Tic Tac Toe, Three in a Row...Birthdays that is! January Birthday #1 - Eric

Today's post could really fall into my 'Series of Unfortunate Events' posts (I DON'T mean bc it's Eric's bday!), but I'll spare you the details of more car drama we had this morning that caused us to miss church and made me wonder if we'd get to leave the house at all today, this week, or this month ;) and skip straight to the fun part...

it's Eric's bday!

Eric, growing up in Kenya, doesn't really get worked up or celebrate or even really acknowledge birthdays. As I've grown up I've noticed birthdays mean different things in different families. But for the most part, they are at least acknowledged in most American families. My family always had a small family celebration with a specially requested dinner, a few gifts and maybe your parents came to school to eat lunch with you. Nothing over the top but enough for it to make you feel special on your special day. With MUCH reminding and training, I've finally gotten Eric to acknowledge birthdays and other holidays, i.e. valentine's day, Mother's Day, etc. and usually do something a little special or meaningful for them.

So, the kids and I got Eric a couple of small gifts and wrapped them and Kory made her daddy a very sweet card from all of us and that was it. I figured we'd go to the restaurant of his choice for lunch today and I'd make some cupcakes but yesterday we had some good friends invite us to come to their house for lunch today so we planned to do that. Now, their invite was completely unrelated to Eric's bday and just coincidental, but it turned out to be a nice time of fellowship with some great friends...fun was had by all!!

Eric's Split Pants

I was gathering laundry and picked up Eric's work pants to add to the basket. Then I noticed, they were split right down the front!!

Friday Night Fun

When Eric was in Kenya this past November, the kids and I started a Friday night tradition. We make pizza and watch a movie while we eat. Usually it also involves making cookies or brownies for dessert, too.

Tonight we resumed our tradition since we got "off track" during the holidays.

Kip is in the middle of saying, "iPad" in one picture because he thinks if the iPad is within sight, it should be in his possession. And then in the next picture he's screaming because I'm taking pictures with it rather than giving it to him. We have a tech junkie on our hands!!

Daddy's Home!

I love to see the excitement when Eric comes in...everyone from the dog, to the kids, to mommy are glad when this guy gets home!!

Rainy Days

Warning: As I typed this post, I became aware that it is very boring. I probably shouldn't post it, but I made a resolution to post something everyday...even if it is junk :). And I would take the time to type a new post but I want to be done and go to bed before Kip wakes up. Don't feel obligated to read any further...I warned you...

As a little girl I remember hating rain. I even vocalized that I wished God would just make it sunny all the time. And as much as I hated rain, I was TERRIFIED of storms and spent them with my ears covered, eyes closed, and curled up next to my mom. In fact, I would squeeze my ears and eyes so tight and so long they would hurt by the time the storm was over. That whole, "thunder can't hurt you" and the scientific explanation behind it, was of no comfort to me.

Well, yesterday and today have been rainy and dreary and I've loved it! I never thought these feelings were possible until I moved to Texas. The first summer I moved here, it rained the week I moved then went what seemed like forever without dropping one millimeter of precipitation from the sky. The joke was that it never rained in Garland because there would be rain shower right by in Plano or Richardson but remain bone dry in Garland. I remember saying to people, "I wish it would rain." Words that my lips had never before uttered.

Then back in October of 2009, I remember it raining, what seemed like, the whole month. I remember this because I had just moved into my house and was commuting almost an hour to and from school in the downpour. My hateful feelings toward rain returned as I navigated through crazy DFW drivers that are even crazier when it rains. Also, the house didn't have gutters so I soon had a moat surrounding the house...very princess like ;). (Side note: we still don't have gutters, so if you ever come to our house, you might need snorkeling gear to make it to our front door.)

ANYWAY, all that to say, I've enjoyed the last two days. Many times now when it rains I feel like there is a cleansing that is happening. I like the way I have to turn the lamps on in the middle of the day in the living room, I like to wear my rain boots, and I like the sound just outside the window.

If you hung in there to the end of this post, you deserve a reward. So, let's talk about some fun rainy day activities...reading, watching movies, organizing closets/drawers, cleaning, taking goofy pics on the iPad like these (I have a ton more of these and as I scrolled through them, it appears the person in our family that likes to play with this app most is...me!! :). Also, I have several other family members' crazy pics I could share, but I don't have their permission so I'll spare them the embarrassment...this time!)...

Broken THINGS, but a thankful HEART!

It seems that it's a rule or law of sorts...when one thing breaks, many things break.

Since the freezing of our car and the subsequent hose/parts breaking, it seems I've called Eric everyday while he's working with news of something else breaking or not working correctly. Just from Sunday through today (Tuesday) here's our To Fix list: tire on our "spare car"(yes, the one I'm having to drive while my car is waiting to be repaired), garage door, laundry room light, garbage disposal, and guest bathroom toilet. Eric's probably afraid to answer the phone when he sees it's me!!

Now, other than the car issues, theses aren't costly repairs, thank goodness. And if you know my husband, he'd call them "simple" fixes. So what's the problem?? TIME. Take a guy that runs his own business, is trying to catch up on work missed during Christmas vacation, is putting together a quote for a new job, and is trying to finish up work projects so he can start the new job, there is no time for him to fix such mundane items at home...sigh.

So for now, I turn the hall light on to see in the laundry room, throw food in the trash can, stop the garage door just before it gets all the way down, and we all use the master bathroom toilet...

And I'm THANKFUL that these are merely inconveniences, not life-threatening situations or illnesses that so many are dealing with right now. I'm THANKFUL that my husband desires to provide for his family and has a way of doing that as so many are out of work and can't find jobs. I'm THANKFUL that I get to be at home, with the broken stuff ;), taking care of our kiddos, not missing a minute or milestone. :)

Cutie Patootie Penguins!

My SIL, Anita, got these for my kiddos. These pics are not very good quality and don't show the full cuteness of the hats, but you get the idea.