Murphy, Halloween and a couple birthdays

Hello.

Long time no update.

I know, it's been two weeks.

But seriously, y'all, I have no idea where time goes. I'm barely keeping my head above water and I'm soooo hoping that improves soon.

Meanwhile I'm told I need to get some pictures on this blog!!

Update on Murphy: He truly drove me nuts the first two weeks. This dog would pee every time he stopped moving. Luckily it never amounted to more than a teaspoon. But still. Uggh. Now he's improved, however, and is wiggling his way into my heart.

The good things about him? He sleeps quietly through the night - no matter how long - which is awesome. We've never, ever heard him bark. He's a total cuddler - has to be on a lap whenever he's not playing. He totally knows how to fetch and does it endlessly. The highlight of his day is when the kids get home from school. And he LOVES Mark. At the end of the night when we're crashed on the couch watching TV, he has to be on MARK'S lap. Not mine. But his devotion is so cute I don't mind. And lastly, he's kinda cute. Don't ya think? :)

I think part of the reason he drove me nuts was that winter arrived in the Black Hills the same time he did. This has been the coldest, snowiest, windiest, yuckiest October on record according to the meterologists. 'Cept they didn't use the term yucky. Seriously, it's been like January here. And this, of course, happens to be the month we get a puppy who needs to go outside every 5 minutes. Which required donning the full winter regalia every time we went out. And I wonder where my time goes . . .

This was the most recent of several storms this month -

This past week is always a busy one for us - my mom's birthday, Halloween, Mark's birthday and his parents' anniversary. Paul and LaRayne celebrated their 40th anniversary today - that deserves one huge congratulations!! We couldn't be there with them, but we celebrated with them when we went to Vegas in September.

Friday, we headed out to Spearfish for a family dinner to celebrate mom's and Mark's birthdays. We had a really cool Halloween cupcake-cake that you can't see so well in the picture so you'll just have to take my word for it.

Murphy's still trying to figure out what he thinks of my mom and dad's golden retriever Molly. She thinks he's a great new toy, but he's still too little to really play with her. Might get smooshed.

And then we had a great Halloween. The weather cleared up perfectly - it was a balmy 55 all evening, and we trekked all over our neighborhood. Here was Noah's choice for this year (pretty authentic looking, don't you think?):

(had to show off his very cool flashing skull ring - he was all about the accessories).

And Jack made the same choice he did last year. He might be a tad bit obsessed. Our checkbook was happy about that.

And yes, the boys insisted that we get Murphy a costume. A little Frankenstein one. He was not amused. It lasted for about 4 photos.

Today was Mark's first annual 39th birthday. :) He had his perfect day - breakfast at the bagel shop before church, the boys football game after church and then we all hit the couch to watch the Vikings beat the Packers at Lambeau field. He's a happy boy. And now I'm going to start a daily countdown to his 40th. :) Just kiddin, sweetie!

We also managed to finish the soccer season, thank heavens. That could not come quick enough. We are, however, still playing flag football. Their team actually made it into the !!Superbowl!! They are a tad bit !!excited!! about this. The Superbowl does not occur for another two weeks, however, so we'll be dealing with !!strategizing!! and !!discussing!! and !!analyzing!! this upcoming game for many more days.

And here's one more picture of Murphy. Just cause he's a cutie patootie.

EXHAUSTED

I got home from St. Paul today - WOW what a weekend. I'm sooooo tired!! Just totally bone-crunchingly exhausted. Thankfully, the weekend turned out much better than it started . . . .

My mom and I gleefully headed for the airport on Thurs. afternoon at 2:30 for our 3:30 p.m. flight which would arrive in Minneapolis at 6:30 which would be the perfect time to go get a yummy dinner at a fun restaurant with my sister who was patiently waiting for us there. Perfect.

However. My mom and I then proceeded to sit in the highly uneventful, very restaurantless Rapid City airport for SIX HOURS. Because Northwest Airlines is that efficient. Evidently the Mpls/St. Paul airport was operating on ONE runway for incoming flights. ONE. And apparently our little commuter flight attempting to fly in from the metropolis that is Rapid City was on the BOTTOM of air traffic control's priority list. Go figure.

Oh yeah, and Joe Biden's plane was there too. (To which I said SO?? But evidently he's important enough to shut down a chunk of the airport. Hmmph. Whatever.)

So we finally arrived in the cities at 11:00 p.m. We were so tired by this point that while on the tram to baggage claim, my mom (loudly) started a rendition of what we thought the computerized tram voice should sound like in the great state of MN - very Norwegian/Ole and Lena kinda thing - and it was hilarious. "Next stop, dat der baggage claim, you betcha!" I'm pretty sure everyone in the tram was convinced we'd had one too many onboard cocktails. (We didn't even have one, I assure you).

I fell into bed at 12:30 completely exhausted. But oh, were we in for a treat.

This was my second Women of Faith conference, and I'm now convinced I want to go EVERY year. It's such an amazing, inspiring experience - I can (and did, I guess) sit and listen for days on end to these marvelous stories of God at work in people's lives. It was AWESOME. No other word for it. Just AWESOME. And emotionally draining! Story after story after story of God's grace and love and mercy and how He orchestrates things, and lives upon lives upon lives that have been saved, transformed and renewed. We took in so much information it will be days - maybe weeks - before my head will be able to process it all. My current prayer is that God will impress upon my heart the things HE wants me to take away from this, so it will be interesting to see what I ultimately come away with. Who wants to go with me next year?!?!

More to come, but for now I'm completely wiped out. Oh, I should mention that poor Jack came down with the flu two days before I left but Mark did a fabulous job with him, Noah, AND the puppy. Thanks sweetie, for making it possible to have this weekend to grow. You're the best.

Have I mentioned I'm tired?

Eat. Play. Sleep. Poop. Repeat.

That's been our life around here this week. Feed Murphy. Play with Murphy. Murphy naps. Murphy poops. Like 90 times a day. And then we repeat. Whew. It's easy to forget how much WORK a puppy is. But, lucky for him, he's so darn cute. He does sleep REALLY good at night (8+ hours), so I'm totally thankful for that. And he's the best little cuddler in the world.

Meanwhile, the kids had a 5-day weekend - partly due to teacher work days and also Columbus day - and it was so good for them to just have NOTHING for a few days. Winter arrived here in FULL FORCE (12 degrees! Wind! Snow! More snow! Uggh!) last week, so their weekend sporting events were cancelled and they got to just hang around home, which is their favorite thing to do. And of course it's my favorite thing to have them home with me!

Noah spent much of his time off heavily debating the 2009 Halloween costume. Honestly, you would think he was having to choose a college. About drove me nuts. He's very particular about these things for some reason. He did finally arrive at a decision today (hallelujah!!) . . . which will remain top secret until 10/31. :) Noah is also proving to be the highly responsible one when it comes to Murphy - always makes sure he has food, makes sure he stays away from the stairs, prays about his potty training (?!), etc.

Jack has been cracking us up. We were at TGI Fridays the other night and our waiter told us that the kids slushies came with free refills, so Jack eagerly ordered one. And proceeded to request a refill EVERY time the waiter came back. By the time he'd gone through 4, I told him he should probably quit. He leaned across the table towards me, and in a hushed voice said "I'm trying to make a good deal out of it, mom! They're FREE!" Grandpa Dick, he has YOUR genes!! :) Then last night he came out of his room 1/2 hour after he went to bed and told me he couldn't sleep because he had this list of things on his mind. After we discussed the list, I sent him back to bed. On the way, he turned around and - very seriously - said "I'll let you know if anything else comes up." :) Okay. Thanks buddy.

I'm excited to be heading to Women of Faith in Minneapolis this weekend with my momma and sister - Thurs. to Sunday with just us girls. I totally can't WAIT to get away for a little while! I'm a tad bit concerned about leaving the house in the hands of the 3 boys and a puppy (shiver), but it's just a house, right? Jack and Noah are actually excited I'm leaving. That can't be a good thing, can it?

Murphy

This weekend brought a new addition to our family: we'd like to introduce you to Murphy.

He's a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel and a dream come true for Jack and Noah. They have been begging for a puppy for years now . . . and we've held off because we've had a couple very unsuccessful attempts at dog ownership in the past. We're a tad bit gun-shy, you could say. However, I'm happy - and relieved! - to report that the first 36 hours have been successful. He's very easy to have around - is totally happy napping and lounging around with the boys.

He's a whopping 4 pounds. (Should get to around 15-18).

And he ADORES the boys.

Now if we can just get him adjusted to the nighttime routine, we'll be good to go. Wish us luck.

And now I have to throw in a proud big sister moment - here's my baby brother with one of HIS dreams come true. He drew an incredibly hard-to-obtain elk tag this year (could be a once-in-a-lifetime thing) and started on the hunt of his life last week, which ended very well yesterday. Way to go, Josh - I'm SO happy for you! (And I can't wait to hear what your taxidermy bill will be!!) :)

No, we haven't fallen off the face of the earth.

Even though it probably appears that way. We are, in fact, still around - just severely neglecting this blog. I have been completely consumed the past 2 1/2 weeks with my new "job" - more on that later - and everything else seems to have fallen by the wayside.

The kids have settled into their 2nd grade routine - and are totally busy with homework, soccer, Awana, piano and football. The bad part about 2nd grade is for mom. They have officially reached the point where hugging mom is NOT allowed in the school building. Or anywhere on the premises for that matter. No more hugs at the classroom door in the morning. Can you hear my heart breaking? I knew it would happen - - just not this soon. Uggh. Payback, right mom and dad?? :)

Meanwhile, I've embarked on my newest adventure with God. And it's a big one. I've done a little calculating and estimate that my new position takes 16-20 hours a week, every week. I've definitely been feeling "in over my head," completely and thoroughly overwhelmed, but am learning a whole lot about TRUST. Trusting that God will equip me and give me the time, wisdom and energy to do this successfully. There's no way I can do it on my own. And trusting that the stress and anxiety I've been consumed by will soon fade . . .?

We've managed to squish in some fun stuff too . . . had our annual pickle canning day a couple weeks ago.

The boys started an NFL flag football league - no practices and they just play a game on Sunday afternoons. My kind of sport - not a big time commitment. They were drafted by the Chicago Bears . . . .

And last weekend, Mark saw one of his dreams fulfilled - a trip to Las Vegas with his parents. He's been begging them to go with us for years now, and in celebration of their 40th anniversary, we all finally made it happen. It was awesome.

We stayed here . . .

And played here . . . .

Happy Anniversary Paul and LaRayne!

We toured the Bellagio's conservatory, which I always have to check out because it's always amazing. They were all decorated for fall right now - check out this tree!

He talked and looked around and looked SO REAL. And here was an 830 pound pumpkin. Real. Wow.

Mark and his mom being the big Beatles fans, we took in the Beatles LOVE show. It was totally spectacular. But of course this was the only picture we got - us at the entrance. We had so much fun over the weekend we sort of forgot to take pictures! :)

There's a glimpse of our lives the past few weeks. We also have a big change in this household coming this weekend - stay tuned!

A Reality Check

Jack and Noah had been in school all of 3 days when Noah contracted a terrible cold. I always brace myself when Noah gets a bad cold, because if HE gets nailed, then we know it's a bad one. (He's usually able to brush these things off.)

Sure enough, Jack was next, and that poor little dude has the worst time with colds. The day his really took hold, I did what every good mother would do and hauled him to the waterpark in Spearfish for the day. I figured it's just a stuffy nose, and heaven knows we have 169 of those throughout the school year.

Ha. Now I'm getting my payback for being such a responsible mother. It's my turn. I haven't had a cold like this in years. I feel like someone loaded my head up with cement. I've been stationed on our couch for two days surrounded by Kleenex, Sudafed, Motrin and Mentholatum. The highlight of my day is when a little fresh air is actually able to enter through my nose. What a feeling.

Anyway, I've had some time now to do a little blog-reading, and was reading through the blog of Mary Beth Chapman - the wife of Steven Curtis Chapman. WOW. (This is the family that lost their 5 yr. old daughter in May of '08). Here's an excerpt from her Christmas entry (sorry if you've already seen this):

How would I have lived differently if I knew that my time with Maria was going to be this short? Regretfully, I would have lived much differently. I would have purposely hugged and kissed more. I would have tried to memorize and lock away in my heart certain smells and smiles. I would have colored more and worked less. I would have laughed more and fussed less. Bedtime wouldn’t have become a chore to check off the list of things to get done. Instead it would have been more of an opportunity to listen about the day and offer whatever words were needed. The swimming pool wouldn’t have been too cold to swim in. The flowers in the garden would have all been picked, and definitely more ice cream would have been consumed!

What an awesome reminder of how precious the moments are that we have with our children - and in the grand scheme of things, those moments are so few. This woman knows that better than most. I soooo want to remember this every day - even in the moments of mouthiness and disobedience and struggle and heartache. We do make very conscious efforts to cherish our time with our kids - and interestingly enough, as a result, have been met with criticism from various sources - but I truly don't care.

And have you heard Steven Curtis Chapman's new song - "Heaven is the Face?" Oh my. I've heard it a few times and have yet to get through it without tears. Go find it! What an amazing family.

The kids are skipping soccer practice tonight. They are worn out and need some mom and dad time. Popular idea with some people? Nope. But I don't care. :)

Conversations with Noah . . .

Today after school while I was at a PTA meeting, Mark took the kids shopping for my birthday.
Which is usually a fairly easy experience for him because he just takes them to my favorite store, the Weathered Vane. One could walk in there and pick out just about anything and I'd be totally happy with it.

So tonight at dinner, I was teasing the kids about their shopping trip . . .

Me: "So guys, what did ya get me?!?!"
Noah: "Nothing. We couldn't find anything. We have to go shop more tomorrow."
Me: "You didn't go to the Weathered Vane?"
Noah: "Yep."
Me: "And you didn't find anything??"
Noah: "Nope."
Me: "Sweetie . . . I want like half the stuff in that store!"
Noah: "Exactly. You already HAVE half the stuff in that store!"

I then asked if they didn't have some cool purses in stock. That's always a safe bet with me. To which he said "No way, huh-uh, you already have 6,000 purses, you are NOT getting another purse." (Mark told me he said the same thing in the store, quite loudly, igniting chuckles from women within earshot.)

When did my kids get so smart?

And what are they gonna get me for my birthday?!? :)

And what's the matter with a purse addiction anyway? There are worse things, you know.