Happy 50th Anniversary

Wow, fifty years is a long time.  That's half a century.  And a majority of my mom's life.
She married my dad when she was 15, a true child bride.  He was rescuing her from a life that hardly knew a childhood.
My parents marriage has hardly been a walk in the park.  Yet loyalty & faithfulness.. a commitment matched by God's grace, has lent them the blessing of such a long marriage.

My sibs & I threw them a party -- details that we knew they'd love, with simple requests from them.

I love them... and I love the legacy they've given us.  That Flynn & Gabe will grow up knowing that their parents... and their parents' parents... all loved each other & God enough, to look past life's trials & stay together.

Perry Points

This is what we call PERRY POINTS... alternately titled, BRIBERY DISGUISED AS A CHORE CHART.

How do they earn them?:
By doing (each of) the following:
-making bed
-taking vitamins/medicine
-getting dressed
-brushing teeth
-practicing piano
-cleaning out the car (this must be done each time we come home from somewhere & includes them getting everything in the car that is theirs -- from toys to trash)
-NOT fighting
-putting away shoes (when getting home)
-cleaning up 'mess' (clearing spot from meals, picking up toys when done w/ activity)
and DOUBLE points for -memorizing/reciting new bible verse

But here's the trick (for long lasting habit forming) --- these must be done WITHOUT my reminders.  This way they're really forcing themselves to make it a real part of their day.

We sit down before bedtime & tally 'points'.  This is our time to reflect on the day's events & evaluate if we tried our hardest.

Attributes can be changed & analyzed at anytime.  The point is to manage behavior & once it's managed, it's time to zero in on something else that needs to be manipulated.  For us, the above habits/behaviors were needing to be worked on.

We used to do separate charts, but since our prizes (field trips) are done TOGETHER, that didn't make sense.  Plus, this kinda encourages camaraderie (rather than competition, which ends up=fights).

What do they earn?  FIELD TRIPS; which are a HUGE part of our family life anyway... so why not reward them with something that won't be too big of a spend for us.
When we started this Perry Points thing, the kids brainstormed a list of places they want to go, things they want to do. 
Our list includes:
ice skating
water park
zoo
bounce-u
city garden--->Gus pretzels
magic house
science center
drive in
elephant rock --->johnson shut ins
roller skating
bowling
roller skating
mini golf
etc.

I used to pretend that they were choosing an activity from a hat.. I'd pretend to cut all the above activities into strips & let him or her "randomly" 'pick one' from that hat... when all reality, I was actually picking the one thing that would work for us (obviously am not going to pick elephant rock when daddy's not available) & write it on every strip.  You say sneaky, I say smart. ;)




When we first started doing this, I made cute little charts on the computer... but since we starting putting their charts together, I just grab a big piece of cardboard, or something that needs to be recycled.  I also used to do stickers, now just a fancy letter (or something they can't mimic).

Good luck!

One Year Ago

One year ago, Flynn danced at her recital... only Nana couldn't come watch.  Nana was recovering from her surgery & was facing a long road.  Other surgeries. Chemo. Radiation.  We were sad & it looked pretty gloom.

Now, look at Nana.  Her strength & bravery pushed her through the toughest year & now she's here with us for lots & lots of years.

Queen Cutie

As if I could be more proud of her, my eldest niece (the first one to steal my heart), was crowned Prom Queen (this after just 1/2 her senior year there!!).

Post Coronation with my twin older sister

Private Eyes

When we were younger, my big sis & I slept in the same bed ... actually, the same room. We were roomies, in a room with bright pink shag carpet & swiss-dotted sheer drapes.
I loved it.
I loved sharing a room with my big sister. Probably moreso when I was older than the crying baby in the white baby bed next to her, that she used to shush with a desperate yell.

Do you know, when I was old enough to have my own room, I would go to hers & ask to sleep with her? All those years I wanted my own room, only to sneak to her room like a crybaby, "Ang, can I sleep with you?"

And we would lay in bed, like a slumber party, listen to "Pillow Talk" & laugh at the people who called in. And once, when "Private Eyes" (Hall & Oates) started playing, she slid her hand under my pillow while singing it. And for the strangest reason, we died laughing.

To this day, it's an inside joke.

Speaking of Private Eyes (no, I'm not going to talk about Jon Oates' fro), I'm contemplating something that I've went back & forth on for a few months now:
Going private with my blog.

When I posted, in beggary (is that a word?), for my faithful readers (er, uh, lurkers) to vote for said Hot Hubs, it got me thinking,
There are lots of you. You come faithfully to the blog. But I don't know you. And you seldom de-lurk, and I don't like that.
I'm just being honest.
I mean, you read my inner most thoughts... my feelings & my frank ideas.
You know my kids.
Their cute stories.
And that I think my Hubs is hot.

And I don't even know your name.

And call me crazy, but I don't like that.

So,
if you log on one day, and my settings are set to private, you'll know why.

Meanwhile, if you want to be added to a list of approved readers, email me:
theorangefamily AT yahoo DOT com

I may or may not have approved readers. I could just decide to do what I set out in the beginning & that's write for pure documentation's sake...as a rememberance & sorta-scrapbook about our family. So that the cuteness goes noted.

Private Eyes (ch'chu)
are watching you (ch'chu)
They see your every move
(oo ooh)

Weird, Weird, Family

I mean, you couldn't have thought that the apple fell far from the tree, eh?
And it didn't.

I'm tired. Too tired to add explanation to these photos.

But enjoy, nonetheless, enjoy.

Images of Christmas Eve

At church, with my sis & my girl

Not sure what Gabe is doing here, but it looks important

Flynn checking out her goods

(& apparently, because I haven't taught her to be lady-like,

we can also check out hers)

Jack working his binkie

Unnecessary zoom

Our almost-annual family photo in front of Gammy's fire

Hoping to check Santa's whereabouts

Flynn excited that she's headed home, to hit the sack before Santa gets there

Gabe just about sacked out

And Momma & Daddy happy that all the gifts are wrapped & waiting beneath the tree

& that we can move onto our long winter's nap

They're Home

Some of you inquired about my somewhat sneaky post, wherein I scratched out the CA address for my sister & her family.

'Tis true. They are home. And without divulging a whole bunch of info without permission, I will put your fears to rest by telling you that everything is fine. But things are not always as they are depicted to be. There.

Anyway, I'm happy that my sister & brother in law kept their promise to themselves & their family when they said that if it didn't work out, they'd be back.

All is well that ends well.

And all is well that ends with your sister & your girls, home safe in your home state.

PePaw's Surprise

A couple of Saturdays ago, we were very sneaky & pulled one over on PePaw

(which was not so hard, he is his son's dad for sure!).

Flynn was so curious as to how a SURPRISE party worked.

And I told her ahead of time (which could've been risky).

But on his actual bday, after we'd called him & sang to him, she told me

(very curiously, new word), "Mom, I think PePaw knows about his suprise."
"He does??" (thinking, she let the cat out of the bag to him)

"Yes MOM!, He knows it's his birthday, WE SANG TO HIM!!"

Happy 60th Birthday PePaw!

Her Fasting Was Not in Vain

Hey MeMe..Today I took my Bible outside and prayed hard. God brought me to alot of scriptures & the one that spoke to my heart the most was Psalms 103:3. It's a very powerful verse. Meme, God really spoke to me today, He told me that he was going to heal Flynn. Every scripture that God gave me talked about healing & that He never rejects us or ignores us. One said that His hand is always stretched out whenever your in trouble or you need Him. Mattie told me that we know He will do it, but it may take a while... maybe a year. Maybe right now. We need to keep believing.KK

On Behalf of her Cousin

I am taking a break away from home-listing preparation (moving & boxing stuff up) to brag on my youngest niece...

...who is fasting from dairy, on behalf of Flynn. As she deprives herself from an ingredient, found in most foods, she thinks of Flynn & her struggles, & prays for Flynn.

Pretty selfless for a 12-year old, don't you think?

Why fast? I will include an article by Dr. Bill Bright (Campus Crusades for Christ International):

Why You Should Fast
By Dr. Bill Bright

If you do not already know of the power and importance of fasting, here are some very important facts:

• Fasting was an expected discipline in both the Old and New Testament eras. For example, Moses fasted at least two recorded forty-day periods. Jesus fasted 40 days and reminded His followers to fast, "when you fast," not if you fast.
  
• Fasting and prayer can restore the loss of the "first love" for your Lord and result in a more intimate relationship with Christ.
  
• Fasting is a biblical way to truly humble yourself in the sight of God (Psalm 35:13; Ezra 8:21). King David said, "I humble myself through fasting."
  
• Fasting enables the Holy Spirit to reveal your true spiritual condition, resulting in brokenness, repentance, and a transformed life.
  
• The Holy Spirit will quicken the Word of God in your heart and His truth will become more meaningful to you!
  
• Fasting can transform your prayer life into a richer and more personal experience.
  
• Fasting can result in a dynamic personal revival in your own life-and make you a channel of revival to others.
  
• Fasting and prayer are the only disciplines that fulfill the requirements of II Chronicles 7:14:
  "If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land."
  
• If you fast, you will find yourself being humbled as I did. You will discover more time to pray and seek God's face. And as He leads you to recognize and repent of unconfessed sin, you will experience special blessings from God.

Not everyone should fast from food. Some can not go without it for various reasons. If you'd like to fast about an important issue & are one of those people, choose something to give up. Now, if you hate liver & onions, don't choose that as the item you are giving up. Give up soda, or coffee, or something that you heavily depend upon. So that you are reminded several times a day of that which you are fasting for.

And expect to see results!

Greetings From Sunny California

My body is in shock, enjoying the sun & weather in the 80's...then an airplane's trip later, my toes are frozen & my heat is cranking.
Did you know that in my sister's area, no one even has a/c or heat? How nice would that be on the electric bill? Of course, what you save on that, you are spending on everything else.
My computer had a virus & while I was out of town, Jeff & our good neighbor-friend & computer guru cleared off the computer & I don't have any photo editing installed right now. So, these photos are huge & straight-from-the-camera, but I couldn't wait any longer to share some.

This could possibly be my favorite sightseeing place of the trip.

Carmel. The beach is gorgeous, no wonder all the stars own a home there on the coast.

Such a diverse landscaping...
red plants, rough sparkly rocks, large kelp washed ashore,
huge cliffy rocks, big cold waves, fog & mist....

Papa was a designated Flynn-carrier.

The Fab Five taking in the sites (& later getting soaked by a wave).

My 4th of 5th time to the west coast & its beauty awes me everytime.


The Mission at Carmel.
A church built in the 1700s.

Flynn had a huge audience for all her flips & somersaults.

Left to right:

Nessa, KK, Hannah, & Flynn

Aunt Gi won't be here for Flynn's celebration this year. And since we were with Gi on her bday, she & Flynn made a cake for them, as well as Uncle Dan whose bday is the day before Gi's.

Flynn loved putting everything in and on the cake that she wanted (sprinkles, sparkles, you name it).

These are at the beach in Santa Cruz. It was the boardwalk, the one you always see in tv shows (roller coaster & sky travellers on the coast). But cold & the water was freezing. Flynn is used to the white powdery beaches that she plops down & builds a sandcastle at.

What a fun trip. And a great opportunity for Flynn - to not only see "her girls" but to see a different part of the country. And her first airplane ride! (pics on that later)

Thanks Aunt Gi for the fun vacation! We are counting down the days til we see you on Christmas!

No Girls Allowed

That will be the theme around here all weekend, as Flynn & I (along with Papa, Nana, & Nessa) take off tomorrow for a long weekend with Gi & the girls in C A L I F O R N I A ! Flynn's first ever plane ride (yes, I am nervous) & the first time any of us have seen my sis since June (new record for that by the way).

Flynn made a "California Chain" & it's short now! She is so excited, she can hardly stand it. She asked me yesterday if Aunt Gi will cry a happy cry when she sees her.

This trip will be monumental in a few different ways:

• Flynn's first plane ride
• Outside of hospital stays, this will be my first time away from Gabe or Jeff for longer than 24 hours
• In our entire marriage, this will be the first time Jeff & I are more than 30 minutes apart for the night (I've only left him to go to an overnight ladies retreat in St Louis)
• Flynn's first time going west of Missouri
• The first time Flynn & Gabe will be apart more than one night
• The first time someone other than me will care for Gabe for an entire day

I am a little worried, about having an extremely allergic kid up in an altitude really far from the nearest hospital -- unreachable via ambulance. I am scared I'll give her a snack on the plane that she's suddenly allergic to. Or that there will be cross contamination somehow (despite my plan to wipe down everything within arm's reach of her).

What I'm not worried about is Gabe, as he will be in Daddy's charge.

What a great feeling. To know your kids have the absolute best father in the world. Seriously. These kids couldn't be luckier, for they were chosen by God to be put into a family with a daddy who is so loving, so caring, extremely patient, & very Christlike. Add to his spiritual attributes are the skills & talents he has. How lucky can a kid be to have a dad who is a teacher?? Every moment becomes a teachable one. And something as simple as playing in the backyard becomes a science lesson. Not only does he have knowledge, but know-how. He knows how to talk to kids, knows how to manage a kid's behavior, & knows how to make life fun.

So, I might as well just make this a brag-on-Jeff post. After all, there's plenty to say. I think the best thing a daddy can do for his kids is to love their momma. And love on their momma. And the only thing that might make Jeff pass by his kids when he walks in the door, it to beeline to me to give me a 'Honey I'm home' smooch.

I know there is never any doubt in my kids minds that their parents are in love. They sense the commitment. And what a feeling of security for kiddos in this insecure world.

He's happy to tuck in, read a story, & do a bedtime prayer. He cuts their veggies just like they like'em. He knows to remove the valves on the sippy cup when putting them in the dishwasher. He can install a car seat like a pro. He's an advocate for Flynn in every situation.

When this weekend became a possibility, Jeff could've insisted that I take Gabe. He could've insisted that we not go until he could be along. He could've been fine with it with a list of stipulations, which included him not making any sacrifices or arrangements. But he didn't. He was excited for us. And went right to work, helping me brainstorm who could watch Gabe when & where. On top of that, he was downright excited that he & his boy were going to get some serious one-on-one. When at the last minute, I proposed another possibility that would mean him not taking a day off work for Gabe, he was quick to stop me, "I was looking forward to spending the day with Bubs though."

Honey, you might have had a dead battery in your garage door opener, but when it comes to being a dad, you work perfectly every time.

Hannah's Hair

Before:After:

Hair Donor!

I'm so proud of my nieces. Hannah is the third niece to donate. KK was the first, Mattie donated 2 years ago, & now Hannah.

Wonder who is next in line? wink-wink

Night at the Cardinal's Game...