Tonight Skyler was sitting with her Daddy in his recliner when she said, "Mommy, I sirsty. I need my dwink."
I gave her a drink from dinner at my Mom's, and it was tea, so Coby reminded me to change it. In order to persuade her that this was a good idea, he said, "Mommy, I need some water. Would you get me some water?"
So, following suit, Skyler yells, "Mommy, I need water!!! Water, please! I need AGUA!!!"
Oh my gosh! I've got the smartest kid ever!! :)
Monday, July 30, 2007
I'm here...I promise
Well. it's late and I need to go to bed, but I've been off the map for awhile, and I needed to touch base. So here goes.
My work is going well. I'm EXTREMELY busy with customers, which is a good thing, but I'm counting down the days until I don't have so many appointments. It's a REALLY nice thing that I get to choose when I want to work and when I don't. And I choose...a break. Four weeks and counting!!! I'm so blessed that I have a husband that supports me in this wonderful adventure!!!
Speaking of wonderful adventure, I have a client I've seen since last summer. To make a long story short, I knew God had me in her life for a reason. Lately I've really been pressing in, not only on an academic front, but on a personal one, as well. The beginning of the month I received an e-mail from the Waco Young Life Committee Leaders of the list of kids to pray for that were going to camp this summer. My student was one of them! Later the next week she told me she was going to this K-Life camp (Young Life camp for junior high kids). This opened a door for me to encourage her about the fun time she would have, and also provided an open door for me to tell her very skeptical mom what a great thing it was that her daughter was involved. Seeds planted, I prayed really hard for a few weeks, and when she came back from camp, she told me SHE GOT SAVED while she was there!!! The past few weeks have been one open door after another to share the goodness of the Lord with her. PRAISE GOD!!!! That's why I do what I do. I love to see a child be filled in every area of their lives. Please pray for this teen, as she is entering a very shaking time in her life and needs strong connections to faithful people that love God and love her.
We had a great time with family last weekend to celebrate Claire's first birthday. Man, time flies by so quickly. It was great being with you all, and I'm excited to celebrate many more fun birthdays to come.
Well, tomorrow I scheduled only three appointments, so it will be a semi-break, but due to Coby's new job (he just got a promotion in his NEW job to sales rep for the Waco area) we're quickly running out of room for two businesses, one family, and a ton of stocked items for his business, so we're meeting with our realtor tomorrow to look at our expansion/new home purchasing options for the near future. Should be fun!!! What a precious adventure!! I love my life!!!
I love you all so much! What a treasure to be surrounded by so much love, joy, and connection. I am very blessed.
My work is going well. I'm EXTREMELY busy with customers, which is a good thing, but I'm counting down the days until I don't have so many appointments. It's a REALLY nice thing that I get to choose when I want to work and when I don't. And I choose...a break. Four weeks and counting!!! I'm so blessed that I have a husband that supports me in this wonderful adventure!!!
Speaking of wonderful adventure, I have a client I've seen since last summer. To make a long story short, I knew God had me in her life for a reason. Lately I've really been pressing in, not only on an academic front, but on a personal one, as well. The beginning of the month I received an e-mail from the Waco Young Life Committee Leaders of the list of kids to pray for that were going to camp this summer. My student was one of them! Later the next week she told me she was going to this K-Life camp (Young Life camp for junior high kids). This opened a door for me to encourage her about the fun time she would have, and also provided an open door for me to tell her very skeptical mom what a great thing it was that her daughter was involved. Seeds planted, I prayed really hard for a few weeks, and when she came back from camp, she told me SHE GOT SAVED while she was there!!! The past few weeks have been one open door after another to share the goodness of the Lord with her. PRAISE GOD!!!! That's why I do what I do. I love to see a child be filled in every area of their lives. Please pray for this teen, as she is entering a very shaking time in her life and needs strong connections to faithful people that love God and love her.
We had a great time with family last weekend to celebrate Claire's first birthday. Man, time flies by so quickly. It was great being with you all, and I'm excited to celebrate many more fun birthdays to come.
Well, tomorrow I scheduled only three appointments, so it will be a semi-break, but due to Coby's new job (he just got a promotion in his NEW job to sales rep for the Waco area) we're quickly running out of room for two businesses, one family, and a ton of stocked items for his business, so we're meeting with our realtor tomorrow to look at our expansion/new home purchasing options for the near future. Should be fun!!! What a precious adventure!! I love my life!!!
I love you all so much! What a treasure to be surrounded by so much love, joy, and connection. I am very blessed.
Saturday, July 21, 2007
Too Busy!!!
This week has been CRAZY!!!!! Coby had to be out of town a lot for work, and I had to get ready for the Bunko party. That in itself, in addition to work, laundry (Amy, you with me?? :) ) and everything else in the world made my days long.
So here's my great epiphany...
I do things the hard way.
My house, having little to no counter space, needed more kitchen counters/cabinets, so I decided this week would be the best time to get an island for my little kitchen, before the party on Thursday. The only deal was that it wasn't assembled. I STAYED UP UNTIL 2 A.M. putting the thing together. I also wanted valances for the kitchen. I put those up, too. I also needed to clean house, pay bills, etc. etc. etc. AHHHHH!!!!
Why do I need to do these things all in the same three days?
Because I'm ADRIELLE. My brother would be laughing at me right now.
So anyway, I got it all done and pulled off a pretty good Cuban-inspired dinner party. The girls seemed to have fun and my mojitos were a hit. But I learned a good lesson this week. It isn't about the "what," it's about the "who." I think we forget that too often. In all the doing, I lacked down time with my husband, didn't play with Skyler too much, and couldn't help my brother move into his house until today. I know that some weeks are just like that and that I shouldn't beat myself up about it or anything, but absence makes the heart grow fonder. I really like hanging out with Coby, and tonight, as I played with Skyler on the floor at Poppy and Gibbie's house, I thought, "I sure am glad that THIS is what I live for--not all the stuff." I plan on taking more time with my family next week, and I think busy weeks like this remind me to be sensitive to what is most important. They keep me grounded, reflective because all the "doing" in the world just doesn't cut it for me. I have to have Coby and Skyler. I have to connect with my family. I have to invest in what is most precious. God, help me to appreciate every moment, and in the midst of those times where Time isn't on my side, help me to always remember what is most important.
So here's my great epiphany...
I do things the hard way.
My house, having little to no counter space, needed more kitchen counters/cabinets, so I decided this week would be the best time to get an island for my little kitchen, before the party on Thursday. The only deal was that it wasn't assembled. I STAYED UP UNTIL 2 A.M. putting the thing together. I also wanted valances for the kitchen. I put those up, too. I also needed to clean house, pay bills, etc. etc. etc. AHHHHH!!!!
Why do I need to do these things all in the same three days?
Because I'm ADRIELLE. My brother would be laughing at me right now.
So anyway, I got it all done and pulled off a pretty good Cuban-inspired dinner party. The girls seemed to have fun and my mojitos were a hit. But I learned a good lesson this week. It isn't about the "what," it's about the "who." I think we forget that too often. In all the doing, I lacked down time with my husband, didn't play with Skyler too much, and couldn't help my brother move into his house until today. I know that some weeks are just like that and that I shouldn't beat myself up about it or anything, but absence makes the heart grow fonder. I really like hanging out with Coby, and tonight, as I played with Skyler on the floor at Poppy and Gibbie's house, I thought, "I sure am glad that THIS is what I live for--not all the stuff." I plan on taking more time with my family next week, and I think busy weeks like this remind me to be sensitive to what is most important. They keep me grounded, reflective because all the "doing" in the world just doesn't cut it for me. I have to have Coby and Skyler. I have to connect with my family. I have to invest in what is most precious. God, help me to appreciate every moment, and in the midst of those times where Time isn't on my side, help me to always remember what is most important.
Monday, July 9, 2007
Why??
"Why?"
I've always been chained to this word, reaching and grasping for the fleeting answer to this horrible question. Tonight is one of those nights, and I still wonder. My Pop passed away last Saturday at the age of 96, and anyone would say, "What a wonderful thing to live so long and to have the opportunity to experience so many things!!" I agree. But not everyone gets to be 96 when they die, and not everyone, especially my Memo, think it's such a "wonderful thing." So I'm posed with my returning, ever-present "why" question: Why did my dad have to go first, then his dad, and FINALLY my great-grandpa? Where is the justice in that? And as the years go by, and his memory fades a little more in everyone's mind but mine, why is that fair in God's eyes? And as I watch my mom fall in love more and more with another man, regardless of how great he is, why is that deemed as justice? Maybe justice for her, but what about me, Gabe, and Raschael? Why is it even possible that he'll never know his grandchildren or have a kid-given title? Why is it even possible that he can't experience things in our lives like Gabe's new house or worst of all, that he can't experience getting to walk Raschael down the aisle next month? Why?
Maybe if they had been divorced it would have been easier to watch my mom suffer, just because I would know she could "put him behind her" so much better if he had been a jerk or an adulterer or abusive or any other thing on the planet besides kind, cheerful, generous, compassionate, tender-hearted, and long-suffering. Maybe if they'd been divorced it would be easier for me to imagine that place in Mom's heart being filled by someone else. Maybe if we'd been separated from him over more time or with less pain and suffering it would be easier to piece together what used to be our family. But I'll never know. I'll never be able to ask questions I always wanted answers for, or sit on the couch and sing together, or hold his hand just because. And I'll never, ever know what could have been. When does it get easier, and why do I have to feel this way at all? Sometimes it's just too much to think about--too much to justify.
So I take a look at the novel of my life in its latent, "first-draft" state. I wonder where I'm at and look at my life, gazing thoughtfully at the details of every page. Nights like tonight when I reflect make me wonder about tomorrow. Am I invested properly? Will I get 47 years or 96? Will I be finished on earth, or will I have all these open chapters with no endings? Will I have regrets, and will the people I love share those regrets, always asking why they never got resolved, or talked about, or even brought up at all? Will there be things left undone? Will I have wounded or healed? Will I have helped or hurt? Will I have left a legacy? Will my memory be enough to last a lifetime or just a few years? Will it matter...or not?
I won't forget. I've even tried, and it doesn't work. I miss you, Daddy! I want you here with me so bad it hurts! Not just for me, but for your family and everyone who loves you. I'm not ready to put your memory aside or away or on a back shelf. So many days I don't want to wait for heaven, and some days it's just hard to watch everything around me change in ways I never expected it to. What would it have been like to have you here today? What would be different, and what would have never changed?
Why?
I've always been chained to this word, reaching and grasping for the fleeting answer to this horrible question. Tonight is one of those nights, and I still wonder. My Pop passed away last Saturday at the age of 96, and anyone would say, "What a wonderful thing to live so long and to have the opportunity to experience so many things!!" I agree. But not everyone gets to be 96 when they die, and not everyone, especially my Memo, think it's such a "wonderful thing." So I'm posed with my returning, ever-present "why" question: Why did my dad have to go first, then his dad, and FINALLY my great-grandpa? Where is the justice in that? And as the years go by, and his memory fades a little more in everyone's mind but mine, why is that fair in God's eyes? And as I watch my mom fall in love more and more with another man, regardless of how great he is, why is that deemed as justice? Maybe justice for her, but what about me, Gabe, and Raschael? Why is it even possible that he'll never know his grandchildren or have a kid-given title? Why is it even possible that he can't experience things in our lives like Gabe's new house or worst of all, that he can't experience getting to walk Raschael down the aisle next month? Why?
Maybe if they had been divorced it would have been easier to watch my mom suffer, just because I would know she could "put him behind her" so much better if he had been a jerk or an adulterer or abusive or any other thing on the planet besides kind, cheerful, generous, compassionate, tender-hearted, and long-suffering. Maybe if they'd been divorced it would be easier for me to imagine that place in Mom's heart being filled by someone else. Maybe if we'd been separated from him over more time or with less pain and suffering it would be easier to piece together what used to be our family. But I'll never know. I'll never be able to ask questions I always wanted answers for, or sit on the couch and sing together, or hold his hand just because. And I'll never, ever know what could have been. When does it get easier, and why do I have to feel this way at all? Sometimes it's just too much to think about--too much to justify.
So I take a look at the novel of my life in its latent, "first-draft" state. I wonder where I'm at and look at my life, gazing thoughtfully at the details of every page. Nights like tonight when I reflect make me wonder about tomorrow. Am I invested properly? Will I get 47 years or 96? Will I be finished on earth, or will I have all these open chapters with no endings? Will I have regrets, and will the people I love share those regrets, always asking why they never got resolved, or talked about, or even brought up at all? Will there be things left undone? Will I have wounded or healed? Will I have helped or hurt? Will I have left a legacy? Will my memory be enough to last a lifetime or just a few years? Will it matter...or not?
I won't forget. I've even tried, and it doesn't work. I miss you, Daddy! I want you here with me so bad it hurts! Not just for me, but for your family and everyone who loves you. I'm not ready to put your memory aside or away or on a back shelf. So many days I don't want to wait for heaven, and some days it's just hard to watch everything around me change in ways I never expected it to. What would it have been like to have you here today? What would be different, and what would have never changed?
Why?
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