I heard a slight change in attitude ... I'm reserving judgement on said change, well, because it means a decrease in the amount of AXE being  used in my house! I believe this can only be a good thing ...

Last week ... "Mom, could you buy me some body wash. Not Axe, it dries out my skin. And, maybe something that smells good but not too much good smell."

Yesterday at Wal-mart I checked out a multitude of Body Wash for Men stuff ... since the job was left to me, I thought I'd search for one that would do body and hair ... after all, some of the toxicity comes from the mixing of one body wash scent, one hair scent, one deoderant scent, one body spray scent ... and for a brief period of time (until I hid it) cologne. His room was like migraine trigger central. I came home with Dial for Men ... HYDRATING formula.

This morning ... "Mom, the new stuff is awesome. It smells good, it feels good, it washes and conditions my hair ... you know (serious teenage voice) I have to keep up my reputation of  having the softest  hair of all."

Tonight, after everyone goes to sleep ... I'm changing everything back to Johnson's Baby Shampoo ... I've seen those girls rubbin' on his head ... now I know why and I won't contribute to that!!!

Oh my!

BooMama has a list of things that make her happy ... Loved that this morning as I try to re-focus on finding the Joy of the Lord in every day.

So ...

Things that make me happy ...

1. the moment that the sun breaks over the mountains (literally or figuratively)

2. when a sleepy boy still wants a back scratch

3. making my husband a lunch that I know will fill his stomach, reduce the stress on his wallet and contains something he wasn't expecting

4. phone calls that stretch across states and connect hearts (even if face to face would make me happier)

5. that feeling following prayer when you've purged your heart and a weight  has been lifted

6. dinner and coffee with friends

7. FALL ... finally, my gray sweatshirt is able to make an appearance

8. a cup of tea with my son

9. friends who share laughter and tears

10. laundry that is done, folded and put away

11. cold sheets occupied by warm hearts

12. the promise of a date with my husband

13. music that leads me into worship, even if I'm cleaning the toilet

14. "light bulb moments" when we're trying to learn a new skill

15. people who want to be known

16. basketball season (actually ... pre-season, season, post-season, off-season ... it's an illness)

17. hot soup and warm bread

18. the feeling when my favorite house guests are about to arrive come home- it's the same feeling that I used to get when I was young and trying to go to sleep before Christmas morning ... I had no idea what was going to happen, but I knew it was going to be great.

19. knowing that I've helped a kid work through an issue

20. AJ and his friends in my Jeep

21. camping in the fall or spring ... winter isn't bad either

22. knowing my husband is coming home

23. completing a project (why don't I do this more if Iike it so much ...  hmmm)

24. did I mention my gray sweatshirt???

25. the memory of the ocean crashing against the beach ...

26. baked sweet potatoes

27. babies who are just learning to talk

28. new tennis shoes (New Balance please)

29. books that captivate me for a time

30. biscotti ... I think it's about time for a batch!

Party of Five is joining her other parties already in progress...over at blogspot... you can find me at :

www.partyoffivetn.blogspot.com...

Thanks, HSB for getting me blogging....

The Cab Ride

by Kent Nerburn

Twenty years ago, I drove a cab for a living. One time I arrived in the middle of the night for a pick up at a building that was dark except for a single light in a ground floor window. Under these circumstances, many drivers would just honk once or twice, wait a minute, then drive away. But I had seen too many impoverished people who depended on taxis as their only means of transportation. Unless a situation smelled of danger, I always went to the door. This passenger might be someone who needs my assistance, I reasoned to myself.

So I walked to the door and knocked. "Just a minute," answered a frail, elderly voice. I could hear something being dragged across the floor. After a long pause, the door opened. A small woman in her 80's stood before me. She was wearing a print dress and a pillbox hat with a veil pinned on it, like somebody out of a 1940s movie. By her side was a small nylon suitcase. The apartment looked as if no one had lived in it for years. All the furniture was covered with sheets. There were no clocks on the walls, no knickknacks or utensils on the counters. In the corner was a cardboard box filled with photos and glassware.

"Would you carry my bag out to the car?" she said. I took the suitcase to the cab, then returned to assist the woman. She took my arm and we walked slowly toward the curb. She kept thanking me for my kindness.

"It's nothing," I told her. "I just try to treat my passengers the way I would want my mother treated."

"Oh, you're such a good boy," she said. When we got in the cab, she gave me an address, then asked, "Could you drive through downtown?"

"It's not the shortest way," I answered quickly.

"Oh, I don't mind," she said. "I'm in no hurry. I'm on my way to a hospice."

I looked in the rear view mirror. Her eyes were glistening.

"I don't have any family left," she continued. "The doctor says I don't have very long."

I quietly reached over and shut off the meter. "What route would you like me to take?" I asked.

For the next two hours, we drove through the city. She showed me the building where she had once worked as an elevator operator. We drove through the neighborhood where she and her husband had lived when they were newlyweds. She had me pull up in front of a furniture warehouse that had once been a ballroom where she had gone dancing as a girl. Sometimes she'd ask me to slow in front of a particular building or corner and would sit staring into the darkness, saying nothing.

As the first hint of sun was creasing the horizon, she suddenly said, "I'm tired. Let's go now."

We drove in silence to the address she had given me. It was a low building, like a small convalescent home, with a driveway that passed under a portico. Two orderlies came out to the cab as soon as we pulled up. They were solicitous and intent, watching her every move. They must have been expecting her. I opened the trunk and took the small suitcase to the door. The woman was already seated in a wheelchair.

"How much do I owe you?" she asked, reaching into her purse.

"Nothing," I said.

"You have to make a living," she answered.

"There are other passengers."

Almost without thinking, I bent and gave her a hug. She held onto me tightly.

"You gave an old woman a little moment of joy," she said. "Thank you."

I squeezed her hand, then walked into the dim morning light. Behind me, a door shut. It was the sound of the closing of a life.

I didn't pick up any more passengers that shift. I drove aimlessly, lost in thought. For the rest of that day, I could hardly talk. What if that woman had gotten an angry driver, or one who was impatient to end his shift? What if I had refused to take the run, or had honked once, then driven away?

On a quick review, I don't think that I have done anything more important in my life. We're conditioned to think that our lives revolve around great moments. But great moments often catch us unaware—beautifully wrapped in what others may consider a small one.

So, the good news is....last night I spent the evening with my friend Tamara, whose husband is in Uganda on a mission trip...and she is here with her two young kids....

Anyway, after much talking, I was out past midnight, so when I went to wash my face last night it was about 12:15...and what happens then....the stupid alarm. So, I am washing my face and hear the stinking thing right next to me.  So, I look through soapy eyes and see my ipod (not the original ipod culprit, the other one) is lit up.  And that was it....I hit menu and see someone has set an alarm to go off at 12:22 am (ipod time, not mine :) )  Mike claims his innocence, but I think he is waiting to see if I do indeed, go crazy...just kidding honey...but sounds like a controversy to me...

So, for the bad news...Bekah started coughing last week and wheezing on Sunday.  I keep waiting for the day they tell me she has asthma because of the RSV she had as a newborn.  So, I take her in today, and she has walking pneumonia...again....and she hasn't slowed down this time either...and has worn me out today.

But at least I will sleep all the way through 12:15 tonight...

After months of cajoling, we capitulated and decided to build the boys a treehouse in the woods.  Their  current swingset/fort seems to no longer be sufficient.  I shouldn't really complain too much, because the new fort is about 1/4 mile up the mountain, which will give me more time to clean up their messes.  We have spent the afternoon dragging up wood and various supplies and they don't understand why this multi-weekend project is not yet complete.

This guy is by far the hardest worker in the family.  He already has dibs on an acre or so of the land, in a flat area that he has claimed as his future home site.  I asked him if I could come up for coffee in the mornings, and he said, "No Mom.  I hate coffee.  We'll drink a "boar." "  I said, "What's a boar?"  And he replied, "You know, a cold boar."   When I finally got it- that he meant "beer,"  I asked, "Why beer?"  And he said, "Because coffee tastes like mud!"  He just makes me giggle, ya'll.

He also found this awesome caterpillar the other day.  It was in the chicken coop and he rescued it from being eaten.  We had a little science lesson on the spot, measuring (almost 4 inches) and fllipping through field guides until we found it- a Pandorus Sphinx.  Very cool.

Joseph and Sophie

Awhile ago, I woke up to a sound of six dings, for lack of a better word.  I thought it was coming from my bathroom, so I got up to check it out and saw the ipod, so I figured it had an alarm on it.  I went back to bed. 

For the last week, it has happened every night.  No ipod in my bathroom, and I don't even know where it is coming from. The first night I heard it again I woke up Mike, who was sick and really not happy that I asked him to check out the house.  Our house is like Fort Knox, thanks to the previous owners.  It has an alarm that sounds when all windows, doors, and garages are opened.  It has stoppers on the back of all doors, so that even if someone picked a lock, they couldn't open the door.  (my imagination runs a little wild with possible intruders) Anyway, Mike, in his not feeling so good state, walks around the house and finds nothing. 

The next night, I am on the couch because Mike is hacking up a lung in our room, and again...this stupid alarm.  So, I check out the house...nothing...and the next night and the next...and I realized the last two nights it goes off at 12:15 a.m.  What is this sound?  I have had both our cell phones next to me, to see if it the have an alarm...nope...I don't think it is the ipod, though it will stay close to me tonight...

Ahhhh....have you seen the Friends episode with the smoke alarm?  Just call me Phoebe....at this point, I just want to go to sleep without being jolted awake by this annoying, irritating, bothersome alarm...make it stop.....

when we purchased a self-contained camper ... there was the promise of leaving this ready to go in a moments notice ...

the reality is that sheets get washed and put away in the house and need to be toted to the camper before every departure ...

food can't be stored for fear of critters ...

clothes have to be packed, meals planned, large cooking vessels hauled down the drive way ...

school books have to be included, as well as the dry erase boards ...

Ipods and cellphone chargers usually make their way into the mix ...

and because of the Florida-UT game, we're taking the big TV in hopes that we'll be able to pick up a signal.

2 hours ago ... the question was, "why are we doing this?"

right now, with sheets gathered, clothes nearly packed, meals planned, books packed, the cooler than we've seen in a while breeze that's blowing outside whispers the answer in my ear, "because we can ... be cause he's worth the trouble ... because it means that body and mind slow their frantic pace ... because souls reconnect and love one another better"

and so we're off! 

I did the things that I typically do ... stopped for my Bible, got a cup, stuck two pieces of bread in the toaster ... and settled in at the counter.

I've received several 'encouragements' of late to spend more time in the Word. So I flipped open to Psalms for 5 chapters ... Proverbs for 1 chapter ... and topped off with some time in Ephesians.  DONE ... checked off the list for the day. In 20 minutes flat- and I was reading more than I usually do.

Such encouragement ticked me off a bit because I am consistently checking Devotions off my daily to do list. And while I received such encouragement from each person readily- okay, with a side of "I'm doing that" , this morning there was a new understanding ...

you see yesterday, I cleaned out my coffeemaker. It didn't look nasty, but it was sluggish in brewing ... the coffee wasn't tasting as good as it had in the past and even though we'd changed filters and coffee ... things were still askew in my coffee loving world. As I cleaned the pot and all the easily reached parts ... I realized they'd been well maintained with a wipe down or rinse every so often.

But the internal workings, well, I wasn't sure. So, I added a pot full of white vinegar to the machine and let it start to work. First of all ... it smelled awful ... that scent of coffee and vinegar together. It brought AJ out to see what was going on! Something was not right and he could tell. When the pot was finished brewing, it was obvious what the problem was ...

there was too much junk in the inside for the coffee to taste good- regardless of the quality of the coffee.

There was, scaly stuff, white chunks, black chunks and a sludge of the top of the water. (If you had coffee at my house in the last month or two, I'm so sorry) ...

So, I rinsed out the pot, added another dose of vinegar and repeated the process. Surely, this would finish it off.

Again with the crud at the bottom of the pot. What the heck ... I ran one pot of vinegar through! I'm a little grossed out at what I'm seeing. So I run third pot through ... significantly less crud ... and a fourth ... almost none at all ... and 3 pots of water though until it's running clear and vinegar scent free. I was pleased, but really didn't think too much beyond, 'wow, the coffee will run through 3x's as fast tomorrow morning' ... and went on with the rest of my day.

This morning, the coffee ran through more quickly ... and it tasted better than it had tasted in months. I didn't even realize the bitter taste we were getting ...

probably because the taste deteriorated over time I surmised.

And then it happened. Standing at the coffee pot, I ran into the Cross.

Why did my friends encourage me to spend more time in the Word ... because what I was spitting out was bitter(Likewise, if you've sought fellowship and encouragement at my house in the past few months, I apogize ... it might have been more bitter than the coffee!). Ephesians 4:31-32 says ... Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling, and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.

When I asked Sandy, "How do you know I'm not spending time talking to Him?" the response I got was this ...

Guess I don't think the despair, anger anxiety and loneliness you've been experiencing can grow to the magnitude it has in the light of His face.  I'm not saying I don't understand why you're feeling them.  The Accuser of the Brethren is rubbing your face in past sins that your heavenly Father has paid for and put out of his mind.

About the antithesis of the verses in Ephesians, huh?

This morning, I realized that there have been more gentle reminders from some along the way ... "keep reading and writing, that will help you work through some of this" ... "what are you using for your quiet time?" ...

all of which would have been met with an answer to satisfy the question ... but the evidence was in- regardless of the minutes or hours I'd spent with the Word beside me, around me, near me ... I  wasn't allowing the Word to get in me.

Just the same as the coffee pot ... I could have poured the vinegar on the outside and made it shiny, I could have put it in the pot and made it look better ... I could have even run it through once and cleaned it out a little ... but the inside would have still produced bitter coffee. Because the remedy wouldn't have been thoroughly applied.

So, this morning, I went back to the Remedy ... I found myself re-reading Psalm 1-5 ... and Proverbs 1 and 2 ... and back in Ephesians 3 ... reminded again of how deep and wide the Love of Christ is ... settling in Ephesians 4 over the verses I shared earlier ... confessing the sin, bitterness, unforgiveness and anger that I've let build there over the past months. Laying it down, allowing His love to wash over it in a way that cleanses. Realizing that this will require continual reapplication ... afterall, that's where the problem started. I wasn't attending to the inside ...

but today I'm hopeful that my friends will find their place beside me in life as the song states,

"There’s a sweet, sweet Spirit in this place
And I know that it’s the Spirit of the Lord
There are sweet expressions on each face
And I know they feel the presence of the Lord

Sweet Holy Spirit... sweet heavenly dove...
Stay right here with us
Filling us with Your love

And for these blessings
We lift our hearts in praise
Without a doubt we know
That we’ll have been revived
When we shall leave this place"