Over a bike

On Saturday, Hunny was doing a side job. Dada asked me if it would be all right if she rode her bike. I said that would be ok. She knew to stay in her boundaries. I was sitting in the living room, reading. I was sitting in our recliner so that I could see her out the windows. As she was passing the house on the sidewalk, I looked up and noticed a purple 4 door saturn parked in front of our neighbors house. 

Now, since the house got broken into, I have been on high alert for anything unusual happening in the neighborhood. 

I have never seen the car before.

I watched as Dada turned around where she was supposed to, and went back down the sidewalk.

The car literally did a u turn in the middle of the street and followed her.

They followed her around the corner and up into the alley.

The followed her as she pulled up to the house. 

They stopped in the middle of the alley, right on front of our driveway.

She came running in the house, saying, Mommy, there is a car following me. It's really weird.

The car just sat there.

I told Dada to stay in the house, and I went outside to see what they wanted. 

There was no way I wanted someone following my daughter.

As soon as they saw me coming, they took off down the alley.

That of course had me upset.

What in the world did they want with my little girl?

I didn't quite no what to do.

I tried to call my cop friend, but they weren't home. 

I finally got a hold of my mom. She said to call the police.

I did. 

I gave them a description of the car and what the lady driving looked like.

They were sending a squad car out.

As soon as I hung up with the police, I looked out into the alley, and there she was again!!!!

She was sitting in the alley in front of our house. 

I went out after her again, and she again took off.

There were so many different emotions running through me at this point. I had no idea what this lady wanted. I just know that it didn't look good.  I was angry and I was scared.

My kids were born during the disappearance of Elizabeth Smart. I remember thinking and still think, how terrified I would be if something ever happened to 1 of my kids. It is 1 of my biggest fears.

When the police finally came, he asked what Dada had been doing. I told him that she was riding her brothers  bike b/c her's was broken.

He said that he might know what this is about and asked to see the bike. 

Once he saw it, he explained that on Thursday a lady down the street had her son's bike stolen. It looked like Brother's bike, and the officer thought maybe she was driving around trying to find it. Since he had taken that call, he knew right where she lived and was going to drive down to see if that was in fact what happened. 

He came back a couple minutes later, and sure enough that's what happened. She saw Dada riding the bike and thought it looked like her son's and thought that she would try and get a better look.

Well, she saw that she scared Dada and saw me coming and didn't want a confrontation with me, so she took off. 

The officer said that she was going to call the police herself and have them meet her at our house to try and explain the situation.

The officer did an excellent job. He knew that I was upset, and he handled it so well. 

I am very glad that the whole ordeal was solved and that I know that she was just looking for her kid's bike. But it still scared me to death. Just the thought of someone taking 1 of my kids was enough to make me go crazy. 

A thief in the night

Yesterday morning, I woke up to that noise. You know that noise that wakes you up from a dead sleep, terrified, not wanting to move? I swear it was the porch door slamming shut. I waited, not quite knowing what to do. I listened. The next noise came and it sounded like someone was walking in the living room. Then came the dreaded squeak of the kids door. That was it, I had had it. No one was going to come into my house and steal my kids!!! I thought about precious Brother laying there sleeping and then waking up with someone carrying him out of the house. ( Dada had spent the night at Grandma's) So I ran into his room, to find him peacefully sleeping away. The house was secure. My mind was running.

I went back to bed wondering what the dog would have done if someone had been in the house. Would she have laid there not hearing or doing anything? Would she have barked and then cowered under the bed??

It took me a long time to get back to sleep. My mind kept wondering and thinking about all those what ifs. I finally had to stop myself from thinking those crazy thoughts and rest assured that Christ is in control of all.

Finally, I was able to fall back into peaceful sleep.

When I woke up, I was ready to face another day with the kids.

My mom had invited us over for dinner and we happily obliged. Joy cooked!! And she did a fantastic job! She made the whole meal.

We were there for about 3 hours.

When we got home, I walked in the door and immediately knew something was the matter. There was our window screen laying in the middle of the breezeway floor, and the porch door was hanging wide open.

Our house was broken into. Not in the middle of the night, but in the evening, in broad daylight. With threat of being seen by neighbors.

I looked into the family room and sure enough the dvd player was gone.

We called the police.

The kids are screaming, Dada was shaking.

It of course takes them forever to get there.

We had walked around the house, noticing what was missing. The kids immediately noticed that their Wii was missing. More tears. That was their Christmas present, their really only Christmas present this year. We didn't have a lot of money and knowing that they didn't need a bunch of new toys, we decided to get them 1 big present. And it was the Wii. We got them each remotes and a game.

The police came and were there for less then 15 min. And most of that was in his car. He walked around the house, asked us what was missing, gave us a case number, said he would ask the neighbors and that was it.

I don't know what I was expecting him to do. Maybe be a little more sympathetic, or something. I did think he would dust for fingerprints. But nope, he did nothing.

He left and we were left wondering exactly what to do next.

We have been sleeping with the windows open. I knew that I needed to feel a little more secure. And we needed to show the kids that we were doing something. They needed reassurance. So we flipped the air on, and locked all the windows.

While I was putting the kids down, Dada asked me to read the Bible to them and then pray with them. I readily agreed. I told them how when I get scared I think about God's hedge of protection that he gives me us. And I imagine that hedge hiding our house from the bad guys. Brother liked that idea.

Job 1:10 Hast not thou made an hedge about him, and about his house, and about all that he hath on every side? thou hast blessed the work of his hands, and his substance is increased in the land.

They then asked to sleep in our room, but settled for sleeping together in the same bed.

It took them a while to get to sleep, and they woke up a couple times in the middle of the night.

This morning they asked me so many questions. Just different things about who could have done it, and what did they look like, and WHY would they have done that.

Dada said that she wanted to be a teacher so she could teach the robbers not to steal. She said she wanted to teach them to love God instead.

There are so many things swirling around my head. Some of which I don't really want to share, and some of which I will.

I feel like so much has happened to us lately. It feels like 1 thing after another is being taken from us. Slowly but surely.

I keep wondering when all this is going to end. I feel like we are kinda on a roller coaster that just won't stop.

I am fighting discouragement and anger. And I hate that.

I don't understand why God would allow this to happen. The Wii was the kids'. Since we have turned off the internet and cable, it was 1 of the few things left that they could do for entertainment. The Wii was in use a lot for downtime. I may never know why God allowed someone to enter into our house and steal or things. Maybe a "good" christian wouldn't even ask why, but would happily go on with life.

But I feel like I am stuck. Just stuck in the middle of........this. This something I can't describe.

This morning, I read in my Bible these verses. Psalm 119: 150-151

150 They draw nigh that follow after mischief: they are far from thy law.
151 Thou art near, O LORD; and all thy commandments are truth.

There are people out there that do evil. I know that. They could care less who they hurt or what they take. The one thing that I can rest assured in his his commandments and promises are true.

Bad things will happen in life. We all know that. You can ask me about the many bad things that have happened to us in the past 8 months. But the best place for me and my family is walking and the will of the Lord. And that is what I intend to do.

Thankfully our house was not destroyed. When I think of people braking into houses, I think of them destroying everthing and throwing everything on the ground. They didn't rummage through everything and take all they could. They were probably only in there mere minutes just taking the DVD player and the Wii, oh and my $250 Longaberger basket, which had all the remotes and games in it.

BTW, I found out what the dog would do if someone came into our house. She will poop and pee all over the place. Guess what I get to clean up?!?!

A huge blessing

For the past 2 weeks, Beth and I have been very, very busy. We have been working on a project for our very dear friend Tancy. She has been overwhelmed and very very busy this past year. I knew that she had 1 stress point in her life. And knowing that, I couldn't help but try and relieve that stress.

When I realized that they would be gone on vacation for 2 whole weeks, my mind started spinning with all that could be accomplished. I immediatly talked to Hunny and Kevin, 2 people by which the suprise wouldn't have happened without their help. I talked to Tancy's mom, and with the green light, Beth and I showed up and Tancy's ready to get to work.

We started by cleaning out the attic, which is were the toy room and the girls room is to be. We coerced all the kids into helping us remove the toys and dumping them into the living room.

That made it possible for Hunny and Kevin to be able to hang drywall and lay the flooring.

Beth and I then headed back over to organize the room.

What fun I have had. If you have never given of yourself for the good of someone else, I will tell you that you are truely missing out on 1 of the best joys in life. Yesterday, when we were finishing up, I was teary eyed trying to imagine Tancy's face when she walked up those stairs.

Another thing that I have to mention is the shear joy our kids have had in knowing that they were doing something good for their friends. What a great lesson it was for our kids to see.

For more on the story visit Tancy's blog. She also has pictures posted!!!

Camping

Finally I am able to get some pictures up. I feel a little better now!

Brothers k5 graduation! His whole class did such a great job. There theme for the program was "when I grow up." Most of the boys want to be police officers. Brother included. :)
I am so proud of my now 1st grader!!!

This picture is special to me because here Brother had just gotten his diploma from his Great Grandpa S. And on stage is also his Administrator....his Uncle D. :)


We went camping this weekend. We went to a KOA campground in Lena. We had a blast! The kids totally didn't know what to expect, as we have never done anything like this before. We stayed in a little cabin that looked like a log shed. :) But it was perfect for what we needed. It only had a queen bed and a bunk bed. It kept us warm and dry. Even though we didn't sleep well b/c the mattress was like sleeping on a fluffy board, we had a very relaxing weekend.

Friday started out very nice. The weather was perfect for camping.....on Friday!! It was even warm enough for the pool. So we parked it at the pool all afternoon. To say that the kids were excited about swimming is an understatement of the year. They were literally antsy to jump in.

One of my favorite pictures of the swimming pool is this one. Hunny and Jared squeezed into a slide at the pool, and I captured the moment they splashed into the pool. What a great picture isn't it?!?!

Another good one is when the wind blew an umbrella into the pool and Jared decided to rest under the shade for a few minutes. It was hysterical!


Like I said, Friday was the only nice day since Saturday it rained. So we headed to Monroe for a little sightseeing. We found these hats that we thought were somethin. The girls thought they were very pretty and wanted to know which one we were going to buy.

We really did have a very nice "vaca." It was nice to get away especially since we haven't gone on a vacation since the kids were about 2-3.


Today while Hunny and I cleaned out the garage, we had a yard full of kids. The neighbor boys wanted to come over and play with the kids. They were there for about an hour, and they all just played so well. They set up a ramp in the alley and all took turns trying to jump it.

The ramp is a new thing for us this year. Brother has really taking a liking to his bike and the ramp. He of course wants it as high as he can build it, but me being the paranoid, overprotective mother has to limit him with only putting 2 bricks under the 2x4's. :0 He at 1 point had the 2x4 stacked on top of 5 bricks!! I quickly put an end to that!!

They were all hungry and what better snack then ice cold watermelon on a warm sunny day!! When they saw the watermelon their eyes got as big as saucers and they all in unison licked their lips. It was precious!! I thought for sure that there would be a seed spitting contest, but no one mentioned it, and I wasn't going to bring it up. :)

Well, that's about it for now, I could post so many more pictures and tell so many more stories, but it's getting late, and I need to get Brother home and in bed.

It's raining, and we are camping. That's all I have to say about that.

I forgot to mention my time with my Brother. What a great couple of weeks we had. I was very sad to have him leave. I cried buckets and buckets. He will be deployed here in about a week. Please keep him and Melanie in your prayers.

A quick update

Oh my word. It has been forever since I have posted, and let me tell you, I have missed it SO much!!! We have made the decision so as to help save money, that we would turn the Internet off. I know it sounds crazy, but it has been so hard!! It such a simple thing, but once you have it and are used to having it, then to live without it, is very, very hard. Enough with the whining, I will be fine, and hopefully someday, I will be able to get the Internet back so I can resume blogging on a regular basis. (Blogging is the thing I miss the most. Being able to document our days.)

Brother's graduated from kindergarten!! We pray on the way to school every morning, and that last day of school it was just him and I. ( Dada didn't have school that day) I got all choked up during prayer thinking about Brother and how much he has grown and matured this past year. It is sort of sad to me to think about how fast the kids are growing. It seems like just yesterday that they were babies. And now they are facing 3rd grade and 1st grade. I just want to cherish these days.

Summer has started out very well. Victoria and Logan are with me every day for 2 weeks. It has been going so well. The kids have been getting along and have been playing very well together. They have asked me every single day when we are going swimming. They just can't wait till it is warm enough to swim. And honestly, I can't either!! So far, the weather has been wet and not quite warm enough to swim. Soon though, I can feel it!!

This past weekend Hunny's Grandpa celebrated 56 years of preaching in the church that he started. Hunny's whole family was in town from California. It was a great weekend that we had. The kids were so excited to meet some of their cousins that they never knew existed! Dada has become good friends with her cousin Ashlyn. They instantly became good friends. Ashlyn left with promises to write. The 1st thing Dada did Monday morning was write a letter and we mailed it to Ashlyn.

Our garden is growing. We still have to get the weeds under control. That is my job for this next week. Thankfully I don't have any more animal stories to tell you. I have been worried ever since finding the dead toad and the baby groundhogs.

We are camping this weekend with Kevin, Heather, Jared and Melissa and all our kids. I have been looking forward to this weekend since about Easter. I knew that the kids would have a blast, and let me tell you, they are!!! Today has been the hottest day so far. I think it got up to about 85 today. So we spent all afternoon in the pool. Well, let me rephrase that. The kids, Jared and Hunny spent the whole afternoon in the pool. Heather and I basked............... I mean baked in the sun. It is now 9:35, and the kids have been sound asleep since 8!!! They were quite worn out!! They are sun burnt and oh so happy!!!

Dada got her hair cut. Chopped is more like it. She begged and begged me to cut it. And I surprised her with a trip to the hair salon. This was her first time ever at a hair salon. She was pretty impressed. When Hunny saw it, he told her we had to glue it back on. Her hair was below her shoulder blades and now it is to her chin. When we walked out of the hair salon, she gave me the biggest hug and said THANK YOU, I LOVE IT LOVE IT LOVE IT!!! She looks so much older and more "mature" now. She definitely looks like a 3rd grader!!!

I wish that I could post pictures. Actually....... I desperately wish I could post pictures, but I can't upload them. So you will have to wait!!