Thank You Girls

I was moving the refrigerator to clean under there - ok, I wasn't going to clean under it - I dropped something.  Anyway, I moved the fridge & saw this:

Yes, a BIG spider.  But then I realized it wasn't moving & looked a little weird.  It was a plastic spider.  Girls, you LOVE animals, insects, reptiles - basically anything that breathes.  This is another reason we have GOT to keep all toys in the playroom.

Dominican Republic

There is so much to say & so many ideas & stories swirling through my head, that it is hard to know where or how to start sharing about this amazing country & my amazing experience there.  Aha!  I'll start at the beginning.  What a novel idea.

A phone call:

Me:  'hello Marv?  My name is Tracy and I'm interested in coming on Young Life staff to somewhere in latin america.'

Marv:  'Great!  Do you speak Spanish?'

Me: 'No.'

Marv: 'Have you been to a Spanish speaking country before?'

Me: 'Yes.  I went to Ecuador & Mexico for mission trips in high school.'

Marv: 'What are you doing now?'

Me: 'I am working as a therapeutic recreation specialist at a psych hospital, and I just took a summer job as a youth director at a local church.'

Marv: 'oh'

Me:  'Don't worry, the church job is just for the summer, and the other job I can give them notice anytime.'

Marv: 'Do you know that you will have to raise full financial support.'

Me: 'uh, ok.'

Marv: 'Where would you like to go?'

Me: 'I really don't have a preference - where is there a need?'

Marv: 'I am trying to get together a team to go to Santiago, Dominican Republic.'

Me: 'Great! I'm in.'

Marv: 'Can you come down for a week to see everything?'

Me: 'Sure!  I'll let you know when I get my ticket.'

Ok, that's a rough version, but not too far from the truth.  Gotta love the innocence of youth.  

I went down for my 'visit' and left 2 suitcases of stuff.  I guess I just knew that this was where God wanted me to be.

Marv arranged for me to live with Altagracia to learn Spanish.  She is AMAZING - and was very patient during my learning process.

I wanted until late to write this post & now little ones are crying & fussing - so I will write more later - hope this peaks an interest.

Bottom line - the Holy Spirit was amazing in guiding me & encouraging me.  God had a plan for me in the D.R. & I am eternally different!  More later.

Til then, here is a pic of our Spanish class.  Wow, there are some cooky stories there.

Bill (his wife Joy already knows Spanish), Chad, Daisy(teacher), Yusenny(teacher), Altagracia, Krista, Me, & (Kaylie -Bill's girl).

Sleep Claire! - Please Sleep!

Claire needs to sleep.  Ok, let me revise that.  Claire NEEDS to sleep the whole night through.  She can even wake up once before 10 - I'll deal.  But lately she has been waking up, crying/screaming, throughout the night.  By throughout the night, I mean at least 8 times.  But who's counting?  

I was wasting - I mean spending time blog surfing (not sure if that is even a real phrase), and I saw this video of a man who had about 8 puppies.  They were all yapping  & he began to sing, "Goodnight Sweetheart, well it's time to go . . ."  You can finish singing the song, but the point is that these puppies actually calmed down & all went to sleep.  Are you JOKING????  He can get 8 yelping puppies to quiet down in a cardboard box with the light on, and I cannot get Claire to sleep in her comfy crib with a dry pamper & clean jammies (insert sarcastic comment here).  

I seriously do not think I have slept a solid night's sleep for more than 1 day in a row since the twins have been born. Boo hoo, waa waa.   Yes, girls you are TOTALLY worth it.  Mommy would do this ALL over again.  But praise God I don't have to, and now I think I have a slight caffeine addiction.  I LOVE my sleep, so this is a pretty big display of love.  This is probably where I need to refresh myself on the fact that true love is sacrificial by nature.  I've written about how being a mother means to sacrifice on many different levels for our children - sleep included.  But, man is it HARD!

I really do NOT think that I would be able to endure motherhood, especially sleep deprived motherhood if I did not daily come to God to fill my needs.  If I did not daily remember that He sacrificed His only Son, Jesus so that all that I do on this side of eternity is worth it.  I wish this humbling moment could always sustain me at 3 a.m. when someone is awake.  Sometimes it does & sometimes it is a true battle of the flesh, but I'm beginning to ramble.  All's I know is that God has pledged to BE with me always, to strengthen me when I am weak, and to reward me for my pursuit of Him.  I also know that so many people tell me how much they miss the baby phase & how quickly it passes.  I'm not sure I'll miss this, but I have already seen how quickly it passes.  So please say a prayer for Claire - that she sleeps the WHOLE night through - and so does her mommy - so that tomorrow they can spend some wonderful playtime together.

Indoor Camping - A New Reward

I'm all about bribing - or rather rewarding you girls for listening to mommy the first time.  It has been so hard (to put it mildly) to get you guys to clean your playroom, so . . . I may have found a new incentive.  Indoor Camping.  Not sure how we sto, uhm came by this tent (I think Frank & Sarah), and I am grateful.  In order for it to fit, the playroom floor needs to be visible - what more does any mother want than to see the stained carpet.  God smiled on the event b/c Stella fell asleep on the couch watching Veggie Tales & saved me the trouble of her 'enjoying' the time in the tent.  I found an old head lamp & took Arturo's bike light off & voila you girls were in camp heaven (nope we don't seem to own a flashlight & I thought a candle may be a bad choice).  Armed with a stack full of books & your lights you crawled in, asked be be zipped up & were complete gems.  Today I packed up the the tent & will try to use it for you guys to be good this week - we'll see.

Flashback Friday - Dominican Republic

I need to tell you more about the Dominican Republic.  I know you will visit there as you get older, I know you will hear LOTS of music from there, and I know you will fall in love with this country.  Remember, girls, that this is your country too.  You are half Dominican, and it is an amazing & wonderful thing.  I know you do not always enjoy or understand why Papi and I make you speak Spanish, but I hope that when you are older you will not only appreciate this language, but enjoy the beauty of the language.

Abi, Jillian, and Stella - you all were born there.  Grammy thought that was quite scary & there were a few moments when I agreed with her; but I would not change it for the world.  I will try (try being the key word here) to commit Fridays to the Dominican Republic & Papi's family.  They are a huge part of who you girls are & will be.

As for me, I came to know & love the D.R. by moving there in 1995 to work with Young Life.  Through that experience, the biggest thing I can say is that God is good & faithful.  He opened my eyes to how big He is, how faithful He is to provide in all ways, and He truly desires to BE with us & for us in all we do.  I learned that life is all about proclaiming Jesus, and being in the D.R. taught me that Jesus is best shared by developing relationships. I am so grateful to God that He brought me to the D.R., and I know He brought us to Georgia, and I am excited to see what He has in store for us in the future.

The Election

One of my personal goals for the start of the school year was to go to bed at a decent hour.  Like 10pm.  Especially since I usually have interrupted sleep (which I hope will NOT last much longer).  

The Democratic & Republican Conventions have derailed my attempt at heading to bed earlier.  I came into this political race a bit late, and feel that I need to catch up quickly & get myself  as informed as possible.  I know the conventions may not be the best place, but I am enjoying hearing the speakers.  The conventions have also 'messed' up my blog updates.  So I will resume them later.

Girls - these truly are historical & exciting times.  Not matter who wins this election, it will be an historic time in the United States.  For all of you girls this will be the second president in your lifetime.  

The regular blogs will continue soon - maybe after a good nap - ok, no nap - just a big cup of coffee.

Random Musings on Monday with a Touch of Disgusting

Today is Labor Day.  A long weekend.  We were supposed to be at my brother's visiting.  In fact we left Friday, picked up Grammy at the airport & met Sarah & the kids for dinner at a kid friendly restaurant.  We had a wonderful time, and I was looking forward to a LONG visit with them.  Here is a brief breakdown of what happened.

- Jillian pukes (not sure if it's too much junk food & a late night).

- Jillian pukes.

- Stella has diarrhea.

- I decide we need to go back home b/c Frankie & Sarah have a newborn in the house & they do NOT need sickness as well.

Jillian pukes again.

- Claire has diarrhea.

- We pack into the car & head home (about 2 1/2 - 3 hours)

- Jillian pukes.

- An unexpected pet is found in the car.  A walking stick bug made it's way into our car & is hanging from the ceiling over the twins.  The girls think it's wonderful, but don't want it falling on them. I need to find a place off of I-75 in Atlanta that has grass & trees for this guy.

- Claire pukes.

- Claire pukes.

- Chloe pukes.

- We finally make it home. 

- I don't feel well.

- More random puking & diarrhea.

- Arturo takes over & I go to bed at 8:30 (haven't done this since I was 12).

- Puking stops.

- Liquid diarrhea begins.

 

Ok - you get the gist of our weekend.

Jillian told me that when she felt better she would be the babysitter so that I could sleep.  Sweet thing.  She is so great with her younger sisters - especially if they do what she wants.

Abi asked me why God allowed mommys to get sick, since they were supposed to take care of everyone.  I told her sometimes I wondered the same thing, but I guess this helps me remember how you need help when you are sick.

Arturo and I had a TV only for videos when we lived in the Dominican Republic.  When we moved to the U.S. there was lots of TV, and especially with the twins it was nice to plop in front of something while we were holding them.  Lately though I have realized that I have been going to bed late, b/c I am watching junk on TV.  I do not watch TV during the day, but at night when all of the little ones are in bed, yowsers.  Plus, Abi wants us to buy a lot more things b/c of what she sees. So, we are cutting cable. I am both excited & sad.  We enjoyed this once before, so I know this is the way to go!

I have never been a political person.  I remember how strange it was that a friend of mine from college always watched C-SPAN.  Since we moved, and it being the time of presidential elections, Arturo has gotten interested in politics.  Since he has, I have as well.  It's exciting and interesting.  Ironically, that friend from college received his doctorate in Political Science & has a great blog called, Learning About Politics.  Now I have become a C-SPAN, CNN watcher as well, and am enjoying it.  Crazy.

Angie over at Seven Clown Circus is hosting a give away from Twisted Silver. Although I am not a big jewelry person, I fell in love with their Flower Dome Ring because it reminds me of stained glass found in the Cathedrals of Europe.  I normally do not win these things, but thought it would be fun to try.

I decided I needed to change my template - wow - am I technically challenged.  I had the hardest time choosing, and then when I finally got the new template had erased everything else.  Hence, the 'new' look.  which was NOT planned, but happened out of stupidity.  Enjoy.

Well, here were my random musings for Monday.  Hope everyone had a wonderful Labor Day.  Blessings.