Wordless Wednesday

While I usually post only a picture on Wednesday, I feel this one needs some explanation.   

This is my Bob, cutting willow TREES out of our very, very dry cove. So you understand just how dry we are, Bob is 6'1", and the willows are taller than he is. At this point, even if we were to get enough rain to get water again, we could never get a boat through the trees.  This will be the third summer without water. 

We love our wee cottage, but it's becoming harder and harder to say we live on the lake.  And it's near impossible to sell a waterfront home when there is no water.

Tuesday's Tale From theTailboard

Who's in Charge?

One of the hardest transitions for me, as a fireman's wife, was the change in roles that occurred every-other-day. When Bob first started on the fire department we had a 5-year-old and a 3-year-old. I never wanted to be the kind of mother that threatened "you just wait until your daddy gets home".  And at five and three there weren't any huge battles to be decided.

However, with the passing of years and the addition of two boys, dynamics changed. Add to that, two daughters diagnosed with an incurable neuromuscular disease and all that entails, and there were times when it got really heavy. 

Attempting to balance what I could control and what I couldn't became very much a tightrope performance. Even harder was knowing WHEN I was in control, and when I wasn't.

It wasn't hard for me to be in charge on Bob's duty days. And while the rules didn't change when he was home, the roles did. 

Those who know us, are also very aware that we are on opposite ends of the personality poles. Bob is, and was, very much the 'walk and speak softly and carry a big stick'.  On the other hand, I carried a big stick, stomped a bigger foot and was never accused of speaking softly. 

Parenting is hard no matter the occupation. 

While I've never intended for these posts about being a firefighter's wife to be devotionals, or short sermons. Allow me this one rant!!

There are a whole lot of single parents out there struggling to be both mom and dad. Whether they've chosen that role or not doesn't lessen the struggle.

There are also two parent homes where the roles are so blurred the kids have no idea who is in charge, so take on the role themselves. And a child should never have to be the parent.


The next time you are annoyed by screaming kids in a restaurant, or crying kids in church, or trantrum-throwing little ones in the aisle of the grocery store…before you pass judgment too quickly, stop and consider that maybe, just maybe there's been a major disruption in their lives, too.

Yes, there are disobedient kids. Yes, there are loud and obnoxious kids. There are times when you might think to yourself that "what that kid needs is a good spanking." (please don't call Child Protection Services)

And yes, there are loud and obnoxious parents. And more than once I've wanted to 'smack' them, too. 

But there are also times when a child just is that—a child. And we've all been embarrassed by behavior that in no way reflected the training our child received. 

We had a child wipe his snotty nose on a neighbors newly-starched white muslin curtains. 

We had a kid (same one, in fact) who blew the paper off the end of their straw only to have it go down the BACK of a lady's dress three tables over. 

We had a daughter who went potty in a paper cup in the front yard. 

We had a child who hid himself in a roll-around display of dresses and thought it was funny to roll away from me when I attempted to catch him, and had other shoppers dodging the action. 

We had a child who pardoned himself for 'tooting' in the restaurant and when we ignored it he announced it a second time, both the toot AND the apology.

It is in THOSE moments when I could switch roles very quickly: i.e. "that's YOUR child." 


Who's in charge?

Well, God and I have had many, many, many conversations regarding this very subject.

Guess what?

It isn't, and never was—me.

And it isn't, nor ever will be—you.

Never before in history have young families needed prayer more than this very day, this very moment. 

Just do it!!

Mundane Matters

NO FUN--BUT IT MATTERS !!

Because I like to share, this time it was Bob's turn.

It started yesterday afternoon--at 4:00 o'clock to be exact.

The directions said 4 FOUR tablets of laxative

Followed by cocktails.  Recipe follows:
 238 gram bottle of powdered laxative mixed with 64 ounces of Gatorade that was to be consumed 8 ounces at a time, every 10-15 minutes (required to be done within a two-hour period.)

Arrive at hospital surgery center at 6:00 a.m. (which meant we left our home at 4:00.

Procedure at 7:30 a.m. 

Then home again, home again, jiggity jig !!

There is absolutely nothing mundane about a colonoscopy. 

But I URGE you—if you are over 50, and have never had one, DO IT !!

And if you have a family history of colon cancer—ask your doctor when to start having this procedure done.

It's no fun!! 

BUT IT MATTERS !!

Wordless Wednesday

Tuesday's Tale from the Tailboard

To the Rescue—Again

It was one of those days. Our Lori was slowly, very slowly, improving after being in a coma, the result of a car wreck. (Lori would never allow us to call it an ACCIDENT.  Over and over again, when she was able to communicate, she reminded us that there were NO ACCIDENTS with Jesus.)

And though she was improving, she still required a respirator to breathe. Even before her wreck her incurable neomuscular disease made it necessary to use the respirator at night. Now, because of her head trauma, she needed it during the day, too. 

We were tired. All of us. But we were encouraged that at least she was out of the coma and making some progress. 

The down side to this day—there was freezing rain. While we didn't need to be out in it, we did need the electricity to stay on for the respirator. There was an emergency battery backup, but there was only a short window of 'help' we could expect. 

Peering from window to window didn't still the storm. 

Opening the door and hearing the crackle of the frozen branches did nothing for our anxious hearts. 

When the lights flickered, we felt so very, very vulnerable. 

And you guessed it!! The electricity went off. 

Alarms buzzed. 

Our hearts pounded.  

We were on an emergency call list for the electric company, but the outage was so widespread, and weather becoming worse by the hour, that there was no way they could get to us any faster than to any of the others whose lives depended on electric power.

That's when we called for HELP. One phone call, and the Fire Department was there with their generator. 

These were the same fellas who made it possible for us get Lori home by ambulance plane from Indiana after her wreck. 

These were the same fellas who worked extra shifts so that Bob wouldn't have to lose his sick days. 

These were the same fellas who came to our door with money they'd collected to help. 

And the same fellas who sat with Bob, on more than one occasion, when the days seemed never to end and the mornings brought no visible relief.

Oh, how blessed we were to have them. What comfort those yellow coats brought us. Their slipping and sliding on the ice to hook up the generator. Their smiles, hugs and assurance that all we had to do was call if we needed anything else. Their tender greetings to Lori. 

Help!  

Much needed, and greatly appreciated help

…again.

Mundane Matterrs

THE INVITATION

PHONE CALL FRIDAY NIGHT: 

Leah: Hi, grandma. What are you doing tonight?

Me: Watching a movie, Grandpa went to a ballgame.

Leah: Do you want to ride to Manhattan with me?

Me:  I'd love to. What time? I need to change clothes.

Leah:  Actually, I'm taking Amy to the high school and we're on the dirt road now (*dirt road is the last mile to our house*). But, I'll drive real slow. 


**Now, Leah has always been our grand who HAS to be making some kind of movement or noise: clicking tongue, snapping fingers, bouncing, or singing. Just so you understand!!**

Leah: Does it bother you to have the radio on?

Me:  Not at all.

Leah:  Do you care what station?

Me:  No. You  listen to whatever you want. I'm just enjoying the ride.

**So we go to Dick's Sporting Goods so she can buy whistles that she needs for Saturday's club volleyball tournament.  Then we go to Freddy's to eat**

ON THE WAY HOME:

Leah:  **bouncing, singing and harmonizing with songs on the radio**  Are you sure it doesn't bother you?

Me:  No, sweetie. It doesn't bother me at all. 

Leah:  I'm so glad you came with me, grandma.  I wanted someone to talk to!!!

MUNDANE?  No, no, no, a thousand times no. 

Being invited to accompany a teenage grand for ANY reason

MATTERS !!!!

Wordless Wednesday

Tuesday's Tale from the Tailboard

Kip

One week ago today, his daughter #1 (Rachel)  turned 21.

Leah Marie

Today, January 13, 2015 daughter #2 turns 18!!

Again, we are SO blessed!!

Mundane Matters

Went to the tooth plummer today!!  

Go back in six months

Mundane

       But it matters!!  

Wordless Wednesday

Tuesday's Tale From the Tailboard

KIP

At the time this picture was taken, Kip was the daddy of one little girl, who was not yet one year old—Rachel Lyn 

RACHEL LYN

Today,  January 6, 2015 Rachel Lyn turns 21 years old. 

WE ARE SO BLESSED!! 

Mundane Matters

We are blessed with GEAT neighbors.  In fact, I received this Christmas gift from one of the...uh...NICE ones!!  

In case it needs explaining--it is a 10kt. necklace.  AND you have to look closely to see the LOVELY chain holding it all together. 

Mundane matters!!