Dancing Machine....

He loves to dance....who would have thought? And he has natural rhythm. But do you notice how he has his fingers crossed? That is his new "thing."

But he IS talking a LOT and can repeat words! He knows a lot of animal sounds, too. Next we're going to start working on the alphabet!

Oh sweet begonias.....I pity myself today

There has long been a child rearing "device" that I have seen and thought "oh dear...that poor kid" and I've felt pity for the parent with that child.

But today....at the Zoo.....I realized that I just might become one of those parents I pity. Because I actually thought : I NEED ONE OF THOSE!! Do you know what it is?


A baby leash. A "tot along." A harness for your toddler. Daniel wanted to get out of his stroller and play in the misters at the Gorilla exhibit. So, being the loving, doting mother that I am : I let him. He's fast! He wouldn't hold my hand, and I didn't want to hurt him by yanking on his arm, so I let him go and followed him closely all the while pulling that stupid, heavy stroller along with me....all 6 months pregnant, sweaty in the 90+ degree heat....and, God help me, I thought "Wow, I could really use one of those leashes for kids." Of course, I immediately retracted the thought. But alas, it lingers on still.

So, ask yourself : will I be toting a tot along at the next zoo outing? Most likely, no....but if I happen to be at Babies R Us and they're on sale....it may be something I purchase. Along with a shirt that reads "My child is ONLY wearing this harness because he refuses to hold my hand...and he's only 17 months old, so please don't think he's a discipline problem and please don't pity me." Or something to that effect.

Expect photos if that ever does happen :)

Totally G Rated Bathtub Photo.....what a CUTIE!!

Daniel loves his bath....here is proof (in B & W, nonetheless....mom's experimenting with the photo programs!)

I'm so glad he loves the water!!

Looks like it's ours....

Well, we signed the contract on the house this weekend....we have 14 days to get it inspected, and (as if we would) change our minds for any reason....I am a little stunned. After all the time we've spent looking, now that we've found "the" house it seems so, I dunno, sudden? But what a great house it is! Wood and ceramic tile floors (NO CARPET YAY!!) which is great for Daniel's allergies. Granite countertops in the kitchen (woo hoo gourmet kitchen!). FOUR bedrooms (small rooms, but who cares he he!). And a GINORMOUS BATH TUB in the master bath!! I can't WAIT to bathe in there....you might never get me out of there...nightly baths here I come!!

And the best part : we'll have Michael's students to help move us and paint the rooms we're going to paint! Whoopee! And it means I can FINALLY start on baby girl's room....

We're thinking baseball room (denim, red, ranger blue, ranger accents, decopauged bookshelves...) for Daniel. I'm so excited! And the 4th bedroom will be the guest/play room....yippee!

Well, going to bed for now.

Here's what I'm thinking....

Yum. A cherry cola one. The biggest one I can find. Right now. Now.

What is your favorite Book of the Bible?

Mine is most likely Matthew. I prefer his presentation of Christ to the other three. Matthew is followed closely by John....I like John, because he seems down to earth, and he presents a slightly different view of Jesus than the other three do. I know I'm in the minority of Christians, but I do not care for the letters from Paul. I know it's where much of the Church doctrine comes from, but I just prefer reading the Gospels to reading laws. Not that reading laws doesn't have its place....Don't get me wrong, I'm not a Paul hater by any stretch of the imagination....I love the message of his letters, but I can get easily confused when I read the different letters....the places run together in my mind. Although my favorite verse in the world comes from Ephesians....hmmm.

What about you, what's your favorite Book of the Bible?

"The Cause of Freedom is the Cause of God...."

Or so says a Church billboard down here in Crowley. I don't know what to think about it....I disagree with the statement. I think. And here is why : it all depends on whose definition of "Freedom" we are talking about. After all, some would (could?) argue that the Muslim extremists who are behind many of the terrorist attacks are fighting their own "Cause of Freedom." So, is their cause the cause of God? We Americans would argue "No." Then you have the people who feel our war in Iraq is a "Cause of Freedom" that is a "Cause of God." There are those who don't. I think we have to have a definition of "Freedom" and it must be Universal.

IS Freedom what God desires for His people (even those who are "lost")? Undoubtedly. But whose definition of Freedom? America's? George Bush's? Saddam Hussein's? China's? Who is to say what is best for other people? For China, Socialism and Communism have been "working" forever. But do the people lack Freedom? Or is their Freedom just different from that which we are used to? Most Americans would argue the first....there is no such thing as Freedom in China. Are they wrong? Maybe, maybe not.

Freedom is a relative term, but should it be?

Is the statement "The Cause of Freedom is the Cause of God" an excuse to invade countries, pillage villages, and "set people free" on our own terms? Remember, the Crusades were also said to be a "Cause of God." So was the Spanish Inquisition. Were they?

What a pair of cuties!

Daniel loves eating bananas. Witness the following picture, where he is getting ready to help fold and put away laundry!



Isn't he a doll??

Miss Texas....

Do they make up new Regions of Texas just so they have more contestants? I've never heard of half these places!!!! I'll update more later....this is our favorite pageant of the year. Oh my I know Miss Garland....eek.

Our House.....we hope.

We might have found the perfect house. I just hope it's ours.....it's all about God. You see, we found this house randomly on line....turns out it's represented by Gary Cooper, an elder at our Church....and we see the house....the seller is ALSO a member of our Church. What an amazing, small world we live in. We put in an offer today. Now we sit back and pray....

Here is a picture of the front. Isn't it adorable????

If man has dominion over all things....

Which it states in Genesis that he does.....so, if that is true I have a question.

Why must creatures get into our house, outsmart us by evading our "humane" traps (which we buy first), not eating our special poisons (which we buy second), and totally skipping over the in-expensive "tried and true" spring traps (which we buy at the same time as we buy the poison)? Why must we then *last resort* buy the super sticky glue traps which inevitably work...it just seems so sad and strange to me.

All this to say : we had a mouse problem. I stress had, because after a few months we have finally rid our home of the pestilence. Albeit a cute pestilence, but a pestilence nontheless.

This has led me to thinking : why don't they go into the "humane" traps (catch and release) so they don't die in "inhumane" ways? Why am I concerned about "humane" vs "inhumane" when it comes to a filthy, nasty, disgusting rodent? Just because he's grey, tiny, and somewhat resembles Jerry doesn't mean that I should feel sorry for him, does it? I don't really know what to think.

This track *naturally* led me to begin thinking about the Plagues on Egypt. Why didn't God send a plague of mice? Did mice not exist? Why did rats carry the Bubonic Plague (aka "Black Death") during the Dark Agest? How long have rats and mice existed? They look fairly evolved, so what did they evolve from? Don't most things get bigger as they evolve? I would think that whatever mice evolved from were really tiny. Or did they just appear one day, looking all mousey and whatnot?

If this line of thinking seems a little *off* to you, then you don't know me very well! Just as Michael, I'm always wandering off on little sidetrips, wherever my mind wants to take me....it's a scary place, but I already told you that!

Patriotic bebe

Have I ever looked this pleased with myself?  I seriously doubt it. 

My child is so smart!

I know every parent thinks that, and every parent is right!! But I really have to say, Daniel is extra special smart! Here is just a small example : he can see a photograph of a cow and he'll say "mooooo." He can pick up his piggy bank (or point at it across the room) and start snorting. We were at the Mortgage guy's office yesterday....there was a plastic cow. Daniel says "MOOOOO." The cows on the California Cow commercial, Chick fil A commercials.....he sees them and says "mooooo!"

But it doesn't stop there, oh no! He tries to put his shoes on his feet, saying "shoe." He says "no" when he really means "no!" He can tell you what a cow, a doggy, a kitty, a monkey, a piggy, and an elephant say (although the elephant sound we're still working on....he usually just laughs when I ask him what an elephant says). He knows where his nose, his ears, his eyes, his belly button, his toes, and his chin are located.

He can say "nana" for banana, "bye bye," "night night," "kitty," he thinks all dogs are "Ti" (since that is our big dog's name). He knows what "bath" means, he knows what "eat" means.

He loves to have his teeth brushed, and he even tries to help!

And the biggest of all : he knows what an "ICEE" is!! He can't say it yet, but he sure does get excited when we mention them! Or sno cones, he LOVES sno cones!! He can eat a whole kid sized one!!

Updates Galore

Well, we are definitely having a GIRL!! I saw her privates ;) tee hee! I am beside myself with Joy.....now if only we could think of a name for her!!

Jesse died Saturday. Kay is really sad, and I know it's going to be hard on her for awhile. But that poor dog, she had so many health problems! I'm just thankful she isn't suffering anymore.

We sent the kitties to live with Grammy.....should be interesting.

Daniel experienced his first fireworks on the 4th....HE LOVED THEM!! As soon as I get pics developed I'll post them. Didn't take the digital, but we took a disposable. I can't wait to see them.

We're still trying to find a house. It's more pressing than ever before because our landlord is a major pain. I can't wait to get away from here and him!

We still have a mouse. We've put down traps, poison, and tonight we're putting down glue traps. I just don't know if I'll be able to handle seeing the mouse stuck to it, but I think I shall try....I just want it GONE.

Sno cones....still my favorite, though they're doing heavy battle with Olive Garden salad....or better yet : have Olive Garden then head to get a sno cone. YEAH BABY!

The whole Tom Cruise/Katie Holmes thing weirds me out. Anyone else? I find them to be an odd match, and his "Religious" beliefs bother me. Not because of what his Religion is, per se, but because of the way he goes about "promoting" it. Seems weird to me. My friend Erin was a Christian Scientist, and I've never understood it. Never. I even read the book, but it all sounds like poppycock to me.

I have bronchitis. It stinks, because I cough and sound like a seal trying to hack up last week's lunch. Annoying, yes. Harmful, no.

I am going to have some corn chips and go to bed.

Is God the same yesterday, today and tomorrow?

I've been pondering this of late, because I have had a semi-difficult time reconciling the God of the Old Testament (who appears angry, vengeful, and jealous) with Jesus and how He is portrayed in the New Testament (giving, loving, sometimes righteously angry, but never vengeful).

So I asked my Pastor his thoughts on this, and he introduced me to something called "Open Theology" which is interesting to me, and the more I read the more I like it.

But then I started thinking, what if Jesus (as the Son of God) was just a little bit different and more "open minded" than his Dad? Doesn't that sometimes happen in families? But then I remind myself "silly, Jesus IS God....He was just Word made Flesh." But I get confused again (easy to do, I know) because the Bible states that Jesus sits at the Right Hand of God....so does that mean that since Jesus was born into this world as a man that when He died, was resurrected, and then went up to Heaven that He is a separate person from God? And as Christians we still worship GOD, but we believe our Salvation is through Jesus Christ. Or am I totally off base?

So my question is this : we worship GOD, His son is Jesus. In the Old Testament God was a very, very angry God. In the New Testament Jesus preaches to love they neighbor....so which is it? I guess my confusion doesn't end there but my thoughts will for today. Anybody got any thoughts? Surely I'm not the only person who feels this way?