I cranked up the tunes for the girls today and thought I would grab some video of them dancing along! Enjoy!
P.S. I used Blogger to display the video instead of YouTube, let me know if you think it's better.
Saturday, June 28, 2008
Garden Adventure
Wow, has the last week or so been a "green" one. After trying my hand at planting last week, and glad it was done, a gracious friend from work brought me a whole car-load of plants-so I got some more practice! Krista had thinned out everything at her house and was more than willing to share with this wanna-be gardener:) So...I've put the following in the ground and will be following up with pictures next spring!
Russian Sage
Black-eyed Susans
Lamb's Ear
Yellow Iris
Purple Iris
Varigated Grass
Purple Cone Flower
"Yellow Bush"
Purple Yarrow
Day-lillies
Chives
Some of the adventures that ensued during planting were racing against the rain, making friends with Mr.Snake-who enhabits the back half of our back yard...ok we didn't make friends and he has been granted the entire back yard after showing up ON THE DRIVEWAY yesterday...hee hee, until he meets Mr.Ice Chipper (insert my best evil cackle), and realizing that I can still sweat...it's been awhile and it felt kind of good:)
Russian Sage
Black-eyed Susans
Lamb's Ear
Yellow Iris
Purple Iris
Varigated Grass
Purple Cone Flower
"Yellow Bush"
Purple Yarrow
Day-lillies
Chives
Some of the adventures that ensued during planting were racing against the rain, making friends with Mr.Snake-who enhabits the back half of our back yard...ok we didn't make friends and he has been granted the entire back yard after showing up ON THE DRIVEWAY yesterday...hee hee, until he meets Mr.Ice Chipper (insert my best evil cackle), and realizing that I can still sweat...it's been awhile and it felt kind of good:)
Friday, June 27, 2008
Can I have ice cream with my Humble Pie?
Pride is a dangerous thing, and it comes in many forms. Here is a formal definition:
I am no stranger to pride. At one point it ruled my life. I was so prideful as to think I was above the authority of God, or I was too smart for God. Oh what a giant helping of humble pie can do for the spirit. God has put me in many situations to humble me (mostly because I'm a slow learner). I have certainly made progress but there is still work to be done. I am reminded of this by the situations I still find myself in.
As you all may know, I recently interviewed at Ames Middle School for a pretty sweet job...and didn't get it. Now I might have been inclined to feel sorry for myself (also a form of pride, "Why didn't I get the job?") but I took comfort in knowing it wasn't my time. Most recently I have had my pride tested again. Last year I interviewed at one of Ankeny's middle schools (also a sweet job) and got second place (which means I didn't get the job). So the other day I hear that the first year teacher that I mentored was hired at Ankeny middle school and is going to be making a lot more money than me (why do people feel the need to mention that?). Oh, there it is...that sting of pride. That feeling that sneaks up and makes you want to get angry and say the things that the devil puts in your head. It was a good test, that's for sure.
What did I do? Feel sorry for myself? Get mad at the teacher for getting an awesome job that I didn't? Get mad at the school for not hiring me last year? No. Did I want to? YEAH! What did I do? I humbled myself. It was an actual action (it's not natural for me yet!) Here is the verb definition of humble that I love:
To destroy the pride of. I like that. I made a conscious effort to destroy the pride that was welling up in me. I reminded myself of God's plan for me (Jeremiah 29:11). Who am I to rebuke Him?
The next time you feel that you haven't gotten what you deserve, want to feel sorry for yourself, feel that you are better than someone else, think your boss is incompetent, or any of the other negative and destructive thoughts that pride brings just go to the fridge and dish yourself up a big slice of humble pie, and don't forget the ice cream. It makes it taste better.
"For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted." Matthew 23:12
a high or inordinate opinion of one's own dignity, importance, merit, or superiority, whether as cherished in the mind or as displayed in bearing, conduct, etc.
I am no stranger to pride. At one point it ruled my life. I was so prideful as to think I was above the authority of God, or I was too smart for God. Oh what a giant helping of humble pie can do for the spirit. God has put me in many situations to humble me (mostly because I'm a slow learner). I have certainly made progress but there is still work to be done. I am reminded of this by the situations I still find myself in.
As you all may know, I recently interviewed at Ames Middle School for a pretty sweet job...and didn't get it. Now I might have been inclined to feel sorry for myself (also a form of pride, "Why didn't I get the job?") but I took comfort in knowing it wasn't my time. Most recently I have had my pride tested again. Last year I interviewed at one of Ankeny's middle schools (also a sweet job) and got second place (which means I didn't get the job). So the other day I hear that the first year teacher that I mentored was hired at Ankeny middle school and is going to be making a lot more money than me (why do people feel the need to mention that?). Oh, there it is...that sting of pride. That feeling that sneaks up and makes you want to get angry and say the things that the devil puts in your head. It was a good test, that's for sure.
What did I do? Feel sorry for myself? Get mad at the teacher for getting an awesome job that I didn't? Get mad at the school for not hiring me last year? No. Did I want to? YEAH! What did I do? I humbled myself. It was an actual action (it's not natural for me yet!) Here is the verb definition of humble that I love:
To curtail or destroy the pride of.
To destroy the pride of. I like that. I made a conscious effort to destroy the pride that was welling up in me. I reminded myself of God's plan for me (Jeremiah 29:11). Who am I to rebuke Him?
The next time you feel that you haven't gotten what you deserve, want to feel sorry for yourself, feel that you are better than someone else, think your boss is incompetent, or any of the other negative and destructive thoughts that pride brings just go to the fridge and dish yourself up a big slice of humble pie, and don't forget the ice cream. It makes it taste better.
"For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted." Matthew 23:12
Monday, June 23, 2008
Video Archive: Episode 3
Here is some video of the girls in swim lessons. This particular time Olivia felt more like discussing swimsuit fashion with another girl in her class rather than actually swimming! Sylvia enjoyed herself as always and had fun kicking and splashing.
Sunday, June 22, 2008
A Time to Plant....
Today we planted some trees and flowers around our home while the girls played in the sprinkler. Ab has decided that gardening may not be her calling! It was a nice time to enjoy the weather and some quiet time though. Here are pictures of Olivia posing with our new trees (Hybrid Poplars) and maybe the last time Ab's hands will look like this!
"There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven: a time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a time to uproot..."
Ecclesiastes 3:1-2
"There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven: a time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a time to uproot..."
Ecclesiastes 3:1-2
Video Archive: Episode 2
This weekend we were visited by my parents, the Gerdes family, Nick, Julie, and Ashley. Ashley had a softball tournament in Ankeny on Saturday so we were all able to watch her play. It was a good time and the girls loved playing with their cousins. It had been a good long time since we had seen Cody & Ashley so it was especially nice to see them.
This episode of the video archive comes from Olivia's Tumble Tikes class that she took this Spring (March I believe). Enjoy and have a good week!
This episode of the video archive comes from Olivia's Tumble Tikes class that she took this Spring (March I believe). Enjoy and have a good week!
Friday, June 20, 2008
Video Archive: Episode 1
It seems that I have fallen behind on my video projects so I thought I would throw some older footage of ours up so you don't miss out! I will do my best, but I will be working without the aid of our more video-friendly desktop computer which has decided to die (for the third time). Anyway, I'll try to add videos as much as I can until we are up-to-date! Enjoy!
Here is Olivia performing an impromptu dance recital, she loves to dance!
Here is Olivia performing an impromptu dance recital, she loves to dance!
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
Entitlement?
Please bear with me as I wear the hat of a disgruntled father for a moment. I do not intend this post to be a complaint or a venting of anger, but rather a commentary on the state of society.
Tonight we had swim lessons with the girls. Ab was swimming with Sylvia on one end of the pool and I was observing Olivia at another. Olivia's lesson was going well, she was having fun and practicing her skills. There was, however, a particularly "strong willed" boy in her class that was giving Olivia a hard time. His actions were innocent enough, he began by splashing her. "Typical pool behavior." I thought to myself. Olivia was clearly bothered by this and told the boy to stop. He responded by yelling at her and telling her to "shut up." Okay, no harm in this, Olivia needs to learn how to handle difficult people and she's doing a good job. The boy now decided he was not finished with Olivia. He sat beside her at the edge of the pool and began slapping her and hitting her on the head.
Side note: Where were his parents? You may be asking. His mother was not paying attention to her son. I'm also sure that the high school students that are the instructors are not prepared to handle toddler discipline.
So as Olivia began to wail, the father/teacher in me stepped in and had a word with the boy in question. About this time someone must have alerted the boy's mother and she intervened. The boy was indignant to his mother's attempt at correction. The event did, however, prompt her to pay closer attention to her son. This, unfortunately, did not act as an adequate deterrent to her son.
For reasons unknown to me, this boy felt compelled to display his dislike for my daughter one last time, in the clear presence of myself and his mother. He decided to take a big gulp of pool water and spit it in Olivia's face.
His mother's response was an empty threat of "time out;" it was actually more of a question to see whether or not the boy would like one. I suggested to the mother that the boy be removed. She ignored me. I'm sure she could sense my intense stare and she turned to me as if to question why I was still looking at her. I asked her if she was going to do something about this. Her response is my sole purpose for this post. If she would have reacted in any other way I would have dismissed this whole event. I would have chalked it up to kids being kids and these are the facts of life. But no, her response disturbed me.
She responded, "Doesn't he have the right to be in swim lessons?"
In the face of her child's blatant disrespect of a peer, an adult, AND her, she responds how? With swift correction? With an apology? With ANY action of atonement? No. Her reaction is that of entitlement. She felt that regardless of the actions of her child that he had the RIGHT to be there and under no circumstances will he be removed. What does this teach the child? It teaches them ENTITLEMENT. This can be a very dangerous thing to teach a child, and it is painful for me to witness. We need to hold our children accountable for their actions and teach them respect for others. We cannot always make excuses for them. I pray for this mother and all other parents that we find the strength, wisdom, and courage to do what is right for our children.
"Fix these words of mine in your hearts and minds.... Teach them to your children, talking about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up." Deuteronomy 11:18-19
Tonight we had swim lessons with the girls. Ab was swimming with Sylvia on one end of the pool and I was observing Olivia at another. Olivia's lesson was going well, she was having fun and practicing her skills. There was, however, a particularly "strong willed" boy in her class that was giving Olivia a hard time. His actions were innocent enough, he began by splashing her. "Typical pool behavior." I thought to myself. Olivia was clearly bothered by this and told the boy to stop. He responded by yelling at her and telling her to "shut up." Okay, no harm in this, Olivia needs to learn how to handle difficult people and she's doing a good job. The boy now decided he was not finished with Olivia. He sat beside her at the edge of the pool and began slapping her and hitting her on the head.
Side note: Where were his parents? You may be asking. His mother was not paying attention to her son. I'm also sure that the high school students that are the instructors are not prepared to handle toddler discipline.
So as Olivia began to wail, the father/teacher in me stepped in and had a word with the boy in question. About this time someone must have alerted the boy's mother and she intervened. The boy was indignant to his mother's attempt at correction. The event did, however, prompt her to pay closer attention to her son. This, unfortunately, did not act as an adequate deterrent to her son.
For reasons unknown to me, this boy felt compelled to display his dislike for my daughter one last time, in the clear presence of myself and his mother. He decided to take a big gulp of pool water and spit it in Olivia's face.
His mother's response was an empty threat of "time out;" it was actually more of a question to see whether or not the boy would like one. I suggested to the mother that the boy be removed. She ignored me. I'm sure she could sense my intense stare and she turned to me as if to question why I was still looking at her. I asked her if she was going to do something about this. Her response is my sole purpose for this post. If she would have reacted in any other way I would have dismissed this whole event. I would have chalked it up to kids being kids and these are the facts of life. But no, her response disturbed me.
She responded, "Doesn't he have the right to be in swim lessons?"
In the face of her child's blatant disrespect of a peer, an adult, AND her, she responds how? With swift correction? With an apology? With ANY action of atonement? No. Her reaction is that of entitlement. She felt that regardless of the actions of her child that he had the RIGHT to be there and under no circumstances will he be removed. What does this teach the child? It teaches them ENTITLEMENT. This can be a very dangerous thing to teach a child, and it is painful for me to witness. We need to hold our children accountable for their actions and teach them respect for others. We cannot always make excuses for them. I pray for this mother and all other parents that we find the strength, wisdom, and courage to do what is right for our children.
"Fix these words of mine in your hearts and minds.... Teach them to your children, talking about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up." Deuteronomy 11:18-19
Monday, June 16, 2008
Lake Fun
We spent last weekend with my family in Minnesota. It was a great time filled with relaxing, boating, and fellowship. The girls had a blast! Sylvia is turning into quite the little waterbug. She loved to dip her feet in the water! Olivia had a great time with her "friends" (her cousins!), she played in the sand and enjoyed playing dress-up.
Here are some pics from the weekend.
Here are some pics from the weekend.
Sunday, June 15, 2008
Father's Day
fa*ther [fah-ther] -noun
There are many formal definitions of what a father is, these are just a few. Yet none of them can truly define what a father is to a child. Here is my definition.
my fa*ther [mahy fah-ther]
Thanks Dad.
"Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the LORD your God is giving you." Exodus 20:12
1. a male parent
2. any male ancestor, esp. the founder of a race, family, or line; progenitor.
3. a man who exercises paternal care over other persons; paternal protector or provider:
There are many formal definitions of what a father is, these are just a few. Yet none of them can truly define what a father is to a child. Here is my definition.
my fa*ther [mahy fah-ther]
1. A man who worked long hours in order to provide for his family.
2. A man who taught work ethic through example.
3. A man who taught us to fight our own battles.
4. A man who instilled respect for others.
5. A man who cared enough to let us learn things the hard way.
6. A man who would give up everything for the good of his family.
Thanks Dad.
"Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the LORD your God is giving you." Exodus 20:12
Sunday, June 8, 2008
A Weekend of Showers
Saturday we were off to Lytton, IA to attend the wedding shower of Abbey's cousin Jason and his fiance Jill (actually it was just Ab and the girls, I got to hang out with the guys). It was a fun time and it was good to see family and share in these special times. Today we participated in a shower of a different kind. This one was thrown by mother nature. Hopefully the rains will subside and we can get some dry weather soon! Here are some pics from the weekend.
Thursday, June 5, 2008
Always A Bridesmaid......
Well, it's official. I got a call from Ames Middle School tonight informing me that they were very impressed with me but they offered the job to someone else. I have now ALMOST landed jobs at two of the top school districts in Iowa. Looks like I will be a Tigerhawk for at least another year! I'm not sad however. I know God has a plan for me and He feels there is more work for me to do where I am. So I will forge ahead and start making plans for next year! I wish it was August already! I know, I'm crazy like that. I need to start teaching summer school or something.
"For I know the plans I have for you," says the Lord, "plans for good, and not for evil, to give you a hope and a future." Jeremiah 29:11
"For I know the plans I have for you," says the Lord, "plans for good, and not for evil, to give you a hope and a future." Jeremiah 29:11
Wednesday, June 4, 2008
A Fine Farewell
Last Friday was my last day of school and as a tradition I let my students write farewell messages on my boards. (Which is a huge deal if you knew how strict I am about students writing on my boards!) I thought I would share them with you.
Matt
Matt
Tuesday, June 3, 2008
Scary Kitty
I'm recovered from a weekend of working and am feeling well rested...just in time to set my alarm for 1:50am again tonight-ugh. Good thing I do love my job most days:) Olivia is excited to go back to Pam's tomorrow and see her friends. She got to visit a friend from down the street today because we had to return his dolly to him. Why did we have his dolly at our house, you ask? ...impressive transition for an amateur, right?
Last night, we tried out a new sitter. Matt had his confirmation class and I was training for my new per diem ChildServe job, so we needed a sitter for just a couple of hours. This new sitter, who we will call "B", was referred to us by our gracious neighbor down the street. Side note: did you know that people are most reluctant to give out good sitters' names in fear that they'll lose availability? She has a boy Olivia's age and an infant and has used this sitter, "B", for over a year. "B" came highly recommended, and lives within walking distance, so we gave her a try. Thanks to our friendly cat Gizmo, she may never come back. For those of you who have never had the pleasure of meeting Gizmo, I'll give you the synopsis of her character. The cat only loves, ok-she only tolerates, two people in the world; Matt and I. After three years of having another being in our home, Gizmo is just in the past few months, finally warming up to Olivia. Gizmo is large and likes everyone to think she's in charge. Really she's just a paranoid, spastic, nervous feline with a personality and most likely anxiety disorder. She lounges around the house all day long, keeping a safe distance from anyone who may attempt to interact with her or, heaven forbid, walk past her. Apparently, the latter is what the sitter did and that seemed to really upset Gizmo, in return upsetting "B". Instructions were to finish watching the Bee Movie while snuggling on the couch with the girls (this is what they were doing when I left at 6:50pm) and put the girls to bed between 7:30 and 8:00, their normal bedtime. Specific instructions were written out identifying each child's nigh-night lovey so this couldn't be mistaken, which would have made bedtime difficult;) So much for instructions! Matt said he came home at 8:10, a breif hour and twenty minutes later, to the house in chaos. Both the girls were still up, not that big of a deal really. But, the mayhem that he encountered was a surprise. Picture this: Olivia and Sylvia crying due to madness, "B" nearly in tears and apologetic/frightened, neighbor girl chasing Gizmo into a back bedroom, her child-in his jammies-having a hay day rummaging through Olivia's many dollies and dress-up clothes-then throwing an all-out fit when Matt arrived and mommy told him it was time to go home...hence the reason he probably forgot to take his own dolly home with him:) I'm guessing that Gizmo layed right in the hallway, blocking "B"'s path to the girls' bedrooms. When she approached the fat cat, Gizmo probably hissed and batted at her feet-the most harmful thing she could do, #1:because she's so fat and slow and #2: she doesn't have front claws and #3: she's more afaid of people than they could ever be of her. I find out today that "B" was so scared, she called her mom and "B"'s mom called our neighbor to come assist with the situation. How could so much go wrong in such a short amount of time? Thanks alot Gizmo!!! So, we took a little wagon ride down to our friendly neighbor's house today to return her son's dolly and Olivia got to play for a bit. Sort of funny I thought, so I shared. Have a great Wednesday.
Prayer request #1: for sanity in our cat's small mind
Prayer request #2: for forgiveness from "B" for our rude kitty
Prayer request #3: for understanding by our neighbor...that we have a psychotic feline
Prayer request #4: for all of you to see the humor in this like I did
Prayer request #5: for you to actually pray for all of the above
Prayer request #6: that you would know that we pray for you too <><
Last night, we tried out a new sitter. Matt had his confirmation class and I was training for my new per diem ChildServe job, so we needed a sitter for just a couple of hours. This new sitter, who we will call "B", was referred to us by our gracious neighbor down the street. Side note: did you know that people are most reluctant to give out good sitters' names in fear that they'll lose availability? She has a boy Olivia's age and an infant and has used this sitter, "B", for over a year. "B" came highly recommended, and lives within walking distance, so we gave her a try. Thanks to our friendly cat Gizmo, she may never come back. For those of you who have never had the pleasure of meeting Gizmo, I'll give you the synopsis of her character. The cat only loves, ok-she only tolerates, two people in the world; Matt and I. After three years of having another being in our home, Gizmo is just in the past few months, finally warming up to Olivia. Gizmo is large and likes everyone to think she's in charge. Really she's just a paranoid, spastic, nervous feline with a personality and most likely anxiety disorder. She lounges around the house all day long, keeping a safe distance from anyone who may attempt to interact with her or, heaven forbid, walk past her. Apparently, the latter is what the sitter did and that seemed to really upset Gizmo, in return upsetting "B". Instructions were to finish watching the Bee Movie while snuggling on the couch with the girls (this is what they were doing when I left at 6:50pm) and put the girls to bed between 7:30 and 8:00, their normal bedtime. Specific instructions were written out identifying each child's nigh-night lovey so this couldn't be mistaken, which would have made bedtime difficult;) So much for instructions! Matt said he came home at 8:10, a breif hour and twenty minutes later, to the house in chaos. Both the girls were still up, not that big of a deal really. But, the mayhem that he encountered was a surprise. Picture this: Olivia and Sylvia crying due to madness, "B" nearly in tears and apologetic/frightened, neighbor girl chasing Gizmo into a back bedroom, her child-in his jammies-having a hay day rummaging through Olivia's many dollies and dress-up clothes-then throwing an all-out fit when Matt arrived and mommy told him it was time to go home...hence the reason he probably forgot to take his own dolly home with him:) I'm guessing that Gizmo layed right in the hallway, blocking "B"'s path to the girls' bedrooms. When she approached the fat cat, Gizmo probably hissed and batted at her feet-the most harmful thing she could do, #1:because she's so fat and slow and #2: she doesn't have front claws and #3: she's more afaid of people than they could ever be of her. I find out today that "B" was so scared, she called her mom and "B"'s mom called our neighbor to come assist with the situation. How could so much go wrong in such a short amount of time? Thanks alot Gizmo!!! So, we took a little wagon ride down to our friendly neighbor's house today to return her son's dolly and Olivia got to play for a bit. Sort of funny I thought, so I shared. Have a great Wednesday.
Prayer request #1: for sanity in our cat's small mind
Prayer request #2: for forgiveness from "B" for our rude kitty
Prayer request #3: for understanding by our neighbor...that we have a psychotic feline
Prayer request #4: for all of you to see the humor in this like I did
Prayer request #5: for you to actually pray for all of the above
Prayer request #6: that you would know that we pray for you too <><
Sunday, June 1, 2008
More Video
Still trying to master this whole YouTube/Embedding thing. I'm getting better so I don't feel like I'm losing my grasp of technology! Here's a clip of the girls playing on the beach at my parents' lake home in Minnesota.
Now that I've taken care of this I'm going to take the girls on a bike ride! Ab is working today so I got to have some QT (quality time) with the girls. We went to church today and the girls were (for the most part) on their best behavior which I was extremely grateful for! They even cooperated enough for me to attend Adult Bible Study which I am also grateful for. It was nice to participate in some adult conversation.
Enjoy the video and hopefully we can keep them coming!
Now that I've taken care of this I'm going to take the girls on a bike ride! Ab is working today so I got to have some QT (quality time) with the girls. We went to church today and the girls were (for the most part) on their best behavior which I was extremely grateful for! They even cooperated enough for me to attend Adult Bible Study which I am also grateful for. It was nice to participate in some adult conversation.
Enjoy the video and hopefully we can keep them coming!
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