One Year Ago

Calvin William Gehen passed away exactly one year ago today. He died at the age of 52 years. It has been amazing to see how much he has still blessed our lives and watched over us in the past year. We have felt his presence here with us on many occasions throughout this year.

I have shared this quote already with many friends recently, but I think it is a fantastic example of the person Calvin is;

"The years of our lives are made of months, the months made of days, and the days made of moments. The great and eternal decisions in our lives are in fact made of small and simple moments combined over a lifetime."

He lived his life like that. I am grateful for his example.

You're Not Santa! You Smell Like Beef and Cheese!

This is another reference to the church Christmas party on Saturday. The kids were able to meet with "Santa" and let him know any addendums made to their previous wish lists sent earlier in the season.
I am thinking that there must have been a last minute switch when they were deciding which one of Santa's helpers to send to the party. Bethanie noticed too.

Bethanie: "Mom, did you notice that Santa was wearing capris at the party on Saturday?" (Insert cute Bethanie giggle here.)
Me: "Yes, I did happen to notice that."
Bethanie: "It made me laugh!"
Me: "Maybe the elf that was supposed to come was shorter, but he got sick or something, so they had to send a taller elf."
Bethanie: "Yeah, so they sent Buddy the elf to see us."

-I love that Bethanie has such a great sense of humor!

We Don't Make Mistakes At This House

Every day at homework time there is a hunt for a pencil with an eraser in this house. It is a nearly impossible task to find one.
Today Bethanie was given a brand new pencil as a prize at school. She brought it home, very excited. Within 30 minutes of getting home Brady bit off the eraser.
Do you think he likes the texture, or he just has high expectations for his sisters?

How Prayer Works

Sadie: "Mom, do you know how prayer works? When you say your prayer, there is a big invisible tube that goes from you all the way to heaven. Your prayer goes up the tube to Jesus. Jesus reads the words in your prayer, then he answers your prayer and sends it back down the tube."

Me: "Kind of like at the bank, huh?"

Sadie: "Exactly!"

Santa Claus is Coming to Town

This morning we had our church Christmas party. It was a lovely brunch.
When we were getting ready, we told the girls that Santa was going to be there. Sean told the girls Santa would ask them if they had been bad or good.

Sadie asked, "Hmmm... Dad, what should I tell him?"

Success!

Every so often in a mother's life, there is a short moment of pure bliss. Success. Those are the moments that make the rest of life ok.
This month we are making an extra effort to talk about service. We set out a bag for a Christmas present for Jesus. Every time the kids do an act of service, they write it down or draw a picture and put it in the bag.

Today Bethanie and Sadie decided that they wanted to do something nice for Jeff. Before he came home from school Bethanie and Sadie made his bed, threw away the garbage off of his floor, and took his dirty clothes down to the laundry room. They topped it all off by vacuuming his floor.

The best part of it all? Bethanie said, "Mom, I feel so great! Doing something nice like that made me feel the spirit!"

Tis the Season

Yes, it is a little late in the season, but today was the day that my kids got their flu shots. It has become a "fun" family tradition for Sean to take the girls for their shots every year.
The clinic was tonight from 6pm to 8pm. We sat down to dinner at about 5:45. The kids were not yet aware that tonight was THE night.
They found out.
Most of dinner was spent in tears. No one was very happy with me. Sean is pretty sure I am the worst person in the world for making him take the kids every year. (Hey! Suck it up! I take them for the rest of their shots!!) Sadie barely got all of her food in her mouth between repeated statements of "I don't want a shot!"
Oh, really?
It was finally settled that they would go. Brady already had his flu shot at his well child appointment, so he and I stayed home to make candy for all of those who did have a flu shot.
The results? Bethanie laughed when they gave it to her. She wondered what she was so worried about. Jeff was happy to have it done, and said it wasn't a big deal.
Sadie... Oh, Sadie.
Sadie was chased around the entire office by her family and a team of specialists while Bethanie laughed in the corner. She was then dragged out from underneath the table and held down while the shot was administered.
She was shocked when she found out the shot had been given and she had not even noticed it.
Although she couldn't feel the actual shot, she is pretty sure she will never be able to use her arm again. Such is life.