Snow Day

It snowed here on Tuesday, from about noon till I went to bed that evening. I kept taking pictures and movies of it, sure that any moment it would stop and melt away, leaving no evidence of what seemed to good to be true.

But it didn't, we got a full day of big, beautiful snowflakes falling. For it to snow here where it's pretty close to a miracle for it to happen was magical. I happened to be driving in it when it switched over to all snow and I actually started giggling like a little girl. This was real snow and it was sticking, I was excited!

We played out in it for a hour or so, except Kylynn who wasn't so sure about the cold aspect, and when we got in we were all tired! I guess as an adult playing in snow is exhausting. But it was so worth it, the winters from my childhood all came back to me the way snow crunches under you boots, the way it covers up the ugly and makes it beautiful, the way it tastes-my favorite thing about snow!

Here's some pictures from our snow day.

Snowman building

The view from my front porch

Kylynn's first snow angel

Our snowman, pretty good for Texas, huh?

Yea!! for pockets

You've got nothing on me...

Got OCD? Wash your hands a lot? Well you've got nothing on me.

I'm sad to say, during this cold season I wash my hands an average of 83 times a day. I wash my hands every time I change a diaper. Every time Kylynn needs to be wiped. And of course after I use the bathroom. Every time I blow my nose, Jack's nose, or Kylynn's nose (this alone accounts for at least half of all hand washings). I wash my hands before I touch food I'm making for me, Jack, or Kylynn. Before I unload the dishwasher. After I wash dishes that contained raw meat, after cleaning or dusting.

You get the picture, there is a lot of hand washing going on around here. And now I'm off to pick up a dead roach and you guessed it, wash my hands.

The Ears have it

Once again, my week went the way of a sick child and so I wasn't able to blog as often as I'd like. Jack, now has an ear infection. His temporary ear tubes fell out a few weeks ago and sure enough the first cold he got led to an ear infection. I was in denial for a few days, despite Kyle's insistence that he had an ear infection. Jack was on antibiotics for pink eye and I thought surely he cannot come down with an ear infection while on antibiotics..turns out I was wrong!

I asked the doctor how many ear infections he would have to have before they would go ahead and put back in permanent ear tubes and he said Jack needs to have an un-treatable ear infection for two to three months! I'm trying to be patient but I think I know how this is all going to turn out and I hate to watch him suffer for two to three months before we can do something about it.

Pray for him. The ear infection makes him feel cruddy and he doesn't eat very well at all, which of course is my worst nightmare, the last thing I need is for Jack to stop eating. At his last appointment he had lost a pound in the week or so he's had it...I think chewing hurts. Plus he absolutely hates the taste of the antibiotics and we are having a terrible time trying to get him to actually swallow them.

On an up note, we've had a great weekend. We went on a 13 mile bike ride yesterday and I felt amazingly good afterwards. Kyle is helping me train for my first official bike ride, which will be 20 miles and raise funds for a local charity, this is something he's done for years, but is new to me. The kids were happy the whole two hour ride, which is a small miracle. Today the rain went away by the time church let out and I'm about to go out and enjoy doing some yard work in the warm weather and sun!

Are you watching the olympics? Oh it's good, if you're not watching you're missing out. I think now Canada is towards the top of my list of places I would love to visit. Enjoy you're week and hopefully this week I'll be here with you blogging, not running to the doctor again!!

How I kicked my soda habbit

I think there's been enough studies done to convince most of us that diet sodas are no better for us than the ones containing all that sugar (which we know is bad for us). But I use to love every afternoon opening up a diet soda and enjoying it as a kind of treat, a reward for making through a morning with two toddlers. I loved the sound of the can opening, how cold it was, and the bubbles.

From time to time I would quit drinking soda for a couple weeks and would always, without any extra effort drop at least five pounds. I know, I know that should have been motive enough, but sooner rather than later I would always end up falling off the soda wagon.

I sometimes tried drinking flavored, sparkling water, but they contained the exact sweetener that supposedly made diet soda bad for you, so really what's the point in that. Then I found it, La Croix, a naturally flavored sparkling water, there is no sugar and no artificial sweetener, just carbonated water and natural flavors, and I've been soda-free for months now.

Let me say that this drink is not going to have the same taste as most diet sodas, it tastes like a sprite minus all the sugar, but if it's the cold and the carbonation that you're really craving when you reach for that soda, then this will satisfy.

I haven't banned soda from my diet, but like alcohol I've moved it to a sometimes food. Like my sister says, you have to have Coke with pizza, so that's when I'll let myself have one.

Besides losing the standard five pounds I have a more consistent energy level throughout the day now, previously I would drink a soda around 1pm and then crash less than an hour later, feeling terrible, that is completely gone now.

If you try it let me know what you think, you can get them at HEB and Kroger and Kroger even makes a knock off, that's equally good.

A glorious day

It's a glorious day today. First, it's sunny! Like the most perfect, clear, blue skies, sunny. Oh, such sweet medicine for my soul, that sun.
Second, I'm feeling better after almost two full weeks of being sick, I decided yesterday that I definitely had a case of pneumonia/mono/cancer of the sinuses/bronchitis, but today I can definitely tell I'm on the mend. Thank you God, for how you answer prayers.

Third, a caterpillar has decided to turn himself into a butterfly hanging from our front porch. Kylynn has loved butterflies for a long time and we have read many times a very boring book about how caterpillars cocoon themselves and turn into butterflies, so to have one we can watch is such a blessing.
Finally, I was able to do something today that I've felt the Lord asking me to do for a long time. It feels good to obey, I feel excited to see Him doing a good work in me.

"I will awaken the dawn.
I will praise You, O Lord among the peoples,
And I will sing praises to You among the nations.
For Your mercy is great above the heavens.
And Your truth reaches to the clouds.

Be exalted, O God, above the heavens,
And Your glory above all the earth;
That Your beloved may be delivered,
Save with Your right hand, and hear me."
The Bible, Psalm 108: 2-6

Making me smile

Things making me smile today, two beautiful children and a way to bring the beauty of the outside in for free.