Chocolate!!!

I haven't had any updates on the potty training situation b/c I was giving it a month or so. Luke didn't seem ready and I wasn't able to figure out how to give this the attention it needed. Anyway, I stumbled across the toddler version of my favorite baby book author and knew she'd be able to give me the guidance I needed. And I realized this potty training business is a lot of training for parents too. After I read to take your kid to the potty about 15 min. after he's had something to drink, I thought I could get a handle on this.

So equipped with the potty, a sticker chart (yaaay for being a teacher!), and candy treats, we gave this another go. And Luke's earned 5 stickers for the week! Here are a couple stories.

The other night Bryan put Luke on the potty and then came to the kitchen to talk to me for a minute. We heard Luke say very excitedly, "Daddy! Come here!" and hoped he had done something in the potty. But no, he found a car in the magazine he wanted to show his daddy.

The next day I put him on the potty before suppertime and then went to the kitchen to do something. As I was piddling around, I heard Luke exclaim, "Chocolate!" I knew what he'd done. Sure enough, he had done something in his potty! Thank God he didn't think it looked tasty:)

So he got all his stickers this week and we went to the library and picked out some books and movies. Yaaay for free rewards;)



Oh well, maybe next time.

Halloween Redeemed

As you know I've been venting about my traumatic Halloween experiences. As soon as I declared that I'm 30 and don't ever have to do anything I don't want to do again on Halloween, I find myself willing to dress up. For my kids.

Luke really redeemed Halloween for me this year. I need to get over this humiliation I experienced in middle school, be thankful I

have genuine friends now, and enjoy this holiday with my kiddos.

We tried going to Trail of Treats on the 30th, but the line at the park was a couple blocks long and that wasn't worth it. Our friends Sarah and Pierson were with us and this was going to be Pierson's only trick-or-treating experience b/c they had weekend plans. So I called up a couple neighbors and we practice trick-or-treated at their houses. Watching the boys walk up the sidewalk to the porches of our neighbors was so cute. They really got the hang of this candy business.

We also had a blast at Kristin's non-costume party:) That really is the way to go!

Small World

No kidding, the hostess of the Halloween party in middle school that traumatized me just invited me to be her friend on facebook. I ignored the request. Is that immature or what???

Friends

That is such a lame title, but maybe I'll be inspired as I write. Piggybacking on that last blog, I've been thinking about friends. How in the world did I fall for the costume fiasco that Halloween in middle school? Did I not have one loyal friend to give me a heads-up? That's what is really bugging me today. So I'm thinking back on the history of friends. Perhaps working backwards will help me think this through. Right now I am blessed with an abundance of friends in Murray. We have lots of things in common, like having kids, Settlers of Catan, scrapbooking, frisbee golf, and a love for the God that brought us together. That's a lot of common ground! Lately, we've even been blessed with new friends, which is very cool.

When I moved to Murray in 1998, I was a new Christian, and one of my prayers was that I would make some good friends. I wanted some solid friends in my life. Wow, did God answer that prayer! I guess he knows what a blessing friends are. So along came Brandon, Suzie, Jeff, Eric, Kristin, Cara, Kelly, Mike, Kent, Pup, Short, Sarah, the list goes on. And for the most part, I am still close to most of these friends. God created bonds that last.

That moves us back to high school. I don't think I had many good friends my freshman and sophomore years. Maybe a couple, but that's it. Things picked up my junior year though, and that was better. I met Aaron and we ended up dating for a long time. I had friends in chorus that remain to be friends today. The other friends I had were kind of fair-weather.
One exception is my neighbor Amber. We grew up together and had very different interests, but there was always that growing-up-together factor that kept us friends. She was strong and tough and could defend me (where in the world was she at the middle school Halloween party????).

This whole thing kind of depresses me a little. But it shouldn't. It took all this for me to pray the prayer that God continues to answer today for friends. Friends that I have the most important thing in common with. Friends like Kristin that are everyday friends that I can take a walk with, problem solve with, play games with, raise babies with, talk about real stuff with, cry with, and laugh with. Friends like Kim to go to the grocery with, scrapbook with, do house projects with, shop with, and eat hot dogs by the fire with. Friends like Aaron who've known me longer than most other people. Friends like Holly who are new, but feel old. Friends like my teacher friends who know my heart for kids but understand my heart for my kids. Friends like my sis who I've known my whole life and am just now truly appreciating as a best friend. Friends like Pup who've seen it all with me and still loves me. He's stuck around through sad times where all I could do was cry, tight times where it seemed like all we could do was fight, and amazing times where it was all worth it.

I guess all this makes us who we are. And for that I'm glad. One thing I know is that praying for good friends for my kids is not a waste of breath or a trivial matter. Good friends make life better.

Not Cracked up about Costumes

I don't hate Halloween because of religious reasons or anything. I just don't like dressing up. I've always kind of wanted to be enthusiastic about it, but it's just a lot of hassle to me. Thinking of something creative, trying to put it all together for cheap. Last year as I was contemplating why I hated the whole costume thing, I remembered something that happened in middle school. I called Mom to make sure I hadn't just dreamt it or made it up, and she assured me that I hadn't.

I was invited to a costume Halloween party in the neighborhood. Mom, being the handy soul that she is, made me a Snow White costume, and it was really cute. When I got to the party, I was the only one who had dressed up. I think I went home and changed. I don't really remember. I'm sure I cried being the sensitive one that I am. I can't remember if I went back. Either way, I was humiliated and still feel that way when I remember it! What a cruel thing to do.

That pretty much explains why I haven't been cracked up about costumes. When I taught 3rd grade and the teachers would want to dress up, I would take my costume to school and get dressed once I saw everyone else had dressed up. I wondered why I was so psycho about it. Now I know. So, now I'm 30 and I will not wear a costume unless I feel inclined. I won't be pressured or persuaded. And man do I love Kristin even more for hosting a non-costume Halloween party this year.

A Trip to the Tompkins Patch

Yes, you read that right. On Saturday while my parents were visiting, we took the kids to Wurth Farm in Paducah to the pumpkin patch. I mean, the Tompkins patch. There are a couple things here I need to explain.

When the kids and I were visiting Mom and Dad last month, Mom had some decorative pumpkins out. Luke picked one up and called it a tompkin instead of a pumpkin. We all thought that was funny. To those of you who know about my constant frustration with the service of Murray's Pizza Hut, the story is even funnier. Our Pizza Hut doesn't have the best reputation for service, but we love their pizza, so we haven't given up on them yet. We have learned to order it carry out though. One time Kim picked up the pizza on her way over and they couldn't find our order under Tompkins. They finally asked if it could be Pumpkins. So a lot of laughs have been had over us being the Pumpkins family now.

Anyway, Luke's having trouble keeping our last name and the word "pumpkins" straight and we think it's very cute:)

Processing

So I've just learned something for sure about my 30-year-old self. When awful things happen, it takes me some time to process them. I'm not an immediate cryer. I don't burst out in tears of joy or sadness. I'm a stewer. I let things stew around until I overflow. That was today.

My Monday morning was rocked with news of a suicide on campus that directly affected MCF, my workplace. I knew this week was not going to remotely resemble anything normal. The news hung around me like a dark cloud and I couldn't even imagine how the brother who found him felt, the girlfriend, friends and family, but most of all that dear momma. I was racing Luke in the yard with trucks, and it occurred to me that that momma probably did something similar and her baby is gone. No time to say goodbye, no time to say I love this or that about you. Just gone. I knew others' dark cloud loomed much worse than mine. So, I bought the kids who were hanging around the house pizza. I knew they'd need to eat and not want to leave (or have any money).

Today I went to the dentist for the broken tooth I had and got my tooth pulled. I'm mortally afraid of the dentist. In college, I went to The Butcher and he pulled an infected tooth, which left me in so much pain that I accidentally took too much Tylenol 3 and felt like I was dying. Not a good experience. So even though I really like my dentist, I was scared. My knuckles were clenched, my toes curled, my body so stiff even though I couldn't feel any pain. It's the sounds and the pressure and knowing what's going on in there.

So as I left the dentist, I couldn't wait to get to my car to cry. I needed to get it all out, about MCF, about the hurting, about being so nervous at the dentist. I don't get a lot of genuine solitude, so when I do, I feel things for real. I drove a street over to Kim's office and got a hug. I nearly stopped on Sycamore to get another hug from Kristin.

I finally figured out this is how I deal with things. Good to know:)