Seaside retreat

This past weekend I went with my three sisters and my mom to Seaside, OR, for a girls' getaway trip...it was amazing! On many levels, really....first, just to be free of mommy responsibilites for 2 1/2 days was so relaxing. I made dinner for everyone on Saturday night, and even though it took me a while, it was actually enjoyable to me because I wasn't being torn in 10 different directions as I was cooking. Anyway, there are few places that compare to the Oregon coast, even on the rainiest of weekends! It was beautiful. We stayed in a very cute little house, one of the oldest in Seaside, and it was just a few blocks from the beach, as well as all the little downtown shops. On Saturday, we went to a spa and each received our chosen treatments...I had a hot stone massage and a facial. The massage was amazing, but let me tell you, if you have never had a good facial, I highly recommend it. If I could spend the money, I'd have one every month! Let's see, aside from all that, we also did a lot of just hanging out/talking/gaming/eating. Oh, and I did a whole 750 piece puzzle...I know, I'm a geek. And of course, the best part was that I was with my family...I am so blessed to be part of my family, one that loves to be together and has SO much fun together! An "outsider" might think we're kind of weird (we have kind of our own special sense of humor when we're all together...Steve is always rolling his eyes at us when he's around us), but it is one of the best feelings in the world to have a place where you know you belong, where you can breathe easily and not feel a bit of pressure to be anyone/anything you are not.
Okay, enough mush. I will add that I did miss my hubby and kiddos. I was telling my sisters that I'm always happy to have a break from them, but then I can't help but think about how much fun they'd be having if they were here, too. Travis has only been to the ocean once, when he was about 9 months, and he would have loved it. I was happy to see them when I got home...so I guess that means the trip served it's purpose of bringing me new energy and motivation.

P.S....Michele, you're coming with us next year! Or maybe the year after that, since you'll still be in AZ next year. In any case, we need you in on our new annual trip!

Where does he hear these things?

A couple of days ago Travis said something to me that now seems to be his favorite line. It made me laugh the first time...now, not so much.

I told Travis it was naptime, and could tell that he wasn't too thrilled with the idea. When he hesitated, I calmly told him to go get in bed right now, (or else....). Just as calmly, and shaking his head, Travis says, "Don't fight wif me, mommy".

Now when he says it, he often adds, "Be nice, otay?"

What a little stinker!

We did it!

Two of my sisters and I ran in the Birch Bay Road Race today, and...we finished! Yahoo! We all did the 5K race (about 3.2 miles, so I'm told), and while none of us came in even close to first, none of us came in last, either! It took a lot of self-motivation to get ourselves out the door of the house this morning in the first place...we had to get up early, and it was raining/hailing (hard) as we left and for the whole drive there. Like to the point where I had a hard time seeing the road in front of me. But by the time we arrived at Birch Bay it had stopped raining, and the cold was actually nice after we started running. It was a bit intimidating when we arrived because it seemed like everyone was wearing all this specialized running clothing (you know, those super short shorts that men wear and the full-body spandex that women wear). This was serious business! Oh, and people were already running, like to warm up, except at a faster pace than I have ever run in my life. Then again, there were quite a few walkers, and even this cute little old man who was hobbling along, giving it his all. Anyway, I'm glad we did it. Next goal.... the 10K race in June (Sound to Narrows). I'm sure I will be very slow, but today gave me hope that I can at least finish respectably.

Yeah for us!!

You will die laughing..

Okay, so when my mom was here this last weekend, she showed us this video that seriously cracked us up. I have watched it at least 20 times, and I don't know what it is, but it gets funnier every time! I do apologize for the not-so-innocent view in the background...it's not even that or the passing-gas that makes me laugh, but the lady's reaction. Watch it without laughing, I dare you!
P.S. Before you hit the play button, stop the music on my playlist down below.

Easter fun

Our Easter celebration began on Saturday when we went down to Littlerock to visit my grandparents (aka Granny and Grandpa Goose). More of my extended family was there, as well, including lots of kids, and we had lots of fun. When it came time for the Easter egg hunt, we may have helped Travis a bit too much because he had more eggs than anyone, though I'm not sure he would have found more than two without any help! Oh well...next year he's on his own!

My mom was here for the weekend, which was a treat, and my sister Bonnie came down for the afternoon on Sunday, and we had a gourmet meal cooked by yours truly...okay, just kidding. About the gourmet part, that is. I just got one of those precooked/flavored hams...I love shortcuts in cooking! It was fun to dress the kids up, color eggs, and have the egg hunt for Travis, even if it did have to be indoors. Our Easter service was a great one, particularly the worship (for me, anyway).

I remember as a kid I didn't much care for Easter. I'm not sure exactly why, other than that I didn't especially like to get all dolled up, or sitting through what seemed to be a longer service than usual. And I think that as a kid, the idea of someone dying on the cross for you so you can have eternal life is a pretty abstract one. But as I've grown and come to more appreciate the significance of the holiday, I love it more every year. It is hard to comprehend the depth of love required for God to make such a sacrifice.

As much as I truly love being a part of our church's worship team, this was the first time in years that I haven't played piano/horn/whatever, and it was nice to have a break from it. When you are part of easter services, it makes for a REALLY long day, and it was nice just to be with my family this time around.

Soap, please

A while back, when Travis moved out of the nursery at church and in to an actual classroom, we began asking him what he learned in church that day. The first time we asked him turned into a conversation I'll never forget. Very short and simple, but I pray it was the beginning of a deep faith. It went something like this:

Me: Travis, what did you learn in church today?
T: Mmmm, Jesus.
Me: Oh, what about Jesus?
T: (very seriously) Follow Jesus.

This obviously made us smile, and yes, I got a little teary-eyed, I'll admit. We try to ask him questions like this regularly, and the answer is almost always "Jesus", with not much elaboration.

So yesterday, we're in the car and having our little conversation with him..here's an excerpt:

Steve: And who washes our sins away? (expecting the usual response...)
Travis: (again, very seriously) Uuuum...soap.

Makes sense in a 2-year-old mind!

Babies galore!

Here's a picture of all the babies in our Bible study group. All but Jayna are 4 months or younger (which explains why she is twice the size of the rest of them!). That's a lot of babies for a group with only 6 couples! Plus, there's another one on the way (no, I'm not pregnant, it's someone else!). And these babies are in addition to another 9 kids in the group. It's a miracle we actually are able to accomplish meaningful discussion! It is so much fun to have other kids to grow along with your own, and to grow to love them, as well.

And here are a couple of recent pictures of the kids, just for the fun of it.