Oh, the packing...

The flight we have tomorrow is on a small plane. Not small as in private jet plane but small as in the kind of plane people crash alot. I'm very scared. Very thankful for the flight...very scared to crash. Especially since we are flying over Lake Michigan. My heart is in my throat even as I type this. We are only allowed 15lbs. per person in luggage which at first I didn't think was going to be that hard.


I did every stitch of laundry in the house last night so I had all options available to me while I packed. Do you have any idea how hard it is to pack only 15lbs for one week? There were clothes all over the bed that I was trying to mix and match. I had one of those pull behind suitcases half full and decided to weigh it...15lbs! Darn.


It must have been the wheels. And the fancy pull out handle. Chad found a duffel bag in the closet and we were both able to fit all our clothes in there. Chad only needs clothes for 2 days and pajama pants the rest of the time. We weighed it...15lbs! Now we have some wiggle room for the extra stuff.

I have post it notes all over the place with last minute things I need to pack. I have my mini shampoo, mini toothpaste, and my mom even got me a mini hairspray. My makeup bag has the bare essentials in it. I have lists everywhere for my mom like "What the kids eat", "Bedtime Routine", "What Charlie will say he can do and what he actually CANNOT do", and those things I know Grandma's throw in the trash as soon as I'm gone.

One good thing about packing so light is I'm learning a lot about simplicity. What do I really need? So often I over pack for trips and end up taking things I never use or even remember I packed. There is something refreshing about only carrying the basics with me. At least, am sure it will be refreshing once I get there. For now, packing is a little stressful...

My random post...

I have been missing in action on the internet but definately not in my non-computer life. It's been nothing BUT action around there! I'm apologizing ahead of time for a very boring post filled with lots of exclamation points. The next post will be better, I hope!

• Today was Charlie's last day of preschool. There was a little ceremony and picnic to celebrate. I always thought preschool graduations were so silly...it's just preschool. Until it was my son's preschool graduation. I was actually a little teary! His teacher was just phenomenal. She was my first impression of the public school system in our town and I am impressed. She is coming for a wrap-up home visit at the end of the month and I'll probably gush all over her.
• Henry has a horrid ear infection. Charlie never had one and Henry has only had two. This one is killer. The last two nights he'll wake up in his bed and scream. The only thing that soothes him is The Wiggles. I've had enough of the midnight visits from The Wiggles! I was singing "Wiggly Party" while I drove to work this morning. Please, ear infection, go away!
• Chad and I are off to Mayo again next week. He has a minor surgery that will have major results. We are excited (for the results- not for the actual surgery)! But the last few days have been about getting the boys routines together, getting my house ready (my parents are staying with the boys), and PACKING. Packing is tricky this time. We qualified for a flight from Wings of Mercy, a non-profit organization that flies patients to far away hospitals for free. It may have something to do with the fact we have been to Minnesota 8 times in the last year! The flight is a small private plane so we are limited to 15lbs each. That's about the size of a carry on each...and we'll be there a week. A week! Any packing tips would be greatly appreciated!
• I pre-shopped two garage sales this week and got TONS of clothes for Henry and Charlie. Honestly, I spent $30 and got them enough clothes to last a year (or more depending on how fast they grow!). I was thrilled. One of my friends told me "I just want to get rid of it all- everything is a quarter..." Some of the stuff was like new! Woohoo! With boys, I'm all about garage sale clothes. Boys are destructive! I also sold some things on consignment and was able to pick up some summer clothes for myself at the shop. My prize? A red Ann Taylor dress for $15. I've never had a red dress and I love it!
• My mother in law is in charge of the annual hospice auction tomorrow night. We, of course, are automatic workers since we are relatives and all. I love the auction! It's so much fun! And it's awesome to see the hard work she puts into it come to fruition in one big bang! We look forward to it every year and I can't wait to go. It's like a really fun date night only Chad works one of the silent auction tables and I'm on the tear down crew. So technically we aren't anywhere near each other...but it's still lots of fun!
• Last but not least...we have the scariest ant hill ever in our front yard. Just thinking about it makes me itch. Chad told me not to go near it but I wanted to see for myself. It's huge! Honestly, it's as big around as a table top and the holes are mini m&m size. There are massive armies of ants crawling all over each other in and out of holes. Gag. I'm so grossed out I can hardly stand it. The ant killers are coming today (some men from the church) and I'm praying those ants go away. Honestly, someone told Chad to dig up the anthill...can you imagine? I'm envisioning ants swarming the shovel and overtaking Chad, dragging him down into their ant village underground. Blech!! Ants!!!

I'll be updating while we are away next week. There are no distractions out there... just me and Chad hanging out in the hospital room! Have a great weekend!

Cold Cup, Warm Heart

This afternoon Chad and I were sitting in the den talking through an incredibly stressful situation bearing down on us right now. We were talking quietly but I'm sure Charlie noticed the intensity of the conversation.

I could see him out of the corner of my eye, standing next to me. He whispered "Mom?...Mom?" until I turned and said "Yes, Charlie..."

Again he spoke quietly, "I brought something just for you..."

It was his blue plastic cup he normally drinks from and inside was a brown liquid. I didn't have tea in the fridge or any pop so I couldn't think of what it was.

"Oh, thank you. What is it?" I asked.

"Coffee!" he said proudly.

And wouldn't you know...it was coffee. I had made it earlier in the day and left a little bit in the pot. It had been a few hours.

"I poured it myself. I thought you would really need it." And he stood there with concern waiting for me to drink the cold, filmy liquid.

I glanced at Chad and he gave me a humored yet sympathetic look that said, "you'd better drink it." So I did.

I gave Charlie a great big hug and thanked him "very much". And even though that coffee was cold and awful tasting my heart was warm.

Blog Design Giveaway

I realize my blog is very typical and ordinary. People stop by and say "Beginner. Look at that sorry template." When I read blogs and like the design I always look to see who designed it. The majority of the time it's Jules at EveryDay Mommy! I've set a goal for myself...if I blog a certain number of blogs my reward is a new template by Jules. But, oh!! To win a FREE design for Mother's Day? How wonderful would that be? I'm dreaming of a shiny new template already... Click the button and stop by Everday Mommy and enter!

Morning Conversation

I'm on the couch in the living room listening to the conversation of my husband and my 1 year old.

Henry: Hi-ee! Ted-ee! (Henry always says good morning by showing us his bear)

Chad: Good Morning, Henry!

Henry: Ted-ee!

Chad: Sorry, good morning Teddy...

Henry: Crah-ker! (cracker doesn't mean cracker- it means whatever he's talking about at the moment)

Chad: How about some eggs?

Henry: Crah-ker! Crahker!

Chad: Eggs are good...(talking to himself I think)

Henry: (marching around the island) Crah-ker, Crah-ker, Crah-ker....

Chad: Want to stir the eggs?

Henry: Yeah, yeah, yeah....

Chad: Yucky!...Don't!.... Wait! ....ack....

And now I'm off to see what that's all about....and eat some eggs.

Teach Me!!!

Okay, someone out there has added me to her Google Reader. How did you do that? I read quite a few blogs and would love to use reader of some kind. Teach me!

Also, someone found me through Technorati. How? What is that?

I would appreciate lots of tips! I can blog (sort of- I currently struggle with adding a button) and I can READ blogs but that's about my extent of blog knowledge.

Thanks!

Dandelions

Our yard has tons of dandelions. Not the little ones either. The big, fat ones as big as your palm. Charlie was walking through a patch of them and said, "What can we do with these, Mom?"

I'm not crafty or creative but I read blogs that are. I vaguely remember reading something in Martha Stewart Magazine years ago about making pancakes with dandelions. I googled "dandelion pancakes" and found a recipe with ingredients we already had on hand. We are a pancake house- any kind of pancake is a good pancake.

Charlie and I hunted for the biggest, fattest dandelions we could find. We filled a little dish and brought them inside. I cleaned them and chopped them...and then spilled them on the floor! The cat thought it was fun so she jumped in and scattered them around. I could hear the lawnmower outside as the man from church was here to mow. And he was mowing the dandelion patch! I ran outside and starting picking dandelions like a crazy person. I'm sure I could have flagged him down and explained what I needed the flowers for but at that moment all I could think was "I need dandelions now!"

So again, we washed them and chopped them and mixed up the recipe. We cooked them and even though they looked a little funny they smelled good. I put them on a plate, sliced them up and...they were absolutely the worst pancakes I ever had in my life. Terrible! Charlie on the other hand thought they were delicious but I suspect that's because he made them himself and felt a fierce loyalty to the world's worst pancakes.

I could link you to the recipe but I won't because they are terrible and I couldn't live with myself knowing I passed that recipe around. Chad wouldn't even taste them after he saw my face so he asked what they tasted like. I don't know really- earthy? Kind of like dirt and grass?

I think next time we'll try something a little more normal. Like, pick a vegetable from the garden and eat it the way it is intended to be eaten. I'm much better with normal.

National Day of Prayer

Today is the National Day of Prayer. I'm ashamed to say that in years past I've forgotten all about it and let it pass. This year I longed for and prepared for today. Don't get me wrong...I fully understand that everyday is a day of prayer. But if you think of other holidays (Christmas/giving, Thanksgiving/being thankful, Valentine's Day/love, Easter/celebrating the Resurrection) all those things should be done everyday, too. There's this vibe I get when I wake up on a holiday...that special day set aside for a little extra of something we do everyday.

I have some big ones today. Heather is having brain surgery today and is being covered in prayer by numerous bloggers. We even put her on the list at the church today. We have some family stuff going on that involves numerous people and LOTS of prayer. And as I was reading through my morning blog selection I came across another prayer request here. Please pray for Ben and his family today. Also, please remember to pray for our country and its leaders. And pray for your church, its leaders, and your pastor.

I'll be taking "prayer breaks" all day. If you leave a request in the comment section I'll pray for you, too! **

It's the National Day of Prayer...let's celebrate and pray!

**even if you comment a few days from now I'll still pray for you!

My first Tag!

I've been tagged by Monica! I've never been tagged before and I'm so excited! It took much longer than I thought to come up with these answers.

Here are the rules: Each player starts with 7 random facts/habits about themselves. People who are tagged need to write on their own blog about their seven things, as well as these rules. You need to choose 7 people to get tagged and list their names. Don’t forget to leave them a comment telling them that they have been tagged and to read your blog!

1. I have two ankle bones on both feet. Right below my "normal" ankle is another one. It makes buying shoes a challenge! And I'm not showing you a picture because it's really weird.

2. When I was teenager I was a licensed scuba diver. I only went diving 5 times I think?

3. I can't sit still. When I'm sitting in a chair or laying in bed I am constantly tapping my feet. It was cause for much arguing when we first got married! I even do it in my sleep and it drives my husband nuts!

4. I'm stagefright, I'm not crafty/creative, I can't sing, and I don't play a musical instrument. And I'm a pastor's wife. How did that happen? : )

5. Along with #4...I like to do behind the scenes stuff. I have no problem following the leader! Tell me what to do and I'll do it!

6. I eat frozen peas as a snack. My boys do it now, too.

7. I know how to can tomatoes...and it's sooo fun!

That's it! I'll probably think of 10 things that were a lot more interesting later! I don't know 7 bloggers personally yet (I'm mostly a lurker on about 20 blogs) so I'll only tag the ones I know... Leslie, Tracey, and Coach J (who is as new to blogging as me!).

Have a great day!