5 years ago

Five years ago, we moved into our home in Ayorou. We had been in our new country a mere week & we moved into a converted mud house in a town in the middle of nowhere, 3 hours from the capital city, & couldn't speak a lick of anything except English. We had no idea what we were doing & had no idea what lay ahead of us. We were just plain clueless!
But in the last five years, we've learned a thing or two & realized that we still sometimes have no clue what we are doing!

Five years ago, I had no idea how to speak French or Songhai. I could barely get out a greeting. I sometimes felt paralyzed by the language barrier & wanted nothing more than to speak!

Five years ago, I had no idea that I would come to call a village in the middle of a third world country my home. I had no idea I'd fall in love with dirt roads, animal trodden paths, mud brick homes & the faces of so many people that looked nothing like me. I had no idea I'd miss it more than anything 5 years later.

Five years ago, I had no idea what day to day life would look like in that village. I had no idea that I would sleep outside 9 months of the year. I had no idea that I would actually get used to it. I had no idea that it would be 108 degrees in my kitchen while I tried to cook.

Five years ago, I had no idea what having malaria felt like ... or a scorpion sting ... or being electrocuted. I would like to forget all of those, thank you.

Five years ago, I had no idea what it felt like to live among people that were so impoverished, so "without" on a daily basis, so lost & dying, worshipping a false god that could not save them. I had no idea the emotional toll it would take on me some days. I had no idea that I would beg for their salvation. I had no idea that God would grant me the grace to see Him answer my prayer over & over.

Five years ago, I had no idea what prayer could do. I had no idea that hundreds of people on the other side of the world would pray for & with me & that we would all see God be so faithful to answer prayer after prayer after prayer. I had no idea what God could do through the prayers of His saints.

Five years ago, I had no idea what it was like to be a mother. And then ... and then ... May 15, 2008 came & I held the most beautiful baby girl in my arms. I had no idea that I would literally hurt with how much I loved this little girl. I had no idea what a mother's love was until that day. I had no idea how much more I would love her day after day. I had no idea how much more I would love my God because of this gift He gave me. I had no idea how much more I would love my husband. I had no idea that I could feel this kind of intense love for a human being.

 

Five years ago, I had no idea that almost 2 years later I would feel it all over again. I had no idea that my love for my children would double. As I held my precious baby boy on that snowy morning in February 2010, my heart literally ached inside of me all over again for how much I loved him. I had no idea that I could love him so much & still love his sister equally.

 

Five years ago, I had no idea how hard it was to be a mother. I had no idea how fulfilling it was yet how hard it was to raise 2 children. I had no idea that it would be harder than sleeping outside for 9 months of the year or getting malaria or a scorpion sting. I had no idea that I would have to pray daily for grace, patience & wisdom to raise my children in the Lord. I had no idea that I would have to ask for forgiveness so many times for failing. I had no idea how much grace the Lord could show me.

Five years ago, I had no idea that Mark Phillips would be a father. I had no idea that I would fall in love with him all over again the moment I saw him with that little girl in his arms. I had no idea what a great father he would be. I had no idea how much he would bless me & serve me by being the father to our children. I had no idea that I would love him this much more than I did five years ago.

Five years ago, I had no idea that one word would rock my world: dementia. I had no idea that I would learn to grieve the living. I had no idea how to do that. I don't know if I still know. I had no idea that I would be worlds away from the people I love as my world crumbled. I had no idea that I would wrestle over & over & over again for an answer, for something to cling to & be left with God's Word & His grace only. I had no idea how much His grace is sufficient for me.

Five years ago, I had no idea that I would not be the same person I was five years ago. I had no idea how much God would teach me about myself by bringing me to this devastated land. I had no idea how much He would teach me about Himself in a dry & weary land where there is no water. I had no idea that I would love Him more than life. I had no idea how great a God He truly is. I had no idea.

I still think I have no idea sometimes. I definitely have no idea what the next 5 years hold. But I know that whatever God brings my way or wherever He takes me, He will show me more of Him.

making lists

As you know by now, we are heading to the U S of A in less than a week!! I'm almost completely packed & ready to go! But I've also been making lists of "have to" buys while we're in the States. When you feel like you've only got one shot a year to go shopping at Wal-Mart or Target (or both!), you want to go with a list in hand. Otherwise, one may have a tendency to "over buy" (of course, I'm not speaking from experience)!

So, I need your help!! I'm making my list but I need to know if I'm missing anything. I need to buy Christmas & birthday gifts for all of us ... for the next few years. So what's a 3, 4, 5 year old girl want for Christmas or birthday? How about a 2, 3, 4 year old boy? How about a dad of a 3-5 year old girl & 2-4 year old boy? I mean, really, what will Izzy & Luke like to do a couple of years from now? I have no idea! Movies, toys, books, etc. I'm clueless.

And then there's the ominous grocery section. We normally stock up on cream of ... soups, green chiles, taco seasoning, pepperonis, bacon, etc. Is there anything we're missing out on? Anything we should *definitely* try while we're home?

Oh & for the mom here ... here's my request ... make-up! I've been wearing Merle Norman since I was a senior in high school. That's a long, committed relationship, my friends. It's not that I want to part ways with Ms Norman (or Mr? Does anyone know?), but the last time I was in a certain MN shop in a certain town in south central Kentucky, the lady behind the counter looked like Tammy Faye Baker. And well, y'all, I just don't think I'm at that point in my life where I want my make-up to be associated with Tammy Faye.

So what kind of make up is good? Long lasting? I usually do foundation, concealer, eye liner & lipstick on the high end but then go drug store for the eye shadow, blush, mascara & lip gloss. Where I think I need the most help is with the mascara. I don't even want to tell you what brand is in my bathroom drawer. Let's just say it does not work wonders for my lashes. Not one wonder.

That's my "need to know" items for making my list so far: presents. food. make-up. I'm a well rounded gal, aren't I? Feel free to tell me anything else I need to know.

See y'all soon!

Week in the Life of ... Weekend Recap

I had totally planned to continue the "Week in the Life of ..." series on into the weekend. I was planning to combine Saturday & Sunday into one post. However, life happens, the weekend came & went, & I did not take one picture (gasp!) nor document one word. Now I've almost forgotten what happened hour by hour during our weekend. I'll try to muster up some memories & try to fill you in on our weekend.

Saturday morning was Mark's birthday! He got up early & I celebrated by NOT setting an alarm! He was out the door early on to head to the conference (poor fella had to work on his b-day) & the kids I were lazy & just hung out. We usually aren't too "scheduled" on our weekends. We do enough of that during the week that we choose to be a little more "free" on the weekends. Unfortunately, Mark didn't get to partake in our freedom!

I headed to the store sometime that morning to buy some cheese because Izzy decided she wanted to make homemade pizzas for Daddy's birthday. I dropped Izzy off at the conference & Luke & I headed to the store. A pound or so of cheese, a pack of diapers, way too much money dropped for both & 20 minutes later, we were done & picked Izzy up & headed home.

The kids played & watched a video while I made *their* birthday present for Mark. *They* made him a book of pictures with captions of why they love their Daddy so much. Things may have gotten a little stressful during this process as the kids got more interested in my markers & stickers than in the video they were supposed to be watching.

The kiddos also helped me make the pizzas before Daddy got home. They seriously did help me with this part. I wish I had a picture of this because they were too cute smooshing out the pizza dough into the pans.

Mark got home around noon, we ate the yummy pizzas, he talked to his parents on the phone (since our internet was out & we couldn't do a b-day Skype) & then the kiddos went down for naps. We may have celebrated his birthday with a birthday nap ourselves.

The birthday boy headed back to the conference that afternoon & the kids & I played some more. Mark got home around 5:30, we fed the kiddos supper at 6ish & then we both got ready for our hot date. We put Luke down at 7:30 & then my friend Melissa came to watch a movie with Isabelle. Mark & I headed to Namastae, a fabulous Indian restaurant in town that has butter chicken & naan that is to die for!!

Afterwards, we caught a movie at the local theater. Got you there, didn't I?! Ha! How I wish there was actually something to do after dinner but, alas, there is not. Not even a Starbucks. Or B&N. So we came home. The end.

Sunday we slept later than normal but got up & headed to church. By church, I mean a local African church where men sit on one side & women on the other. We usually take turns of who goes out with Luke & Izzy when the preaching starts because our children cannot sit in one spot from 9 am - 11 am. It was Mark's turn.

We came home, grabbed a bite & then took naps. Oh yes. Mark headed back to the conference center for the last meeting of the conference while I prepped food for supper & played with the kiddos. I really don't remember what we did. It's all a blur.

Mark got done at 5:45 & then I went to pick up our friend Melissa who we invited to eat with us ... along with the team. (Her husband was out in the bush all weekend, hence the reason that she was cool enough to hang out with us so much!) We did supper (fajitas & the works) around 6:30, Mark gave the kids baths & then I put them to bed at 7:30.

Mark took the team back to the guesthouse a little after 8 & then headed to the American Rec Center to watch football. Mel & I stayed back & laminated & cut til our hearts content prepping the letter "G" for school this week. We may have watched a few episodes of TV while in the process. Mark came home around 10:30 & I took Melissa home.

And that right there, my friends, was our weekend. Maybe a little lengthy but I was trying to go heavy on the details to be in line with our "Week in the Life of ..." theme. Don't expect this again anytime soon. As fun as it was, it was tiring on my brain to try & remember so much & then commit to typing it all out! But I'm glad I did it because for now & forever I will have one VERY detailed account of what we did for one week of our life over here! Oh & sorry I was lazy with the photos this weekend. If you made it this far, kuddos to you & yours.

Week in the Life of ... Day 5

The internet has been out since Friday afternoon. Better late than never! I actually wrote this on Friday so just pretend it's Friday when you're reading this ...

Last night’s power outage set me on another bad course for getting to bed late. After I posted the blog, I checked on the kids, put the roast in the crockpot for tonight’s supper, made my coffee to put in the fridge to be cold for this morning & then got myself to bed. Mark & I both weren’t tired at all & neither of us ended up going to sleep before midnight, I think.

I got up around 6:45 this morning & very slowly made my way out of bed. I was dragging. Dragging. I sat with my iced coffee in my hand & my Bible in my lap & just stared into space for what felt like 10 minutes. My brain finally started firing on some cylinders so I began my day in the Word. I finished up around 7:30 & instead of getting up & moving around, I thought to myself, “I’ll just lay here until Izzy wakes up.” Mark woke me up 15 minutes later to tell me he was heading out to take breakfast to the conference participants. Nice, Parker, real nice.

Izzy woke up a little before 8 & then Luke woke up a few minutes later. I got them dressed & then Mark came back home & had fari masa (fried balls of flour … like doughnuts) & cecena (fried bean cakes) in hand! I didn’t have to cook/fix breakfast this morning!! While he sat down with the kids, I went & washed my face & got ready for our morning.

I got my stuff ready to go see my ladies that Susan & I meet with every week. Mark got stuff ready for the conference & packed some snacks for Luke because we were splitting up teams this morning: girls vs guys. I took Izzy with me & Mark took Luke with him. I was on “stand-by,” however, in case Luke had a similar incident like yesterday. We were out the door by 5 minutes after 9.

We dropped off Mark & Luke at the church & then headed to pick up Susan from her house. We arrived at our friends’ compound around 9:15 but they weren’t home. We found out that had gone out this morning but would be back soon. Susan & I both needed to buy vegetables, so we decided to go shopping & then come back. We bought our stock of veggies, returned our purchases to our houses & then went back to our friends’ compound. They still weren’t back. Such is life here when you have no appointments or fixed schedule. C’est la vie!

Izzy & I dropped Susan off at her house & then went & picked up Luke. Mark said he had done SO good during the conference & hardly made any noise at all. Praise the Lord & Amen!

Mark took the kids & I back to the house & he returned to the conference. While the kids watched a video & played in their rooms by themselves, I made a chocolate cake for dinner & worked on some emails & budget. Mr Luke thought he was a funny man today & kept sneaking out of his room. He usually can play for 30-45 minutes but today, after 15 minutes of playing, he came out of his room to show me that he had already cleaned up all his toys, books & mat … which he never does on his own! I’ve got my hands full with that one!

Around 11:30, I noticed that I had a little breeze coming along my backside & found a huge hole in my skirt!! I had been all over town & in front of Issa all morning & had no idea that my caboose was on display for the world!

Mark got home a little after 12 & I got our lunches ready while he took the kids to the store around the corner to get this mama a cold Coke!

After lunch, Mark played with the kids while I prepped some more things for dinner.

The kids went down at 1:30 & I made the frosting for the cake & then played a Word Find puzzle (I know, I’m such a dork!). I worked out, took my shower & went back to work on the budget. Mark did some stuff on the computer, too, & then headed back to the conference for the afternoon session.

Isabelle woke up around 3:45 & she asked to make juice ice pops to put in the freezer.

This was also the time that she mistook the cake that was covered with a towel for a pillow & put her whole weight into with her hand! Again, c'est la vie! 

We watched a video while we waited for Luke to wake up. I finally went in & checked on him at 4:30 & woke him up out of a deep sleep. He’s been taking such good naps lately! We played in his room for a while & then the kids came in the kitchen with me while I started getting supper ready. Izzy asked me if she could play in a cabinet of tupperware & I told her she could if she promised to pick it all up.

While the kids played, I got supper in or on the oven, made some iced tea & set the table. At 5:30, I told Izzy to clean up her mess &, lo & behold, she actually did! It wasn’t like she found it but she did it.

Mark got home a few minutes later & played with the kids while I made myself presentable for our evening guests. I also took a picture of how hot it was in our kitchen at 6:00. Really lovin’ this fall weather!

Mark took Luke with him to pick up the team at 6 to bring them here for dinner. Izzy put ice in all our glasses while I sat out the hot dishes. She then got the salad & fixings out of the fridge & put them on the serving counter. She is such a big helper! Really, is she only 3 years old?

Mark did the kids’ baths again tonight while I chatted with the team & then cleaned up dinner. The kids put on a show for our guests after their baths but the lovely Ms Mary reminded us that our kids are just normal! I think I need a reminder of that every once in a while! I put them down for the night at 7:30 & then we spent a little more time with the team before Mark took them home at 8.

The internet is out today at our house so I don’t know when this blog will post. It’s 9:00 here & Mark’s about to work out & I’m going to do a little packing for America … 11 days!! I’m thinking that we’ll actually go to bed on time tonight!!

FYI

Our Internet went out at the house yesterday & probably won't be fixed until Monday or Tuesday. I'll post the Week in the Life of ... Day 5 & Weekend recap when it's up & running again!

PS - today is Mark's birthday!!

Week in the Life of ... Day 4

I suppose you know by now where this will start. You know how we ended things last night so you can only rightly assume that I did NOT get up to workout. I so love that y'all have been able to see this week how undisciplined I am! I also somehow turned off my alarm (again!) instead of hitting snooze so the kind Mr Phillips dropped in to check on me at 6:50 to make sure I wanted up. Yes, honey, I did! Thank you!

Iced coffee: Check. Time with the Lord: Check. Check. Laid on the bed for 5 minutes in a daze: Check. Check. Check. I hopped into the shower before 8 & Mark got Izzy out of bed sometime around then. She greeted Bingo, of course, & then Mark started her on breakfast around 8:15. Luke was still snoozing at 8:30 & I went to check on him to make sure he was still breathing! He was.

He got up about 5 minutes later & then he & I & Izzy (who was still eating breakfast) sat down together around 8:40 for breakfast while Mark headed out the door to the discipleship conference. I scarfed down my pumpkin bread because I knew we needed to be fast this morning. However, we were all running really slow today ... from the get-go. I should've known today was going to be "off" when I didn't even start it with making a to-do list.

I ended up putting my make-up on at the breakfast table while the kids finished their breakfasts & then I got them dressed. We walked out the door at 9:15 to do school but it was a very traumatic experience. Every year, around this time, the grasshoppers come out in FULL force. They must've all made it into town last night because this morning, you literally could not walk out without getting smacked in the face with one.

Needless to say, it scared Izzy to death & she was paralyzed by fear ... not moving, just screaming & crying which made Luke scream & cry. We made it into the school room with only one grasshopper that followed us in. He met his maker this morning, I'm sad to say. It was either him or my child.

We did school in record time & then had to head back outside to get back in the house which was another ordeal. We got snacks, waters & our books & headed out to the library! (The Christian boarding school in the capital city has a large library on their campus that's open to missionaries.) Mark came back to the house to get us so I could use the car. We dropped him off at the conference again & then went & picked up my friend Melissa.

We got to the library around 10:35 or so & had planned to spend a good amount of time there but Luke was not happy. He didn't like his snack, he didn't want to read books (which he usually loves) & so we got out of there a little after 11.

We had to go get gas & then we headed to the tailor's shop to pick up my iPad case I had ordered & some curtains for Melissa. This awesome quilted case, which I custom ordered, only cost me 5 bones! 

We dropped Melissa off at her house & then headed back to the conference to have lunch (made by Biba!) with the team & the believers. It was at this point that I knew I should've just gone home but I went on. Luke screamed from Melissa's house all the way to the church. When we got there, Mark met us outside & he thought maybe Luke would be okay if they walked around some first. He was not.

The boy screamed, & I mean SCREAMED & cried, the whole time. I didn't even eat. Izzy & Mark didn't finish theirs. We just left. And you just have to love Africans & their bluntness. It is a well-known fact that the majority of African men have little patience with children. So it did not help that this conference is being attended by 20 African men. One of them came up to us as we were trying to leave & basically said (in my loose translation), "Your kid's crying is killing my head!" Thanks, thanks a lot.

So we came home after 12:30 & this is how we did lunch ... sitting on the kitchen counter. Not going for formal in this occasion. Luke was just pitiful & tired & hungry & not a happy camper.

We put the kids down for naps at 1:15 & then I didn't even try to pretend like I was going to fight a nap. I just went for it. And I really don't know what's up because I usually only take a nap like twice a week & I've done 3 days in a row! Maybe I should get tested for anemia.

Izzy slept til 3:30 & then Mark headed out (into the grasshopper plague) for the conference again. I could only count 11 grasshoppers in the air but there were at least 3 times that on the ground.

We Skyped GB at 4 & Luke was still sleeping. I finally went in at 4:20 to wake him up because I wanted him to sleep tonight. We talked to GB (which is mostly me talking & the kids playing in the background) til almost 5.

The kids & I played in the playnook while we waited for Daddy to get home. Luke is really wanting to color now & Izzy is loving writing her letters.

The letters she wrote are (from L to R): P I D L D F E T T A I B C

I headed into the kitchen a little after 5:30 to start supper & Mark got home around 5:45 & played with the kids. I had planned grilled chicken but in light of the grasshopper epidemic, we went for pan-fried.

Supper finished up around 7 & Mark did the baths tonight. I'm so thankful for a servant husband! He did Luke's bath separate so that Luke could have a bath with baking soda to help his awful diaper rash. While he gave Izzy her bath, Luke & I watched a little Les Mis, of course. Izzy came in to join us for the "One Day More" number. Luke loves it!

 After Les Mis, we did the rest of their nighttime routine & then did something I've been forgetting to tell y'all about. We made a "Countdown Chain to America" a couple of weeks ago & have been taking off a link every night & then counting how many days are left til we get on the plane. TWELVE days left!!

The kids were in bed by 8 & I sat down & finally breathed. It's been a long day. Luke's stomach issues & diaper rash have made him extra fussy. The day started off slow & not in a groove & it just didn't pick up until the afternoon. I was not in any mood to pretend I'm trying to save pounds for America. I dove right into this ....

Mark & I watched a couple of episodes on iTunes & then he headed off to work out while I screamed at the computer (actually, the internet) because blogger kept messing up the pictures I was trying to upload! Grrrr!!

And now I'm screaming at the electricity because it has been off for an hour! I was almost done typing this blog & it was a little before 10. Then the power cut ... for an hour. Now it's almost 11! I have a whole list of stuff I need to get done & emails to send but, in the words of Scarlett O'Hara, "I'll think about that tomorrow."

And speaking of tomorrow ... a friend tweeted me a great reminder that His mercies are new every morning. I praise the Lord for that!! Izzy took the picture of me below today (she asked me to make a crazy face) & this is how I really felt most of the morning. I know this is not my life everyday. I have 2 young children & these things just happen. The Phillips house is not always in order, y'all. I praise God that He shows us such endless mercy & grace ... even when my kids & I are acting like crazy people & causing Africans to want to lose their heads!

Week in the Life of ... Day 3

So, I'll start again with last night. I am reading an awesome, yet deep, book by Graeme Goldsworthy. I put on my to-do list yesterday to read for 15 minutes. Well, 15 minutes in this book is only a couple of pages for me! So I kept reading til I got to a good stopping point & then hit my pillow at 11:15. I was pretty proud of myself for this & I drifted right off to sleep. However, I woke up wide awake 10 minutes later because I thought I forgot to lock the front door. I checked it & we were good. But then something came on my heart that was kind of heavy & I did not fall back asleep until after midnight!

Well, you know by now what that means ... no workout for me this morning AND I accidentally turned off my alarm instead of hitting snooze! Blast! I got up about 10 til 7, made my iced coffee & delved into the Word. Izzy woke up around 7:40 & she laid on our bed in a stupor while I took my shower. Mark headed out the door at 7:45 to get croissants for the team's orientation & to meet with the bush taxi driver.

Luke woke up a little after 8 & boy did he give me a nice "Good Morning" surprise!! That surprise was ALL OVER his sheets, his bumper & his giraffe. Luckily, Barney was spared any of its shrapnel. Once that was all cleaned up, the kids headed outside to play with Bingo while I made them some chocolate milk ... & tried to keep myself from making any association with what just happened.

We did breakfast around 8:30 & the kids dove into some Lucky Charms cereal sent to us from the States while I ate leftover pumpkin bread from Susan's last night. We did NOT have to wait on Izzy to finish her breakfast this morning!! I guess that cereal is magically delicious after all!

I got the kids dressed & ready after breakfast. See? We like to mix it up in the Phillips' house. Expect the unexpected. Play fast & loose. Sometimes we get dressed before breakfast & sometimes after. You just never know with us crazy kids.

We started school around 9:15 & went til about 10:15. We tried to do what we did yesterday with me working 1-on-1 with Isabelle & then switching it up. However, Luke wasn't in the mood so I didn't push it. I was quite pleased with Isabelle's fish she glued on paper today. Something about it just makes me smile! 

Oh yeah, someone had to go to "time out" during school!

The kids watched a Cedarmont Kids video after school while they ate their morning snack. I put up yesterday's laundry & made myself presentable (we had somewhere to be for lunch so I couldn't wait til the afternoon!). Around 10:45 they went to their rooms to play by themselves while I did some work ... sending off a monthly report (fun! fun!) & doing 4 blogs on the Songhai blog (2 posted today, 2 are scheduled for later).

While I was trying to work & send off some emails, someone snuck out of their room to see what I was doing ...

Around 11:45 I had the kids pick up their toys while I got our stuff ready to go to lunch with the team. We waited outside for Daddy to come & get us & Luke took advantage of the time to play with Bingo ...

We had lunch at the American Rec Center with the Saleebys & the team from Texas. The "restaurant" is on the same site as the American school, so we always take advantage of their playground (as long as students aren't using it for recess) while we are there.

We got home around 1:40 & the kids went straight down for a nap. I sent off a few emails & tried to fight a nap but it just overtook me. I thought I'd just lay down on the couch in the office & doze for a few minutes & then maybe workout. Nope! I was out cold ... like drool coming down my chin cold!

Mark left the house right after he dropped us off from lunch to drive to a village to get some of the believers for the conference this week.

I woke up to the Lukester crying & came to find another surprise awaiting me. This time he kept it in the diaper. Izzy woke up when she heard Luke & so we all snuggled & played in his room for a little bit.

A little after 4, we decided to make some popcorn for our afternoon snack. Izzy got everyone some lemonade to drink ...

We tossed around a few options of what to watch but Luke wasn't happy with anything unless it was Les Miserables. I know, I know. This kid always keeps you guessing. He loves this musical though ... more than Barney or Elmo. This is how he sat on my lap for 20 minutes straight. You best believe it's going on the plane with us.

We watched 20 or 30 minutes of the video while we ate our popcorn & then headed outside. It's been terribly hot lately & I've been avoiding taking the kids outside to play for an extended amount of time. At 5:15 pm today it was 102 degrees. Don't you love our fall weather?! We played outside for a little over an hour & then headed inside for supper.

Now depending on whether you consider cereal a valid supper, we may or may not have had 2 bowls each of something magically delicious for supper. Mark got back to the city around 4 but he had to take the team souvenir shopping & then to dinner, so he wasn't home for this special supper. Before we may or may not have had cereal, I had to make us a 1/2 gallon of milk ... another extra step in food prep!

 

I just want to add this next part for my memory's sake lest I have a day & think this stuff never happened ... at supper, the kids were just extra funny & were making each other (& me!) laugh. I started making up songs & the kids were rolling. I'm not lying ... we laughed for probably 10 minutes straight & kept doing things to make each other laugh. I don't know about meal times at your house, but sometimes they can be kind of stressful around ours. It was just nice to have a meal with no complaints & lots of laughs. Maybe we'll have cereal for supper EVERY night!

After dinner, it was bathtime. Note to self: make sure to always dress the kid first who's had explosive diarrhea all day. Leave it to me to get Izzy in her PJ's first & then what happens? Luke poops on the floor! Seriously, the day Mark is gone ALL day ... this is what I get dealt! After that was all cleaned up, we did Bible story, singing & prayer.

Izzy has been begging me to cut her hair for the last week, so it wasn't technically bed time yet & I decided to go ahead & do it. This was the "before" picture. I don't have an "after" one yet.

The kids got to bed around 8 & then I came to upload pics to the blog & look at emails. I tried to Skype my grandparents (who I'll see in 2 weeks!) but couldn't get it to work.

Mark got home around 8:30 from taking the team to dinner & then leading his Bible study that he teaches for junior & senior MKs on Wednesday nights. He took Bingo for a walk while I tried to Skype again. No luck!

We sat down to catch up on our day with each other around 9 & then decided to watch another episode of the season of TV we're working through. Probably not the smartest move in retrospect but we both just needed to "chill" for a bit.

I got on the computer to add my images that had been uploading & they were gone! Ugh ... blogger!! So I had to wait for them to reload & now it's 11:15 pm & I'm finally done for the day! Mark & Bingo are both passed out behind me. I need to take one outside & drag the other to our bedroom, check on the kids & then call it a night!!

See y'all tomorrow!!