Truett Cathy sure knows what he's doing

It is no secret that I am fan of Chick-fil-a. How could you not be with the sweet tea, chick-fil-a sauce, and nuggets that are actually made of chicken? Well, today the people of CFA just strengthened that bond a little more...

Today was the beloved play date day, my favorite day of the week. It was my turn to pick up lunch for us so after stopping by the bank, I hit up the CFA drive-thru. Since I had told Cash we were going to Zeke's house before we left he wasn't too thrilled when I turned the opposite direction to go to the bank first. (Lesson learned: don't mention your final destination until you're on your way.) Which resulted in him whining and screaming in the back seat while I left my sister-in-law a voicemail (I'm sure she enjoyed my "excuse me, QUIET. anyways...."), thanked the drive-thru teller at the bank, and placed my order at CFA. Are you getting the picture? My blood pressure was rising and patience getting low. Since I was ordering for 2 adults and 4 kids our order was pretty big and the line even longer so I opted to not check the bag before the leaving the parking lot. I contemplated it and thought to myself, Chick-fil-a doesn't make mistakes. McDonald's, yes. But not Chick-fil-a. Besides, what am I going to do? Get the kids out and go inside to tell them? No. So I drove to Holly's and found out after unloading the kids, the diaper bag, drinks, and food that they had forgotten an order of fries. At first I was all, "oh its ok. I'll go without." Then remembering the total of our order I was annoyed. Holly mentioned calling them to let them know so I did... and do you know what she said to me? She sweetly said, "Would you like me to bring your third order of fries to you?" After picking my jaw up off the floor I told her that would be great. She got the address and my name and a few minutes later I had a bag of fresh waffle fries and THREE brownies she'd thrown in just for the fun of it!

Now THAT, my friends, is customer service!

Say, WHAT?

Earlier this morning I took Cash to the dermatologist. He's got some really bad acne and I was thinking maybe we could get some Retin-A prescribed for him or something.

Just kidding!

He's got a mild case of molescum - similar to a wart but not as gross (in my opinion). They're little pimple-like bumps spread by a virus, much like the wart. He only has 6-8 and they're all on his face so our pediatrician recommended visiting a pediatric dermatologist to treat them. She gave me 2 options:

1. Freeze them off. In her words, "It does sting so we'd just need to hold him down and freeze 'em off really fast." Not happening.

2. A cream you apply once a night that gets into the immune system and fights off the virus therefore getting rid of the bumps. SOLD!

Cash gets a sucker AND a sticker and we're off to Target to fill his prescription. We browse the store before returning to the pharmacy to pick up the cream when the young pharmacy tech calls me over...

She quietly says to me, "This is the price of your medication." and points to her paper reading $703. In spite of her hushed tone I exclaim, "Are you SERIOUS?!" still using her library voice she goes on to tell me thats for the generic cream, after insurance, and that I should call our doctor and see if there's something else we can do. I thank her and walk away wondering why she was talking so quietly. Then it dawned on me... The dermatologist had mentioned that cream usually being prescribed for patients with genital warts.

awesome.

Needless to say, I'm going to be calling the Dr and asking for an appointment to freeze those suckers off. And just might call the Target pharmacy to let them know we won't be needing the $700 cream for my son's MOLESCUM. ahem.

More than Enough

I've been searching my parenting and pregnancy books for the chapter on Mommy Guilt but can't seem to find it. I really felt like I had gotten "the advice that no one gives", you know? I was warned about the possibility and likelihood of pooping during delivery, the grossness of losing your mucous plug, and fully expected and was prepared for the separation anxiety stage. But no one ever told me about the overwhelming constant feeling of inadequacy. That stupid nagging feeling I have after letting Cash fill up on granola bars instead of forcing him to eat his applesauce. The voice inside that says, you should really sit down and build a tower with him or read a book to her instead of letting them be entertained by Elmo for the 3rd time today. The exact feeling I have as I'm writing this instead of emptying the dishwasher and folding the laundry. Bottom line - I'm not enough. Not enough for my kids, not enough for my husband, definitely not enough for my Saviour. Everyday I'm struggling to meet everyone's needs and have no clue how to fix it.

As I typed that last sentence I was reminded of Sandy Patty's discussion at Women of Faith. Being everything for everyone was a struggle for her and she talked about how God reminded her that she is more than enough for Him. For in our weakness, His strength is made perfect.

Oh, Lord. Take my weaknesses and use them to show Your greatness! Let me be a wife that Drew can be proud of; with a gentle spirit and kind heart. Lord, help me to see who it is you've called me to be. Thank you for this amazing journey you've set me on as a mom. Let me see it for the treasure it is and not waste another day drowning in my own self-pity of temper tantrums, strong-willed personalities, and spilled milk (for real). Help me be a mom that You would be proud of. One that points to You in all things, one that puts her family first, and is quick to listen and slow to anger. Thank you for loving me.

And Lord, please help Cash make better choices during nap time. Amen.

What a difference 3 years can make

Three years ago today I took a pregnancy test and my whole world changed! I remember it like it was yesterday...

I was going to my friend's house to have her color my hair and was feeling really down. Drew and I had been "not preventing" (I was trying. Drew was having fun.) for a few months and I was getting discouraged. Even though I was 2 days late I was pretty certain I wasn't pregnant. Ironically that was the first thing I blurted out when I walked into Holly's house that night, "I'm 2 days late!", I said. She grabbed her purse and announced, "We're going to Walmart!". I kept refusing to take the test, but around 8:30 she finally convinced me since Drew was working late that night and I wanted to be home before him. Much to my surprise it was immediately positive! I yelled for Holly and she came bursting through the door, camera in hand, screaming and jumping up and down. I, however, just sat the test on the counter and stared at in disbelief. I kept thinking, oh my gosh! It works!

We determined when my due date would be (thanks to Baby Center's website) and tried to decide how to tell Drew he was going to be a daddy. When I got home I opened our Bible to Psalm 139 and highlighted the passage that says,

"You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body and knit me together in my mother's womb. Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex! Your workmanship is marvelous, how well I know it. You watched me as I was being formed in utter seclusion, as I was woven together in the darkness of the womb. You saw me before I was born. Every day of my life was recorded in your book. Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed. "

I placed the pregnancy test on the Bible with a note next to it that said, "We love you, Daddy!". It felt like an eternity had passed before Drew finally got home. I was sitting on the couch as I watched him walk into our room. I heard him say, "Whaaat?" Then he came out, test in hand, and said, "REALLY?" and the rest is history.

Here's that little second line today...

Women of Faith

I spent last Friday and Saturday worshipping, laughing, crying, and dancing with 11,000 other women at the Women of Faith conference. To say it was awesome is an understatement. Leaving the kids with a sitter two days in a row was hard. And I struggled with Mom Guilt the whole weekend, but it was worth it. I got to spend time with some of my best girls, sing at the top of my lungs, worship with abandon, and quiet myself so I that could really hear from God. Why can't I do that on a regular basis, you ask? I asked myself the same thing and have decided to do just that from now on. To be intentional about my walk.

During lunch on Saturday my friend asked what my favorite part had been so far. At the time I couldn't answer - I was loving all of it. After digesting all of it I can tell you exactly what my favorite part was...

Sandy Patty was one of the singers and guest speakers. Now, typically I'm not really into the style of music she usually does. But I found myself enjoying her as a speaker and relating to what she was talking about. At the end of her talk she sang "We Shall Behold Him". I'm sure some of you just let out a huge "Ohhh" and know exactly which song I'm referring to. (Unfortunately this was the first time I had heard it.) The song is beautifully written and her voice is absolutely incredible! Something about that song brought tears to my eyes... But my favorite part was that she signed the entire song herself for the section of women who were deaf/hard of hearing. AND THEN...just as she was nearing the end (and her highest notes) the hearing impaired women stood up and signed along with her! It was awesome, the entire arena was filled with women worshipping our God... All I could think was, "this is what Heaven's going to be like!". Except its not! There won't be any denominational boundaries in Heaven, we'll all know each other's names in Heaven, we'll all have the best voices and Heavenly bodies (woo hoo!) and best of all... there won't be any disabilities. All those women who were signing with Sandy will be SINGING with Sandy someday.

If thats not amazing, I don't know what is.

Nothin' like a FIRST birthday party...or TWO!

Here's our baby girl at exactly one year old - 6PM August 4, 2010.

Her stats: 21# 13.5 oz

28 1/2 inches long

The first of her birthday parties: The Polka Dot Party!

The girl loves her some chocolate cake!

The double party with her cousin, Carter, who will be one this Saturday!

(the theme for the cake was "Snakes and snails and puppy dog tails..." and "Sugar and spice and everything nice..." And it was DELICOUS!)

The birthday babies and their mommies.

Bringing up Boys

Lately my favorite time of day has been just before I go to bed at night. For some reason I've forgotten how early my kids wake up and end up staying up way too late; usually climbing in bed sometime around midnight every night. But without fail, the last thing I do before hitting the pillow is check on the kids.

Corrinne is always so sweet and cherub-like and hardly ever stirs. But Cash on the other hand, he's always got something funny or sweet to say in his groggy, half-asleep state of mind. Tonight while I was tucking him in (a regular request of his) I was stroking his hair and telling him good-night as he repeated those words back to me. Then just as I was about to walk out he said, "Batman ni-night. Spiderman ni-night too, Momma."

Good to know, Cash. Good to know.