House update

I know I have not been real good about posting updates on our house construction. I'm not sure why, because it's a major part of our lives right now.
Anyway, this photo is about a month old, so there has been even more progression than you see here. The columns have the rock on them, and the porch is done except for the stairway.

As of today, they are painting the interior walls. Cabinets will be put in next week. The exterior has not been painted yet. This is such an exciting time because we get to see our dream really come together. So far we have been thrilled with the progress and results.
The only snag was when our copper wiring was stolen a few months ago. The frustrating part was Trev, Mike and I were out there at the house while the thief was inside posing as a worker with broom in hand. As soon as we left, he cut the wires and fled. You can read a little bit about it in our Tri-City Herald. This was in the paper a few days ago.
CLICK HERE to read our new home's minute of fame.

I really will try to get a more recent photos soon.

The Cowgirl in Me

What a weekend!
Trev and I got to see the Tim McGraw and Faith Hill Soul 2 Soul II concert in Seattle. It was so fantastic.
We spent the day at Seattle center. We strolled around, visited the Science Fiction Museum, and got our faces drawn by an artist near the Space Needle. How sweet of her to leave out the laughter lines around our eyes and smiles, leaving the picture of us looking about 10 years younger.
The weather was beautiful, the company sweet.
The concert started at 7:30 and we were thrilled to find our seats were only about 20 feet from the stage. We had a great view and saw the country singers up close. We really enjoyed ourselves. They were both wonderful performers. Faith can really belt it, and Tim knows how to entertain the crowd. And yes, she is as beautiful live as in all the pictures you see of her. We thoroughly enjoyed the whole thing.

We drove home the next day only to pack everyone up for a couple nights of camping near Mount Rainier. We got to hike quite a bit on the mountain, and enjoy the amazing scenery. The wildflowers were just gorgeous. Monkeys A & B were brave and swung from a rope swing into icy glacier water near our campsite. Trev and Uncle Mike were crazy and jumped from a bridge into the same icy water.
There is something I love about camping. Who cares how you dress or look as you hike around, roast marshmallows, and sing campfire songs. It's fun to chase bugs, mice, birds and deer in the woods. It's hard to beat going to sleep under a star-filled sky, the smell of campfire in the air and hot cocoa in your belly.
What more can I say? That was just a GREAT weekend.

Bored Mom

Have you heard about the "bored mom"?

CLICK HERE to read about this author and mother.

Here is a mom who finds her kids boring. She does not enjoy being with them, and they know it.
It makes me sad. Angry at first, but mostly sad. Just from my own experience of being a mother of 4 children, I feel that she is surely missing out on joy that can come from no other source. I feel her children are missing out on the love, joy, and security that can also come from no other source.
I'm pondering the reasons for the difference in our mothering attitudes. Is it innate? Is it the experiences we have each had with our own mother? Is it a choice of selfishness vs. selflessness? Whatever it is, I am glad that I have chosen to make mothering my priority. My life has been enriched in ways I can't explain. There is a deep sense of fulfillment and peace in choosing to view my "job" as one of extreme importance. I am raising the future. I am giving them of myself so that they will be taught well, but also so that they will always know that they are understood. They are loved and supported. That there is someone in their corner ALWAYS. Isn't that feeling of being cherished vital in a world like ours? Don't my children deserve to have a solid foundation in this craziness that surrounds them? Don't all children?

Every single night I have the pleasure of tucking my kids in. It's not always easy to drag myself away from what I am doing to go from bed to bed, singing each one their favorite lullaby. With 4 kids, this ritual takes my time. But after kissing each one of them, the air fills with back and forth "I love you's!" And it never fails as I walk down the darkened stairs, at least one of them always shouts , "You're the best mom in the universe!". That isn't why I do it, but it's things like that that keep me going. I know as they go into the teen years, I won't be hearing those beloved words like I do now. But that in no way discourages me. I will never regret the time, sweat, tears, and heartache that go with being a mom. NEVER.