Meet the Quads: Almost A Jayhawk, Scary Skull, Barely Scary, and Night of Living Lego Man
WOW! Have we been busy lately, but we did manage to hit the pumpkin patch. Share your pumpkin and costume pics with us HERE. We'd love to see your hard work all lit up for Halloween.
Before you panic, I'm not pulling out the soapbox. Voting, for me, is a private matter. You won't find yard signs at our house, or bumper stickers on our cars. In fact, I'm one of those registered undecideds that drives pollsters (and campaign managers) bonkers. Give me issues in black and white, I'll sort out the details, and then decide. Analytical, yes. Do I always vote for a winner? No. But, I do vote.
That said, just as I was tucking my 8-year old into bed the other night, she shared the most interesting thought. I'm not sure where she heard it (not around our house, for certain), but it really caught me off guard. "Mommy," she said, wrinkling her brow. "I want Obama to win, but I'm afraid someone will kill him because he's black. You know, like Martin Luther King, Jr." I wasn't quite sure what to say.
Should I start a discussion on presidential security and the secret service? Should I assure her that that wouldn't happen, then cross my fingers that I'm right? Her world is so much more vivid and raw than mine was at that age. As a child, I knew Carter was a peanut farmer, Reagan dyed his hair, and Ford fell down a lot. I was shielded from any real unpleasantness. Despite my best efforts to keep the bad stuff to a minimum, my kids can't escape the vivid pictures of 9-11, the horrors of the war in Iraq, or reports of grisly murders. Bad stuff is instantaneous and ubiquitous.
So, I went with my gut. I hugged her tight, kissed her baby soft cheek, made sure her stuffies were all in place, and assured her that whomever won the election, it would be OK, because we live in a great country and good things happen all of the time. Then, I said a quick prayer that I was going to be right.
I'll have to admit birthdays do NOT get easier the older you get. We're at the "halfway" stage at our house: "Hey, Mom, you're halfway to 70!", etc. (DISCLAIMER: any age depicted in this post is fictional. And don't ask) I cringe at the numerical marker, but I love my birthdays because my kids and husband always knock my socks off.
This year they decorated the house with "Happy Birthday" banners, left the cutest birthday note for me, and my husband actually baked me a cake! I got to choose between red velvet and German chocolate! (And yes, that's my son giving the cake bunny ears in the top pic) My oldest daughter Kelcey even smuggled cooking supplies to her boyfriend's house and made me a cake, too (strawberry!!). Double cakes! How cool is that? To put the cherry on the day, they gave me a cool new ice cream maker.
Earlier this week, our family here at KUDL lost a dear friend to breast cancer. I wasn't lucky enough to have known her well; she left her position here shortly after I arrived. While our paths only briefly brushed one another, her impact on the people around me was profound. Sherri was warm, funny and beautiful. You always knew when she stopped by to say "hi" because the building would be overflowing with hugs and positive energy.
Dan and I spoke with her recently about her cancer and how she was handling her life, diagnosis, and reaching out to others. I've posted the interview here so you, too, can be touched by her message, her faith and her life. God bless you, Sherri. While we will miss you dearly, the angels are rejoicing that you have arrived.
Grace is one amazing little girl. She'll be walking with her team on Saturday morning in the Walk to Cure Diabetes at the Legends. From her mom, Laura: "Grace is in her 4th year with Type 1 Diabetes and decided to make a video to share with you. If you have difficulty, you can go to www.youtube.com and search for "JDRF Grace's Groovy Gang" and the video should pop up. If you would like to support us and donate or join our team, please click here. You can also go to www.jdrf.org. Click on Walk Central and search for Grace's Groovy Gang in Missouri. Thanks so much for your continued support!!"
You know, one of the best parts about being married is seeing your other half do what they love. My Guy Ron races motorcycles and he's really good at it. Yes, it's expensive, and yes, it's dangerous (as my mother keeps reminding me), but he loves it and I love that he loves it. Plus, watching him race is really exciting! The race bike, the leathers, the boots, gloves, helmet...something about all the gear is just kind of, well, manly. The training it involves is fairly time-consuming, but he works hard at it. (I've even polished my pit crew skills a bit.) This past weekend in Omaha he clinched the top spot in one division, and snagged second in two others. He's pretty stoked and I'm so proud!! It's so cool to know he's getting to do what he loves to do, and I get to be there, too. :) Married life is good.
Meet the Quads: Almost A Jayhawk, Scary Skull, Barely Scary, and Night of Living Lego Man
I'll have to admit birthdays do NOT get easier the older you get. We're at the "halfway" stage at our house: "Hey, Mom, you're halfway to 70!", etc. (DISCLAIMER: any age depicted in this post is fictional. And don't ask) I cringe at the numerical marker, but I love my birthdays because my kids and husband always knock my socks off. 
daughter Kelcey even smuggled cooking supplies to her boyfriend's house and made me a cake, too (strawberry!!). Double cakes! How cool is that? To put the cherry on the day, they gave me a cool new ice cream maker. 
You know, one of the best parts about being married is seeing your other half do what they love. My Guy Ron races motorcycles and he's really good at it. Yes, it's expensive, and yes, it's dangerous (as my mother keeps reminding me), but he loves it and I love that he loves it. Plus, watching him race is really exciting! The race bike, the leathers, the boots, gloves, helmet...something about all the gear is just kind of, well, manly. The training it involves is fairly time-consuming, but he works hard at it. (I've even polished my pit crew skills a bit.) This past weekend in Omaha he clinched the top spot in one division, and snagged second in two others. He's pretty stoked and I'm so proud!! It's so cool to know he's getting to do what he loves to do, and I get to be there, too. :) Married life is good.
