mama's musings {we rise by lifting others}

1. Yesterday I was in town running errands and the car said it was 71˚. Today we have 6" of snow. Yesterday I sat in the sun sewing while I chatted with Dan while he washed the car; he was in a t-shirt and I was wearing a thin long sleeve shirt. Today I went outside in a flannel shirt and my down winter coat and I was freezing. SO sad fall is over! We have a lot of months of weather ahead. *sigh*

2. I've been meaning to find a new PCP for awhile since my much-loved doctor retired a couple years ago. I finally bit the bullet and got a recommendation from a friend and went for a physical on Weds. She was great-- so friendly and helpful and said I should feel free to email her anytime for any reason. What a relief! Finding good doctors is so hard.

3. Dan and Will went to Haiti for three days at the end of the week. Dan was asked to do some security work for his old employer and we decided to pull Will out of school and let him go too. They had a good time (although Will was up s…

A friend of mine asked me to do a write-up about our experiences with adoption since this is National Adoption Month. I procrastinated for several weeks... then finally made myself sit down and just do it. I am (am I'm sure most writers are) my own worst critic and after an hour of writing, erasing, writing, editing, shifting sentences around, etc. etc., I called it a day. Here is what I wrote.

A few things I have learned since we adopted our daughter: 
Being pro-life is more than just a political statement or a theological belief; sometimes it requires you to actually do something. 
The world of adoption is fraught with beauty and with heartache. Adoption by its very existence begins with brokenness and loss, and although adoption is beautiful and needed, it does not “fix” the brokenness. It is necessary, but make no mistake— it is hard. 
Trans-racial adoption has made me look hard at race issues in our country. It’s made me a more outspoken advocate for racial equality, justice and …

1. Well we have a new president! I don't think it's any secret that I was not (am not?) a Trump fan. There are soooo many aspects to his campaign... who he is...  things he's said and done... who he surrounds himself with... that I am not a fan of. But it is what it is, and I am committed to supporting the president, whoever it is, and for praying for him. But I absolutely will stay in the game and call out problematic material if and when it arises. You're welcome. ;)

2. The kids had a half day Thursday before their day off Friday. I helped with my first-ever PTO volunteer hour (I know, I'm lame), distributing chocolate from the school's fundraiser. Before that, I had first-quarter parent-teacher conferences and (drumroll please) both kids made the honor roll! I was so happy for Hallie; Will makes it every quarter, but this was her first time and she worked hard for it... I'm just super happy for her. She also was the top seller in the whole school with th…

1. Halloween is over and we still have so much candy left in bags, which, I am actually having a pretty proud parenting moment about. My mom believes in healthy eating (which isn't a bad thing necessarily! I believe in it too, generally) but growing up, my all-but-complete lack of access to candy or chocolate of any kind left me with what will be a likely lifelong struggle with WANTING ALL THE GOODIES ALL THE TIME. I cannot walk past a candy dish. I love candy way too much than is appropriate for someone my age. I struggle with self-regulation: if it's available, I want it, regardless of whether I've already have a piece (or 10). It's not out of control, obviously, but it's something that I deal with whenever I'm around the possibility of having candy or chocolate. I go right back to that kid who, if the opportunity wasn't seized, would "miss out" again for who knows how long.  I knew going into parenting that I wanted to do this differently; I wa…