Not So SAHM

Arkansas Trip: Day 4 – Sleepy’s and Mars

I was convinced that this would be the only day Ashlyn would want to sleep in; the only day she really shouldn’t. Being the awesome wife that I am (I feel like I need to convince myself of that) I got up before everyone else to be ready when the kids woke up. And no, Ashlyn did not sleep in.

Church and Sunday School are always interesting when they’re not at your home church. We enjoy coming here though and everyone greeted us like long lost family, or the prodigal son or something. We didn’t get offered the “welcome bread” this time though signifying that we are no longer first-time visitors, for the fourth time.

After church we ate lunch at SLEEPY’S!! Nearly the only restaurant in these parts, Sleepy’s is your typical small town restaurant. It’s actually called “The Cove” now and attempts to dress itself up with new wall paint and chic wall decor and light fixtures. It cannot escape its roots though as there is a huge fish hanging on a plaque on the wall over the buffet boat (not a table. a boat) and a huge turkey in flight out of one of the corners of the walls. The waitress that always waits on us waited on us again today. She is now on a first name basis with Dick and Ruth and is pretty close to learning their usuals. Awesome buffet boat, btw: fried chicken, baked chicken, pulled pork bbq, corn on the cob, mashed potatoes, rolls, salad, cherry cobbler, lemon pound cake…I had it all. almost all of it at least.

After lunch we headed to the town park. They had swings, which made the girls’ day. We noticed a path beyond the horseshoe pitches and decided to explore. After juicing up on sweet tea we headed out. It’s a perfect path for a letterbox or geocache. We’ll have to see next time if someone has left something there. It took us to the other side of the lake that we normally don’t see.

An afternoon thunderstorm cut our power for a couple of seconds but got no more serious than that. I did get to see Danica Patrick get wiped out by some bozo on pit lane. (Does this guy actually have a license to drive?) Missed NASCAR though because we were monitoring the storms that were threatening to spawn tornadoes. The highlight of the night (well my night anyway) was watching live NASA’s reaction to the Phoenix Mars Lander land safely on the Red Planet. I made my family tune in to the NASA channel a couple hours later to see the first pictures come back, live, of Mars. Absolutely incredible. We saw a solar panel, a Lander leg, and a little bit of the Martian horizon. Not much really, but I thought it was absolutely incredible. We’ve never seen Mars that closely before. God’s creation is amazing and to be able to slip past Earth and see more of it, that’s really just beyond our grasp, wow. I can’t wait for the color pictures to start showing up.

The highlight of the kids’ evening was seeing a raccoon that had scaled the probably twenty foot deck post to get up on the deck to eat the suet that’s been left out for the bluebirds. He wasn’t frightened at all by twelve peeping eyes at the kitchen door. Nor was he afraid of the spotlight Dad shone on him so we could get a better look. The pig ate all the suet and then climbed out of sight. Probably to go get in a neighbor’s trash can. My ‘rents are smart enough to lock up their cans.

Tomorrow is the drive home. But first we’ll stop at that fabulous fabric store I hinted at on Twitter. Reagan’s dying to do some shoe shopping as well. She thinks that big girls shouldn’t have to wear shoes that have security straps over the tops of the feet. She wants just plain flats with no straps. So we’ll see if we can’t find her some.

Oh, did y’all totally miss my Friday 13 post this week? How are you doing on your scavenger hunt?

Arkansas Trip: Day 3 – J’adore les francais!

We awoke to grey clouds and thunder in the distance. Let me rewrite that. Ashlyn woke up at her normal 7am because she doesn’t know how good it is to sleep in on vacation. Since I’m the best wife in the world I get up with her because I want Hubby to get much needed sleep. The sky was still grey and the thunder was still rolling when everyone else woke up. Before breakfast was over we were treated to a great rain shower. There’s something about watching rain fall on the lake. It’s very peaceful, even if the wind is whipping about.

The rain didn’t last long and I got to go to a French yard sale. There is a French couple that found their way into the Ozarks almost two decades ago. As the well-known saying goes (tweaked a bit to fit this situation): you can take the Frenchman out of Paris, but you can’t take Paris out of the Frenchman. Their accents are still very thick. She has an art studio in her house. They press their own apples to make apple cider. They have a chicken house out back where they used to raise chickens, rabbits, and a peacock until the raccoons got the chickens and the fox got the peacock. Well, maybe you can take a little bit of Paris out of the Frenchman. They were super nice too, so come to think of it, they were Arkansawians (what have we decided that word would be?) with French accents. It was a pleasure to stumble my way through conversations with them. They, like everyone else I’ve attempted to speak French or German with, are very gracious and flattering to my face. I can only imagine the snickering and fun making that happen afterwards. Kind of like the Griswalds who show up at the door of their “relatives” in Germany, make absolute fools of themselves and leave hugging and kissing their hosts–never to find out they were at the wrong house the whole time. The people I try to converse with probably leave the experience wondering what in the world just happened. And how could I butcher their language so badly. And next time, if there were to be a next time, they would set me straight. ha.

We left the yard sale with loads of “vintage” fabric that I plan on playing with to get some good practice with my serger. I’m taking lessons now and plan on turning that baby out. We headed into Branson to a pretty awesome fabric store where I got some great new fabric for burp cloths. Be looking for some new additions on the Sew Petit website.

After leaving that store we headed down the main stretch for a little while and what to my wandering eyes should appear (I swear I’ve said that in a post before) but the OUTLET MALL (one of several in the general Branson area, if you’re keeping tabs)!! What could be better on a relaxing vacation than living on the lake and then shopping at an outlet mall? Really, what? Armed with the blessing of my husband I head to the children’s stores to stock up on clothes for Ashlyn. You would think the poor girl runs around neked (southern for naked) with how I go on and on to Reagan about how we have to buy Ashlyn all these clothes and we’re buying none for her because her closet is already bulging. For some reason she believes this. It really is true though. Ashlyn doesn’t run around neked because I dress her in the same seven outfits every week. I swear that’s what it seems like. I do feel a tinge of guilt for buying all these clothes when the average salary for most people in this area is below poverty.

Off topic: the juxtaposition of lifestyles around here is quite amazing. Around the Branson area you’ve got many wealthy people coming in to settle the area. It’s absolutely gorgeous out here. And once you’ve retired really what else is there to do except go watch daily shows bedecked with all the sequins in the world and then go home to your condo on the lake? The folks that dun been livin heuh fo most of they lives live in trailers with a car lot fulluh cars in they frunt yahds. I haven’t quite grasped what to make of the economic situation for most of the people out here. For the record my family does not live in either a condo or a trailer.

While the girls were getting their shopping on in the Las Vegas of the South the guys were entertaining She That Shall Not Be Taken Into Public If Civility Is To Be Kept. Everyday Ashlyn gets closer and closer to being two. I believe somehow she knows that many kids experience “terrible twos” and she’s relishing her future job. In fact, she’s in training right now and proving to be very good at pitching a fit. She’s an expert at reaching up and snatching Reagan’s long, beautiful hair. She’s also on par with the best at flailing her arms and legs around when picked up if she doesn’t desire to be picked up. Please pray for us. Where was I? Du and Dad actually had a good time with her. They played with her inside. Then they swung her on the swing. Then they took her on a golf cart ride. Then they swung her on the swing. Then she took a nap. Then they swung her on the swing. Do you get where I’m going with this? OH, they also got to watch some golf somewhere in there. I think we had a better time, but I’d never tell them that. Oh! And they had dinner waiting on us when we got home. I could do this everyday.

I forgot to mention a couple of things yesterday. Almost as soon as our truck had pulled into the driveway Reagan was already manipulating her way into a tractor ride. The tractor is hooked up with a flatbed trailer. Of course it’s not to haul kids around, but what else could it be for when the grandkids are in town? Both girls thoroughly enjoyed it as did the neighbor’s dog who jumped on to tag along.

Also, while we were fishing yesterday we managed to come back a little bit lighter than when we left. While I was casting, expert caster that I am, I managed to sling the jig, sinker, and probably a bobber too right off into the far distant water. This isn’t the first mishap I’ve had with fishing poles (ask me about the time when I was young that involves fishing line and another boat’s motor). Fortunately Dad backed up my excuse that the string was just too flimsy. He proved it himself while trying to tie me on another setup. Old string. Good for nothin. Another pole I tried to use just wouldn’t cast at all. Du even told me “you have to hold the button down when you cast”. “No I don’t” I said, “it’s the fishing line, it sucks”. Once again Dad proved me right. That stupid pole wouldn’t cast for anything. So he ended up letting Reagan throw it overboard, to let it sink and live with the fishies where it belongs. BTW, you don’t have to hold the button down when you’re casting. Love you honey! I actually have no room to talk though. No matter how we cast our lines, he’s caught fish in this lake and I haven’t caught a single one.

All in all, another very good day. A cross-continental cultural experience, great shopping deals, dinner waiting for us when we got home, and another full day of swinging for Ashy.

Animals we came into contact with or close proximity to: beaucoup birds (like how I threw that in?), a dog, a cat, numerous turtles crossing the road (someone needs to make up a joke about that), a dead armadillo, and Bucky the tame deer.

Tomorrow: church and lunch at the ever-famous Sleepy’s!

Arkansas Trip: Day 2 – Technology-lite

The girls love coming down here to visit. Along with all the nature, animals, scenery, etc. there is a swing. We could be in the middle of the barren desert and if there was a swing the world would be right for the girls. What’s even better about this swing is that it transforms to fit whichever girl is on it. Grandpa has baby swing and big-girl swing attachments and switches them at the will and request of the girls. I would love to show you some of the pictures I took of them today on the swing, but we’re a little technology-lite down here. I can’t figure out how to make things work without the ease of what we’re used to. Perhaps by the end of the trip this can happen. ‘Cause I’d also like to show the mayor’s house. Due to the rise in the lake’s water level her driveway is now connected to water instead of pavement. She literally could lower her boat into the water everyday to go to work.

Du and I love coming down here to visit because there really isn’t anything to do except relax. We were even forced to relax while fishing out on the lake today. When the fish aren’t biting you aren’t having to mess with catching them, stringing them, rebaiting your pole…the whole process can really get tiresome. I jest and am trying to make the best of the most pathetic of situations. We were told by the marina guy exactly where to go and exactly what fish were biting. We followed all the directions but the fish weren’t playing along. Therefore we were forced to relax on the boat. Even Reagan managed. She fished (or rather, played with her pole in the water) for about ten minutes then began her real desire: playing with the minnows and eating Doritos…with the same hands. Please quit gagging. Sidenote: we left Spastic Kid at the house with Grandma because no one would have a good time chasing a crawling, inquisitive baby around an enclosed boat space with hooks and live bait everywhere. I’m sure you can sympathize.

Dinner was a weenie roast and S’mores around a campfire. Oh Lord, there are times in my life when I really wish it were the Truman Show. I’d give anything to have video of what happened during dinner. Reagan and I were standing around the condiment table dressing our dogs. I gave the ketchup a good shake to get down to the bottom of the bottle. I opened the cap, gave a squeeze and it squirted out all over Reagan’s shirt. I swear I was aiming at my hotdog! I almost hit the ground rolling. Reagan however did not think it was that funny. I “ruined” her shirt and I “better not put this in the blog!” Sorry honey. I like making fun of myself too much. She got over it pretty quickly and I even got a picture of the “ruined” shirt. That will have to be posted at a later date. Reagan loves roasting marshmallows. The only thing is she doesn’t like eating them. She likes raw marshmallows but will most certainly cook ours for us. There’s nothing much better than a properly roasted marshmallow: initially set on fire to consume the whole mallow, for just a couple of seconds though, then blow it out and let it cool just slightly. Crispy bitterness followed by sweet, gooey goodness. Yum.

All in all we came into contact with or came close to: a cat, a dog, myriad birds, a turtle, a lizard, a snake (water moccasin at that), and some ducks. Notice I didn’t mention any fish.

On another topic. High school graduation is tonight/tomorrow for the kids in this area. The newspaper had a writeup of the valedictorian and salutatorian and their respective interests. Here is what the salutatorian’s interests are: climbing on roofs, playing with fireworks, drawing/design and running through fields. Her desire after high school is to go to tattoo school for a year then go to college. Her advice for her juniors was to be unique. I. am. not. kidding. I admire her desire to remain true to herself as she becomes an adult in this world. But climbing on roofs? Playing with fireworks? “We are, we are, the youth of the nation…” POD.

Arkansas Trip: Day 1 – The Drive Down

As I mentioned in my previous post, there’s nothing like a short vacation with lots of R&R to revive our household. Being that serenity (and senility) is only 3.5 hours away we jumped at the chance to be able to get some. Many of you, like us, couldn’t imagine what it is about Arkansas that would make us want to visit. I’m sorry if you’re an…Arkansawian? Arkansan? Arkansasian?, but when you’re not from Arkansas you just don’t know. We haven’t been to the southern or even middle parts of Arkansas; the part we know and love is in the Ozark Mountains.

It’s absolutely beautiful here. More on that later. To get there we actually have to pack up and drive down. If you have kids you understand how imposing this can sound. What is actually a 5 day 4 night trip amounts to packing up and actually moving when you have young kids. We’ve been through this drill before with our trip down to Florida earlier this year so you would think it would be easier this time. No.

I’m going to spare you the details of what all it took to get the truck packed. The main thing is we got it packed. There were really only two major things we forgot: a blanket for Ashlyn and underwear for Du. We’re managing, thanks for asking.

Dinner was Wendy’s. Burgers-good. Fries-bad. Fries dipped in Frosty-very good. Ashlyn seemed to think hurling her cheeseburger across the truck was good too. This wasn’t the first time. She likes throwing cheeseburgers in the truck. Mommy’s smart though and asks for cheeseburgers with no sauce. No sauce, no mess. We got Reagan an MP3 player for all the long trips we’ll be making soon. It took her all of five minutes to learn how to use it. The funniest and best thing in the world is to hear your child singing at the top of her lungs (or his lungs if you’re Tori). So, Reagan was singing, Ashlyn was either sleeping or crying, Du was driving and listening to a book on tape, and Vicki was either sleeping or trying to take pictures out of the window of a speeding truck for the photo scavenger hunt. It was a good trip down.

Friday 13: A Photo Scavenger Hunt

There is nothing better than going on a short vacation to relax and refresh the mind. In this house R&R is desperately needed so we’re heading away for Memorial Weekend. Last week my Friday 13 List covered various activities I’d rather be doing outside. One of my commenters responded with the suggestion of going on a photo scavenger hunt. What a great idea! We’re going on vacation, getting out of the ol’ burg, why not document it in a fun way!

So here it is:

FRIDAY 13 – 13 THINGS TO FIND ON A PHOTO SCAVENGER HUNT

A cow
A broken-down car
A bird house
A purple flower
A “Main Street” sign
The number 13
A mushroom
A bird or birds on a wire
A stop sign with bullet holes (do not create this one on your own)
A tall building
A swing
An ant hill
Yourself, outside (because you know you’re never in a lot of your family’s photos)

Friday 13: Photo Scavenger Hunt

Here are my results (posted on 27 May 08)

How about you? Can you come up with photos for these things on this long weekend? Comment back to me with a link to some type of web album (snapfish, shutterfly, kodak, picasa, etc). Have fun!

Dance With Cinderella

I just learned that Steven Curtis Chapman’s youngest daughter, Maria, was killed accidentally yesterday. One of her older brothers accidentally hit her in an SUV in their driveway.

Why God? That’s what I keep saying. Why God? She was five. He was not intending any harm. Why such a permanent consequence for an accident? I keep on asking that but I already know the answer. God allows some things to happen that are sometimes incomprehensible to us. Are God’s ways bad? No, never. They may seem that way to us, but we have finite, human minds.

Steven Curtis Chapman has been a mainstay in the Christian music industry for decades. His songs have made people laugh, cry, and feel all sorts of emotions for years. He and his wife, Mary Beth, are also on the forefront of adoption from China. They set up an organization called Shaohannah’s Hope:

“Recognizing that adoption is a perfect picture of what God has done for each of us in making us His children through Christ, Shaohannah’s Hope has been established to care for orphans by engaging the church and helping Christian families reduce the financial barriers to adoption.” An excerpt from the website.

How will God use this experience through Steven and Mary Beth to better the Kingdom? Will more people come to learn about adoption? Will more babies be adopted? Will more children be brought to Christ? I’m almost positive these answers will be “yes”.

It makes me realize, once again, that none of our lives are guaranteed. We are given each day as a gift from God. We are given each breath as a gift from God. Our children’s lives are not guaranteed. What are we doing with our lives? It doesn’t work to just be a “good person”. Good people die just like everyone else. Unless you have a saving knowledge of Jesus being “good” means nothing. Steven and Mary Beth, if nothing else, have the hope of seeing their daughter once again when they get to Heaven. This may be the only comfort that will ever come to them from this tragedy. But can you imagine the heartbreak if either they or Maria did not know Christ?

How many accidents like this happen daily? How many children are taken from us each day through accidents, or worse. We become desensitised to the travesty until it happens to someone famous. We need to take this opportunity to remember children all over the world who are being misused, abused, mistreated, or just have bad accidents happen to them. They all matter to God. The public pain this family will go through should remind us that there are millions out there who are feeling this pain privately. Pray for each and every one of them.

God’s comfort can find a way through the pain. It can begin to heal the hurt. It can be the only light in the darkest situations.

God, may Your comfort and compassion be abundant during this time of devestation for the Chapmans. You know exactly what they need. Please provide it in ways that no one could imagine. God, I pray for the brother. Comfort and protect him in whatever way he needs. Heal the family as they slowly come to terms with what has happened. Take this tragedy and turn it into a miracle for Your kingdom. Our pastor just said last week, “often you’ll say ‘no’ just because there’s a better ‘yes’ ahead”. God, help us all to understand that when we try to put the tragedies in our lives into perspective. Use this experience to draw others to You. Come quickly, Jesus. Our human hearts can’t handle that much.