The Zoo

Our trip to the zoo today was a success. Anna Grace and Dean were both very obedient; when they walked, they held hands and stayed beside me and if they were not walking they were happily riding in the wagon. I am not sure what got into them...unless it was that talk before going in about the first time they were disobedient we were going straight to the car and going home.

After our picnic lunch we headed in to see the sites. I would have loved to have gotten more pictures but it is hard to be the wagon driver, event organizer and photographer.

We began with the lions and tigers. Thankfully we got to see them just before they laid down to naps.

The flamingos were our last stop. They are always a hit with these two.

About 2 miles away from the zoo I knew our trip was a success.



The faker wanted her picture taken in the car too.

Anna Grace was quick to tell me on the way home that we did not go to "the farm" (the petting zoo). I guess that means we will have to go back again sometime soon. And in case you were considering a zoo outing, it was not very crowded - Monday might be our day of choice so far.

I am currently pooped and Caleb is on the move, so I am going to take a minute to recover on the couch from our exciting day before Dean wakes up.

Back to Normal

Things have been a little crazy around here lately. However, this week the stage seems to be set for us to have a normally paced week. Therefore I thought I would share our food ideas for the week before heading to the grocery store.

Chicken Pasta
Salad
French Bread

Baked Chicken
Corn
Broccoli

Red Beans and Rice
French Bread

Pizza Pouches

Balsamic Chicken Drumettes
Baked Sweet Potatoes
Green Beans

Waffles
Eggs
Fruit

Sloppy Joe's
Baked Beans
Corn

In case you were wondering, Neal cooks waffles on Sunday nights for us when he gets home from his small group. Yes it does cause us to eat dinner later than usual but the children LOVE it and for me it not only tastes great but keeps me out of the kitchen.

Now I am off to the grocery store then home with the groceries and a potty break before taking the children - Anna Grace, Dean and Caleb (I am confident he will be the easiest to deal with since he can't escape) to the Zoo for Anna Grace's treat. Right about now I am thinking I am crazy for taking them by myself; I'm sure it will be fine. A zoo membership by the way is the best; one more time this year and we have covered the cost of the membership - which was a gift from my dad for Christmas to our family. He was not fired up about it for me personally because he said the zoo stinks and it does a little but the children are crazy about it so every time we go Pappy is a hero to them. I will report back about our trip later, hopefully with pictures if the children are cooperative.

Oh, the bracket update...After a long four days of college basketball, I finished the weekend first in our league - I am confident it will not last but it is fun for a few days to be at the top. And might I add that Neal is tied for second with Josh!

And his name is...

So some of you did not like the tease yesterday but come on, did you really think I was going to announce Wilbur's name in a post that was all about basketball and Dean?

Neal and I finally decided on a name that we are excited about and it is Caleb Suell Hatchett.

Caleb is from the Bible who was sent in as one of the 12 spies for Moses into Canaan. Caleb along with Joshua returned with the only two favorable responses therefore were the only two from that generation who were able to enter the Promise Land. Two of my favorite passages about Caleb are Numbers 14:20 - 24 and Joshua 14:6 - 15. I would characterize Caleb as a man who wholly followed the Lord, bold, faithful and wholehearted. What a great model for a young man today.

Suell is a family name in my family that goes back 3 generations - that I am aware of. While I did not know the 1st Suell in the family, there are some men who love the Lord and have influenced my life.

Finally Hatchett, well he is stuck with that name - nothing I can do about that one but he has a wonderful role model, as do Anna Grace and Dean, in his father who already loves and prays for him. So we will be honored to keep Hatchett.

Oh and just in case you were wondering, I only missed one game yesterday - I had VCU beating UCLA and if they had made the last second shot they would have but instead they went down 65-64 to UCLA. Oh well the tension is now off since my bracket is now blemished and currently on its way down hill.

Too Much Basketball

The NCAA Tournament began a few hours ago. Dean, not feeling very well today, wanted to sit on the couch with me (he loves to watch basketball) so we turned it on to see how my teams were faring. Well he did not make it very long.

I would type more - like the name of our son - but right now he is waking and I need to let Neal know that instead of eating Catfish tonight he is picking up pizza - a much more basketball-watching-friendly kind of food. I guess it will be catfish tomorrow night; right now though I have a perfect bracket and I must relish in that while comforting Dean.

Oh, the name....I will save that for an official post tonight!

I quit

I would just like to say that for the remainder of this day I will no longer be responding to "Mommy." I quit. I decided this as Dean sat on the potty earlier calling my name over and over and over and over and over and over again. I was standing in there the whole time listening and responding to him. I finally, very politely, asked, "Would you please stop talking to me?" I know I am a bad mom but if you other moms reading this have never actually asked your child such a question I am confident that you have at least thought it. While I am sure my resignation will not last more than about 10 minutes if even that long before I walk away from the computer and continue being "Mommy" as if nothing ever happened, these brief moments have been nice.

And while I am at it, I established a new rule about 15 minutes ago - He who tattle tales is the one who gets the spanking. So far it is working out nicely; it is amazing how quickly they begin to work out their petty differences when they know complaining to me will get them nowhere fast.

As I sign off for now and head back to the children, let me add one last thing...Please spare me the "you should be thankful you have healthy, active, etc children" speech. I am very thankful for my children and I do love them to pieces and really would not want to change them one bit - other than the moments of disobedience - but that does not mean that I would not love 10 minutes of quiet at an unexpected time during the day that did not result in finding some sort of huge mess like food all over the floor or a pile of toilet paper as high as the child or an important piece of paper scribbled all over (just to name a few of the incidents from this week)!

Pregnancy Update

It has been a while since I have given any sort of pregnancy update so I thought I would take a moment - so I can put off sewing curtains a little longer or perhaps even another day - and share the latest. I went back to the doctor yesterday for a check up. When I returned home Anna Grace asked me I had the baby with me. I put my hand on my stomach and said, "I've still got him right here in my tummy." Later in the day she asked if we could open up my stomach and see him. Wouldn't we all like that but we have to let him cook in there for 9 more weeks.

I am currently 30 weeks and have gained 14 pounds. The c-section has been scheduled for Tuesday, May 12th at 7:00 am. Now for those of you who are not familiar with c-section world that means I have to stop eating at 11:59 pm on the 11th - food, water, everything is off limits - and I have to be at the hospital at 5:00 am that morning. It makes for a long day but it will be worth it. My iron count is down so I am back on iron pills after taking a few months off. Iron pills - not really my favorite but if it keeps me awake during the day so I can tend to Anna Grace and Dean then I will take them and be happy about it.

I can't stop eating lately. I eat a full meal and then about 2 hours later I am ready to eat again. Needless to say, I sneak food out of the kitchen when the children are not looking. Monday while doing grocery shopping I decided that I wanted some orange juice - it has been my drink of choice lately so I decided to buy a gallon. I think there might be a 1/2 gallon left; don't think a gallon is going to last me until next Monday's grocery run. Then while picking out more salad dressing I noticed the Sweet Gherkin pickles (you know the little whole pickles). On a whim I decided to buy them. I can't stop eating them...yesterday I ate 12 pickles between lunch time and dinner time. Today I have only eaten 3 so far, mainly because I don't want to see the end of the pickles (currently 4 left in the jar). Looks like I will have to find an excuse to go to the store and buy some more pickles and orange juice!

Other than not being able to stay awake if I get remotely still and not being able to stop eating - especially pickles and orange juice - I think things are normal around here. Wilbur still has no official name but Neal and I have started discussing it. Hopefully we will come up with something soon and let you know.

Guarding Our Daughters in This Sexualized Culture

I came across this on one of the many blogs that I visit. I thought it had some great advice on raising daughters.

Guarding Our Daughters in This Sexualized Culture

via Breaking Free by Laura Booz on 2/12/09

Aren’t little girls such precious gifts?

And to think, we have two! I so deeply want to do right by them and raise them to love God with all of their heart. Yet, I can’t help but shudder at the lust-loving, female-objectifying, girlhood-stealing culture that welcomes them with open arms.

Sometimes it all seems too intimidating to face, doesn’t it?

But God’s arm is most assuredly strong enough to help us against the most daunting enemies.

Here are some of the strategies that God has revealed to us as we strive to protect our little girls from the evil of objectification, abuse and lust.

• Pray for her. It’s not long after that positive pregnancy test that a mother realizes the well-being and security of her child are almost entirely out of her hands. She is left with this choice: a lifetime of desperation, or a lifetime of prayer. May she always choose prayer, prayer and prayer.

• Let her be a little girl for years—in her toy-box and wardrobe. Encourage little girls to play like little girls: dolls, kitchen, doctor, school, blocks, and good-quality books. Be very careful about the TV programs, movies, websites, and video games to which your daughter is exposed. And enjoy dressing your sweetheart like a little girl. Research shows that “dressing beyond her years” is one of the top reasons for early promiscuity.

• Don’t make a big deal about body image, natural curiosity, or accidental innuendos. If you can cover over these things with grace, you will be protecting your daughter from shame and unnecessarily mature information which you feel is inappropriate for her premature world.

• Enjoy dressing modestly with her. In a funny way, it was rewarding when my 3 year-old saw a workout video for the first time and asked, “Why are those ladies naked?” Of course, they weren’t naked, but to her, they were wearing far fewer clothes than we wear. I was grateful for her innocence.

• Teach her to have compassion on (and to look away from) paper women who are objectifying themselves; you and your daughters should be in the habit of looking away from the same supermarket magazines that you would expect your sons and husbands to look away from as well. The airbrushed images are just as damaging to females as they are to men. (And by all means, remove these images from your coffee table, and take them out of your bathroom baskets! Yikes!)

• Celebrate the beauty of her inner-self, which is growing more Christ-like each day. Our little girls should be able to see the same beauty in us.

• Give her full permission to SCREAM at the top of her lungs whenever she is in danger. Her high-pitched ear-piercing scream might get on your last nerve, but it is a God-given device of protection. Explain to her that if she is ever in danger, she should scream her lungs out. Have a screaming match with her indoors and outdoors so that she is comfortable letting it rip in both environments. As she understands this amazing defense mechanism, you may be pleased to notice that she uses it more frugally around the house. It will be good for you both to remember that you are worth protecting.

• Plan activities and conversations that tie your heart to hers. May both Mommy and Daddy take her out on regular dates, establish bed-time traditions, talk to her at dinner time, enjoy her personality and love her—no matter what the circumstance. Here are some books that have helped me to think about these things and to plan for the future: Noel Piper’s Treasuring God in Our Traditions, Dannah Gresh’s Secret Keeper Girl: 8 Great Dates for You and Your Daughter, and Carolyn Mahaney’s Girl Talk: Mother-Daughter Conversations on Biblical Womanhood.

• Fill her up with God’s glorious design for girlhood. Instead of focusing on all of the “no’s” and “don’t’s,” celebrate the “yes’s” and “do’s”. We’ve greatly enjoyed God’s Wisdom for Little Girls: Virtues and Fun from Proverbs 31.

What ideas have you developed to protect your little girls and raise them to love God with their heart, soul, mind and strength?

Snow Fun

After church Sunday we went outside as a family to play in the snow. Anna Grace loved every second of her time; Dean on the other hand was ready to come inside after about 5 minutes. Anna Grace played so hard she fell asleep at the table last night - while eating her 3rd waffle!

Here are some pictures...

This Week's Menu

We just got back from the grocery store and it looks like this is what is on tap at our house this week.

Juju's Potato Soup

Chicken and Rice Casserole
Green Beans
Salad

Tuscan Pasta with Tomato Basil Cream
Salad
French Bread

Pizza Pouches

Tacos
Black Beans
Chips and Salsa

Waffles
Sausage

Not My Juju!

We had a fun week with my mom last week. We sewed several new outfits for the children for the spring and got some more started but not quite complete. It is always a treat for us when she comes - it means extra hands to help with the children, cooking and cleaning for me (and Neal) but for Anna Grace and Dean it means a few more snacks, splurges at the grocery store and fun play time. Great fun is had by all.

Due to the circumstances of the week, she ended up taking the train home on Saturday. I would guess that most of you have not taken the train before and well it is really quite pleasant. There is a dining car and a separate snack car and usually lots of space to spread out and do your own thing. Sure there are some characters on the train but that is just part of the experience and sure the train is usually a little behind schedule but that is just part of the whole train experience.

However this time, there was one problem we did not expect - the weather. Apparently the bad weather on Friday and Friday evening caused the train some complications and it was about 4 hours behind schedule. Therefore Amtrak was kind enough to charter a tour bus to get the passangers who could not wait 4 hours to their final destination. And since Neal and I had the Vestavia High School State Championship basketball game to get to, we could not bring her back down to the train. Juju bravely decided to ride on the chartered bus. We watched as she boarded - children very upset it was not the train they expected - a little anxious of the expereince she was going to encounter - no dining car, no snack car, not a large area to spread out comfortably. Dean managed to yell from within the van what we were all thinking as she stepped on - "NOT MY JUJU!" - after I stopped laughing, I looked at him and said, "I know son, next time we will make sure the train is ready."