pictures, and to see all of the girl clothes that I've forgotten that I have....and now it's time for sleep. I've spent much too much time being awake today!