The Main Thing

Well we just finished our annual Super Conference, and what a week it was! Having attended church most of my life, I've been to my share of conferences and revivals. They're wonderful. They're uplifting. They're convicting. They're renewing. They're inspiring.

They're exhausting.

I thought it was exhausting when I attended services every night. I thought it was more exhausting when I was a grown up and I had to work all day and then attend the services.

I had no idea.

When I was a child and we had a revival or a conference, it was a lot of fun. There was usually special food. Possibly there were some new kids to play with (when the speakers brought their families), and the fun of staying up late every night. There was also the awe of watching the men of God as they chatted with my parents over a late meal. It was impressive to listen to them sharing wisdom and discussing life events over a cup of coffee and a piece of pie.

Now that I'm an adult, I realize that there's a lot that goes into planning and running a conference. There's the stuff you'd think of, like making hotel reservations, going to the airport to pick up speakers, and practicing music in the choir.

There's also things you don't think of, like stocking the bookstore, cleaning cobwebs and making a quick change of plans after you burn the pork loin into shoe leather. (Ahem!)

But the bottom line is taking what you've heard and applying it to your lives. Listening to great men of God preach from the Bible. Praise God for the opportunity to head to the altar and spend some time growing a little closer to the Saviour.

My kids aren't so little anymore, but I covet the times when they can look up to these great men of God and perhaps get a little advice or some wisdom. They're getting to know people they can look up to and admire. They're getting some great examples of the types of men they should strive to be.

And that's worth any amount of burned pork.

Attitude and Pizzazz

We have had a busy week so far with our Super Conference going on, but it sure has been a great one! I’m going to be honest, it’s not always easy for us to come up with blogs especially when we have weeks that are as busy as this one.  I decided to make a list of things my kids have said lately that have made me laugh. I hope they can bring a smile to your face too.

For Easter this year our church offered free family photos. As my husband was taking photos of a family, my daughter walked into the room with her hand on her hip and said to them, “attitude and pizzazz!”. The sass is strong with this one.

We told the girls that if they were good we would get them milkshakes. When we asked Stella what kind of milkshake she wanted she told us, “ Um, I would like chocolate flavor with a little umbrella.”

Same milkshake trip. Talia had fallen asleep before we got to the milkshakes. Stella got Talia awake long enough to take the shake we were handing her but as soon as Talia had it in her hands, she closed her eyes again and was asleep. We were trying to get her to put it in her cupholder. While she was sleeping, she lifted the straw from her shake to put it in her cupholder thinking it was the whole cup. So the straw that had whip cream on the end was stuck to the side of her cupholder.

 The other day I heard, "Mom, I need new underwear." "Why is that?" "I really don’t know how to tell you this, but I went potty in my underwear."

Our daughters have a new rock collection. They aren’t anything special, just whatever rock they can pick up between our house and the church. Anyway one of the girls told us, “Hmm, I’ve never ate a rock before." We assured her that would not be a good idea.

"Dad, does Jesus pray?"
"Yep."
"Dad, who does Jesus pray to?"
"God."
"Jesus prays to Himself?"

We heard Olivia saying something from her bed so my husband went to check on her. She was holding a piece of her hair and said, “my hair broke.”

One of the girls asked me, "Momma, if our new baby is a boy, can we name him Captain Barnacles?"

We had some cake one evening this week after the services. Stella sat down at the table and said, “Chocolate makes everything better.” I couldn’t agree more!

What has made you laugh this week?

Happy Thoughts Thursday

So you've made it through half the week, but it's still not Friday yet. Sometimes by Thursday you need a little lift to make it to the weekend.

Our solution? Happy Thought Thursday. On Tuesdays you can drop a pet peeve or an irritation. On Thursdays, give us a praise, a thankfulness, or something that just makes you happy. Your contributions on Thursday can be deep and spiritual, such as thankfulness for your salvation, or as shallow as a cup of coffee or a good hair day.  Here are our happy thoughts for this week:

Stephanie: there's a panda express right down the road from church. Family favorite Wednesday night dinner. 

Kylee: I've been able to go outside without a coat this week..finally!

Jill:  Stella describes girl babies and boy babies as the "Sparkly ones" and the "Stinky ones".

So what about you? What makes you happy today?

And the Answer is ...

As we mentioned last week, Stephanie is taking a pregnant pause for a few weeks. While she's gone we don't want you to forget about her, so on her day we'll be posting new pics of the baby until Stephanie is back on her feet.

Isn't she absolutely adorable?!?! I can't wait to go see them next week!

In the meantime, here are the answers to Monday's questions:

1.  One of my children fell off their bike and slid down the hill on their head.  Joel

2.  Another child insisted on bandaging their head so that they would match the child from question number one. Nick

3.  Which child wrecked their mother's car? Matt

4.  Which one catered to their father's every whim in a desperate attempt to convince him to buy them a cellphone? Stephanie

5.  Which one was three years old when they stabbed the dog? Paul

6. Which child has ridden in a stretch limousine? Matt

7. Which other child wrecked their mother's car (the same one!) at a later date? Stephanie

8. Which child dressed all in red and called themselves "Cocoa Kyle"? Nick

9. Which child was almost twenty-one before they got their driver's license? Stephanie

10. Which child had a motorcycle that they only rode once? Luke

11. Which one always carries hand sanitizer on their person? Joel

12. Which one walked to their late night job in subzero temperatures? Luke

13. Which one fell asleep in their car in a parking lot because they were too tired to drive home. And then they were awakened by police officers knocking on their car window. Matt

14. Which child always blew on their fingers after touching something germy? Luke

15. Which child displaced a rib while trying to lift a trailer full of lawn equipment? Paul

16. Which child had multiple nightmares about snakes in the months before we left for Uganda? Luke

17. Which one took a line drive to the mouth during softball practice? Joel

18. Which one routinely reminds their brothers to "put some bass in their tone"? Nick

And 1,000 meaningless points to the first person to point out what was wrong with this whole quiz. Did you see it?

Testy Tuesdays

Congratulations! You made it through another Monday. It was tough and things may not have gone well, but you did it! The only problem is, you woke up this morning and it's not Friday yet. It's still the beginning of the week.

Don't you just hate when that happens?

We do too, so here at lolinministry, we've come up with a solution to help you through those first difficult days of the week.

On Tuesdays we'll each list one pet peeve or annoyance. No explanations. Just put the annoyance down. Once you've vented, you can go on your merry way. Kylee, Stephanie and I will each list one annoyance or pet peeve in the blog. You can list yours in the comments. Or you can simply "ditto" someone else's annoyance. The idea is to share a few laughs, commiserate a little and have a lighter heart through the rest of the day. Are you ready? Here's our pet peeves:

Kylee: The entire grocery process. Planning meals, making a list, and shopping for it. 

Stephanie:   kid's doctor appointments. I mean. Do they really have to been seen as often as the doctor says? 5 days, 2 weeks, 1 month  2 months.... Really? 

Jill:  pulled pork that turns into shoe leather when you cook it too long. What’s up with that?!?!?!

Now it's your turn. What's bugging you this week?

Which One Again?

It's time for another quick game of "name that kid"! I'll give you a list of things and you guess which of my children are the guilty party. Once again I have a disclaimer:  even if some of my family remembers events differently, this is my blog post so my answers are officially correct.

Ready to play? Pick one or guess them all and answer in the comments. Here we go:

1.  One of my children fell off their bike and slid down the hill on their head.

2.  Another child insisted on bandaging their head so that they would match the child from question number one.

3.  Which child wrecked their mother's car?

4.  Which one catered to their father's every whim in a desperate attempt to convince him to buy them a cellphone?

5.  Which one was three years old when they stabbed the dog?

6. Which child has ridden in a stretch limousine?

7. Which other child wrecked their mother's car (the same one!) at a later date?

8. Which child dressed all in red and called themselves "Cocoa Kyle"?

9. Which child was almost twenty-one before they got their driver's license?

10. Which child had a motorcycle that they only rode once?

11. Which one always carries hand sanitizer on their person?

12. Which one walked to their late night job in subzero temperatures?

13. Which one fell asleep in their car in a parking lot because they were too tired to drive home. And then they were awakened by police officers knocking on their car window.

14. Which child always blew on their fingers after touching something germy?

15. Which child displaced a rib while trying to lift a trailer full of lawn equipment?

16. Which child had multiple nightmares about snakes in the months before we left for Uganda?

17. Which one took a line drive to the mouth during softball practice?

18. Which one routinely reminds their brothers to "put some bass in their tone"?

Once again there are eighteen questions, split evenly between my six children. Answer one or answer them all in the comments, and check back on Wednesday for the answers.

Can you smell that?

This week some of the ladies at our church were doing some cleaning in our mission house for our up coming super conference. We were working in the kitchen, and we got on the topic of smells which made me think this could make an interesting blog post.

There are certain smells obviously that aren’t so pleasant but I was thinking more along the lines of smells you love. For example, some of the more pleasant smells would be fresh baked bread, or maybe your favorite dinner sizzling in the oven. Perhaps it’s your favorite perfume scent or favorite flower. All of the beautiful smells I’m sure are coming to your mind.

However as we were cleaning we were discussing the smells that we like that but maybe are too afraid to admit. So I’m going to break the ice and share with you some “weird” smells that I like. I don’t even know that I should try and explain myself, so I’m just going to go for it and list six of them for you.

Here we go!

1. Gasoline- yes that’s correct. I said gasoline.

2. Windex

3. Fresh cut grass

4. Bonfire- although I don’t like how long it takes to get the smell out my hair.

5. Dry Erase Markers

6. Sharpies

Come on, don’t be shy. What are your favorite “weird” smells?

Happy Thoughts Thursday

So you've made it through half the week, but it's still not Friday yet. Sometimes by Thursday you need a little lift to make it to the weekend.

Our solution? Happy Thought Thursday. On Tuesdays you can drop a pet peeve or an irritation. On Thursdays, give us a praise, a thankfulness, or something that just makes you happy. Your contributions on Thursday can be deep and spiritual, such as thankfulness for your salvation, or as shallow as a cup of coffee or a good hair day.  Here are our happy thoughts for this week:

Stephanie: thankful for our new baby girl! 

Kylee:  two ply toilet paper

Jill:  sunshine. I’m hoping to see some today!

So what about you? What makes you happy today?

A Pregnant Pause

In just a few short hours I will finally get to meet this baby. We’ve been anxiously, and somewhat painfully, awaiting this day, but it’s finally here, and we’ll be taking her home and adjusting to a life with two toddlers and a baby.

While recovering and adjusting, I will be taking a “maternity leave” of sorts from posting. I won’t be gone too long, and on my regular posting day, I’ll try to keep you updated with some pictures of new baby. J

Testy Tuesdays

Congratulations! You made it through another Monday. It was tough and things may not have gone well, but you did it! The only problem is, you woke up this morning and it's not Friday yet. It's still the beginning of the week.

Don't you just hate when that happens?

We do too, so here at lolinministry, we've come up with a solution to help you through those first difficult days of the week.

On Tuesdays we'll each list one pet peeve or annoyance. No explanations. Just put the annoyance down. Once you've vented, you can go on your merry way. Kylee, Stephanie and I will each list one annoyance or pet peeve in the blog. You can list yours in the comments. Or you can simply "ditto" someone else's annoyance. The idea is to share a few laughs, commiserate a little and have a lighter heart through the rest of the day. Are you ready? Here's our pet peeves:

Kylee:  people who drive below the speed limit

Stephanie:   having cash, but never needing it. Then you deposit all your cash and you need it the very next day. Never fails. 

Jill:  leggings worn as pants. Which would actually be the same as pantyhose or tights worn as slacks. Please! I can’t unsee that!

Now it's your turn. What's bugging you this week?

I'm Curious

I have a lot of work to do this week. With Super Conference a week away, there are so many details to attend to.

The problem is, I don't feel like working at all.

So let's play instead. Here's a few questions. Put your answers in the comments--answer one or answer them all. Then maybe we can all go on our way and get some work done on this cold Monday.

1.  The apocalypse is coming, probably next month. What's the first thing that comes to mind that you need to stock up on?

2.  If you had to either go without makeup or not do your hair for an entire day, which one would you choose?

3.  They say America is a melting pot, meaning everybody except for Native Americans came from somewhere else. So where did your ancestors come from?

4.  Which of the seven dwarfs (Doc, Sleepy, Sneezy, Grumpy, Bashful, Happy, Dopey) are you most like?

5.  Of the different ministries you're involved in at your church ( you are involved in ministries, aren't you?), which one do you enjoy the most?

And in honor of you OCD readers, I'll stop at five. My answers are in the comments. Have fun!

My Travel Companion

Does anyone love traveling with their spouse?

I love traveling with my husband. The majority of our trips have been to visit my family in Illinois，but we have gone on others. We’ve sort of fallen into a routine when traveling as well. Typically we start out talking for the first forty-five minutes to an hour. Basically, we’re playing conversation catch up. It’s what we do when we actually have the time to have in depth conversations about anything and everything, maybe things we’ve forgotten to share with each other or things that have been on our mind that haven’t really been a priority to talk about. Sometimes we make lists and sometimes we joke with each other,. It could be any number of things, but I enjoy the adult conversation.

After the first hour or so, my husband is tired of talking to me (not really). He loves audio books so he’s ready to listen to the new audio book that he’s downloaded before we even leave for the trip. Pretty much we do our own thing. I try and watch a show and tend to the children which is much easier to do now that they have their own movie to watch.

Anyway, that’s usually the first half of our trip. We stop half way, eat, stretch, etc. Then we finish our journey.

There is one downside to traveling with my husband. I found out early on in our marriage that I would need to travel with extra coats and blankets. He gets warm really fast. So whether it is 70 degrees or 20 degrees outside, the air conditioner could be on in the vehicle.  I try to sneak and turn the a/c down but he catches me and puts it right back where he had it. There had to be a solution other than dressing like it’s negative weather outside. Right?

Yes! The answer to my problem was our van. It has many features that I love but one thing specifically that solves all of my traveling with my spouse problems is seat warmers. Now he can have the A/C on full blast if he wants to, as long as my seat warmer is on my whole body is warm. I only had to wait six and a half years to be comfortable when we travel…but, hey who’s keeping track?

So what about you? Do you love traveling with your spouse? Do you have any traveling routines?

Happy Thoughts Thursday

So you've made it through half the week, but it's still not Friday yet. Sometimes by Thursday you need a little lift to make it to the weekend.

Our solution? Happy Thought Thursday. On Tuesdays you can drop a pet peeve or an irritation. On Thursdays, give us a praise, a thankfulness, or something that just makes you happy. Your contributions on Thursday can be deep and spiritual, such as thankfulness for your salvation, or as shallow as a cup of coffee or a good hair day.  Here are our happy thoughts for this week:

Stephanie: I'm thankful that it's finally warm enough to let the kids play outside. Backyard time = longer nap time. Yay me!

Kylee:  I'm grateful for a husband who works hard so I can have nice things. Yay for my new laptop!!

Jill:  I'm thankful for people that step up and help without being asked.

So what about you? What makes you happy today?

The Declutter Challenge

  I've been hearing about a declutter challenge that's going around. I looked it up online and basically it's spring cleaning with a new name, because everything works better when it's called "a challenge". We feel like we can't not do it because we were "challenged" to do it. When I was looking this challenge up, I found many different blogs and websites to help you. Everyone has a different method.

Here are a few of those methods:

• Pick a room, a drawer, a closet, etc. Start anywhere and take 15 minutes that day to go through and the goal is to get rid of ten things in that area. Whether you donate them, set aside for a yard sale, or toss them, it doesn't matter. You just have to set those items aside and they are no longer going to be in your possession when this is over. You continue to do this until you have gone through your entire home and you can no longer pull items out of any room. Btw, I do believe one of the "rules" is that, at least on the first time through, there has to be ten items from each area. If you can't pull out ten items, then maybe you have a hoarding problem. This method is more of a long haul process since you're only spending 15 minutes a day at this, but it would be a great method for those who work full time or have an incredibly busy schedule. Everyone can take 15 minutes a day, right?

• Another blog has a 30 day challenge, and they give you a month print out listing what room or drawer you are supposed to go through each day. Example: Day 1) Empty one junk drawer, Day 2) Purge your closet of things you never wear, Day 3) Purge two kitchen cabinets, and so on. This one I think would be an option for me because I tend to need something to help me stay focused. Otherwise, I end up getting distracted by other things that need done as I move about a room. Focusing on "empty this drawer" would be a plus for me. 

• The first challenge that I heard about instructs you to go room by room in your house and you are to get rid of any items in that room that you have not used in the past 60 days. I'm not sure if this is one I could personally do. For several reasons. For instance, we are packing to move to another country. I have a lot of things set aside that I have never used because they are for Brazil. Also, I'm 9 months pregnant. I have many, many articles of clothing that I have not been able to wear in much longer than 60 days. This one's not for me right now, but for some it would probably be really helpful. 

I have been decluttering my house lately as well. With only a few months until we leave for Brazil, hubby and I have been working hard to sort through all of our belongings. I don't know how we've accumulated so much junk in only five years of marriage. If you think you have nothing to declutter, trust me. You do. My hubby used to say he didn't think we had enough stuff to get rid of to have a yard sale...

However, this is the current state of what used to be my dining room. Three totes of yard sale items, one overflowing tote of stuff to toss, and about 15 footlockers filled or to fill for moving, and one giant dog that my daughter was dragging around the house.  All of this, minus the dog,  is about to be stored in the garage until we have a yard sale next month. 

There you have it. Just a few methods and some motivation to help you do that spring cleaning. Will you take the challenge? 😂😂 Do you see what I did there?? 

Testy Tuesdays

Congratulations! You made it through another Monday. It was tough and things may not have gone well, but you did it! The only problem is, you woke up this morning and it's not Friday yet. It's still the beginning of the week.

Don't you just hate when that happens?

We do too, so here at lolinministry, we've come up with a solution to help you through those first difficult days of the week.

Welcome to "Testy Tuesdays". Everybody has pet peeves and annoyances that really get to them, and somehow those annoyances can seem even bigger when you're struggling through the start of another week, so, bring those annoyances here. On Tuesdays we'll each list one pet peeve or annoyance. No explanations. Just put the annoyance down. Once you've vented, you can go on your merry way. Kylee, Stephanie and I will each list one annoyance or pet peeve in the blog. You can list yours in the comments. Or you can simply "ditto" someone else's annoyance. The idea is to share a few laughs, commiserate a little and have a lighter heart through the rest of the day. Are you ready? Here's our pet peeves:

Kylee:  When my husband asks me to do something that I'm already doing.

Stephanie:  dishes. 

Jill:  Never being able to find my phone charger. Someone who shall remain nameless keeps taking mine because he lost all of his chargers, including the extra ones he got in his Christmas stocking.

Now it's your turn. What's one thing that's bugging you this week?

A Love/Hate Relationship

Just to clarify, I'm not talking about my relationship with this guy. We're doing great and I love him almost all the time very much.

No, I'm talking about my attitude toward texting. On the plus side, it's a quick way to get in touch with someone. And so much easier than calling someone on the phone. After all, if you call you have to go through all the "how-are-you's" before you can get to the actual reason you called. When you text, you can just ask, "where do you want to meet?".

Texting is also convenient because you can answer it at your convenience. Although I sometimes answer texts in my head, without ever actually sending a response. Senior moment!

Sometimes texting is not so great, though. For instance, I think it's ruined most people's ability to spell. I use very few abbreviations when I text. I don't use "4" for the word "for", and I don't shorten "you" to "u". Is it really going to save that much time to cut out two short letters? The word "you" isn't that long a word anyway. Why do you have to abbreviate it? I have been known to correct the spelling in texts I receive from my offspring, and to refuse to answer their texted question until they correct their spelling.

I do use LOL occasionally, but I have to admit that I'm not really laughing out loud as often as my use would indicate.

Texting can also be frustrating when you accidentally send a text to the wrong person. Not too long ago I got a text from one of the ladies in our church. She texted, "Have a great day at work. I love you!" That's not the kind of text I would normally get from her, but it's always possible that she was just trying to be encouraging, so I answered, "Thank you. I love you too!" Turns out she was trying to text her husband.

The other day I told Siri to text one of my sons. We left for church at the same time, but he was traveling quite a bit faster than I was. And I was going the speed limit. I told Siri to text him the statement, "You're going to get a speeding ticket." Fortunately Siri read the message back to me before sending. She got the message right, but somehow she misunderstood the name, and I almost sent that message to someone I didn't know well and hadn't talked to in months. That would have been a little awkward.

Speaking of awkward, the most embarrassing use of texting I've had lately was when I was texting Kylee. My finger hit the wrong vowel, and I ended up swearing at her in text. I caught the mistake ... right after I hit send.

So what about you? Are you a texter? Do you speak fluent emoji? Are you someone who uses correct punctuation when texting? (I do!)

Do these make my ... look big?

Calm down! It’s not what you think.

I went to the eye doctor recently and got a new prescription for my glasses, which was good timing because I was definitely due for a new pair. Every pair of glasses I have owned typically have been the same size and style. The only difference is that I may have changed colors from brown to black. This time I was hoping to go a little out of my comfort zone. I had a style in mind that I had seen and wanted to get so I started shopping around. 

In the past whenever I’ve needed to order glasses online I usually have my husband help me simply so I don’t screw it up. This time I took it upon myself to do it all on my own. I didn’t want to bother him with it, and I’m an adult so it shouldn’t be that difficult. Or should it? Perhaps I should have bothered him with it because not asking for help may or may not have backfired. 

It’s good to know a few things when shopping for eyeglasses online. 

1. Make sure you enter all of you prescription information correctly.

2. Make sure you read all of the dimensions of the glasses before settling on a pair. 

3. Always check, double check, and triple check what you are ordering. 

Well my new glasses came in the mail and let’s just say they are certainly different than what I’m used to. My husband came home from work, and I tried them on for him. He just laughed. Don’t worry I would have done they same thing if rolls were reversed. They are the style and color I was wanting. However they are stronger than I think they should be and they are larger than life. Seriously, move over Steve Urkel, there’s a new dork in town!

Side note: It took me at least 5 minutes to get a picture because the glare on the glasses was as big as the lenses themselves. 

Moral of my story: asking for help is never a bad thing. Also, if you’re in the market for glasses but don’t want to pay the ridiculous price at your eye glass store, we have a few sources for glasses that we have had good luck with (aside from this time, of course). 

www.goggles4u.com & www.zennioptical.com

What about you? Have any of you had any eyeglass mishaps?

Happy Thoughts Thursday

So you've made it through half the week, but it's still not Friday yet. Sometimes by Thursday you need a little lift to make it to the weekend.

Our solution? Happy Thought Thursday. (Please feel free to comment with a better name.) On Tuesdays you can drop a pet peeve or an irritation. On Thursdays, give us a praise, a thankfulness, or something that just makes you happy. Your contributions on Thursday can be deep and spiritual, such as thankfulness for your salvation, or as shallow as a cup of coffee or a good hair day.  Here are our happy thoughts for this week:

Stephanie: My daughter is completely potty trained before this third baby arrives.

Kylee:  I'm thankful for the Lord's timing and answered prayers.

Jill:  My car makes me happy because it doesn't die in traffic or suddenly conk out on the expressway like my old one did.

So what about you? What makes you happy today?

He thinks, She thinks

Have you ever wondered what is going on inside that head when you look at your spouse? Or why they are not seeing things the way you are seeing them? Men and women think so differently. It's kind of amazing that we are even able to communicate with each other, because our brains work so differently. 

He thinks: Why make the bed? Whether we make it or leave it, it's going to look exactly like this tomorrow morning. So let's just save ourselves the time and effort. 

She thinks: Why wouldn't you make the bed? It looks cleaner in here with it made. The sheets will be all gritty from leaving them uncovered and putting stuff on the bed throughout the day. And it won't be quite right getting into the bed at night and then trying to straighten the covers. 

He thinks: If the freezer is full of extra meals, why are we still “out of food” and having to do grocery shopping? Why is that food untouchable? Are we hoarding food?

She thinks: I’m about to have a baby and I will not always be up for cooking right away. So, we need to have plenty of options stored up for a while.

He thinks: We sat in the same room, doing separate things but we were together. Quality bonding.

She thinks: We sat in the same room, doing separate things and we hardly said a word to each other. Is something wrong??

He thinks: (When he wakes up) I need coffee. (At lunch time) I should get some food. (At dinner time) Wonder what we’re having.

She thinks: (When she wakes up) I need to make the coffee, and make sure that we have something for lunch. Oh, I need to grab the meat to thaw for dinner. Coffee’s done, I should grab a cup. Wait, I didn’t throw the towels in the dryer last night, better do that or we may not have any for showers. Kids are up, breakfast and milk. I never did grab that cup of coffee…. 

He thinks: ………………

She thinks: What is he thinking? He’s being so quiet? Is something wrong?

So, what are they thinking???

Testy Tuesdays

Congratulations! You made it through another Monday. It was tough and things may not have gone well, but you did it! The only problem is, you woke up this morning and it's not Friday yet. It's still the beginning of the week.

Don't you just hate when that happens?

We do too, so here at lolinministry, we've come up with a solution to help you through those first difficult days of the week.

Welcome to "Testy Tuesdays". Everybody has pet peeves and annoyances that really get to them, and somehow those annoyances can seem even bigger when you're struggling through the start of another week. So starting today, bring those annoyances here. On Tuesdays we'll each list one pet peeve or annoyance. No explanations. Just put the annoyance down. Once you've vented, you can go on your merry way. Kylee, Stephanie and I will each list one annoyance or pet peeve in the blog. You can list yours in the comments. Or you can simply "ditto" someone else's annoyance. The idea is to share a few laughs, commiserate a little and have a lighter heart through the rest of the day. Are you ready? Here's our pet peeves for this week:

Kylee:  People who chew with their mouths open.

Stephanie:  When you finish the laundry and are feeling great about it, but then you find dirty clothes on the floor in the bedroom.

Jill:  When I'm exhausted, but I really can't figure out what I did all day.

Now it's your turn. What's one thing that's bugging you this week?

P.S. We're still working on an official title for this pet peeve day. Got any suggestions?

Happy Birthday, Happy Anniversary

Twenty years ago today I got up at an ungodly hour of the morning and drove an hour to the hospital. Not because I was in labor, but because I was supposed to be induced. This was my fifth pregnancy, and my babies had consistently proved that they liked to ignore little details like due dates in favor of hanging out in the womb and growing ever larger.

The doctor had actually offered to induce me a day earlier, but I refused because I didn't think it was fair for my baby's birthday to fall on April Fool's Day. I actually chose to stay pregnant for an extra day.

You owe me, Son.

When we got to the hospital, we were told that all the labor and delivery rooms were full of women who were actually already in labor. 

Since when do walk-ins get preference over those of us that made appointments?!?

At any rate, we were sent home where I waited impatiently for four hours until we were called and told there was a room available. 

You seriously owe me, Joel.

We were missionaries on deputation at that time, so right after we came home from the hospital, my husband left for a missions conference. He'd been gone for two days when Joel started running a fever. A trip to the doctor ended up as a trip back to the hospital where tests landed Joel in the NICU with viral meningitis. It took a week and a lot of medications before he was well enough for us to go home once again.

Flash forward through twenty years with this guy who climbed trees repeatedly and then yelled for someone to help him down, pushed his younger brother--strapped into an umbrella stroller--off of a two foot high cement porch, taught himself how to play the piano, missed camp because he got hit in the mouth with a softball, and casually mentioned that he got stabbed in the head with a pocketknife while wrestling at college.

Joel, it's never dull when you're around. We love you, miss you and are so proud of the godly young man you've become. Happy Birthday!

You still owe me.

Today also marks the beginning of our second year of blogging here at lolinministry. We're going to do a couple of changes, so tune back in here tomorrow to see what we have in store for you. And thanks for reading. Without you we'd only be amusing ourselves.