You've gotta love the Fall!

Aside from Graham eating dog food and splishing and splashing in the water bowl, nothing too exciting is happening around here. We've been to the park a couple of times and gone on lots of walks trying to enjoy this glorious Autumn weather. What comes to mind when you think of Autumn? I think of the beautiful trees, the cool crisp mornings, football, pumpkin spice lattes, and of course, caramel apples. My sister came to visit for the weekend, and we made a fried rice recipe from Tasty Kitchen, Pioneer Woman's sesame noodles, and caramel apples for dessert. I know the caramel apples don't really go with Chinese, but we desperately wanted them! I've never made Chinese food with the exception of a quick stir-fry recipe, but I must say it was quite delicious. While I cleaned up dinner, Abbey worked on the caramel apples. I read that you should dip the apples in boiling water before dipping them in the caramel. It seemed to do the trick. Ab microwaved the caramel which was much easier than melting it on the stove and then covered the Granny Smith's with a good thick layer of oh so yummy sweetness. Because we put the apples in boiling water, the wax layer was removed and the caramel adhered quite nicely. Why has no one told me this before? Well, I hope you all go do something "fallish" this week like pick up an over priced pumpkin spice latte, make caramel apples, or head to a local pumpkin patch. You've gotta love this time of year....it's just cozy.

Wait....my baby can't walk

You don't have to be Indiana Jones in a pit of snakes or Bear Grylls swimming through underwater caves to embark on a great adventure. You simply need a common location, say a restaurant or a mall, and an 8 month old baby. On Wednesday I met my mom and dad for Lunch at Panera. My dad was holding Graham and just as he was attempting to move his tea out of Graham's reach, my dad apparently lost his grip and sent the tea flying across the table towards none other but me. We laughed and wiped up the mess. I had tea on my jeans, but I was already wet from the pouring rain, so it didn't bother me much. My dad got a refill, played with G for a while, and then sent another glass of tea tumbling towards me. This time it was Graham's fault, but still, two cups of tea? I am just that unlucky. Now a normal person would have hopped up and gotten more napkins to wipe up the mess, but I was paralyzed. Well not completely, because I was convulsing with laughter, but nonetheless, I couldn't move my legs to do something about the mess. How many times was this going to happen? Thankfully, only twice.

My mom and I then headed to Baby Gap to look around at their clothes. I had reclined G's stroller so that he could take a nap. He was a little fussy, but then I noticed that he had suddenly gotten quiet. I looked down, assuming that he had fallen asleep, and realized he was not in the stroller! I then saw him standing up on the ground and holding onto the front of the stroller. For a second I thought he looked so cute and then I thought, "Wait a minute....my baby can't walk! What in the world is he doing on the ground!" Before I had time to do anything her kerplopped on the floor. Needless to say, my heart was pounding and it continued to do so for another 20 minutes. Somehow Graham had rolled onto his stomach and slid down the stroller and onto the floor. I've got one extreme escape artist on my hands. My mind was racing with thoughts of what could have happened to him, but as my mom assured me, nothing bad happened and everything was going to be okay. Next time I am going to strap that boy in so tightly that he will need Indiana Jones or Bear Grylls to set him free.

I thought I liked football...

until I met my husband. I grew up cheering for the Cowboys (they weren't as trashy back in the day) and watching my brother at Briarcrest games. Although I never understood all the positions, I thought I was a fairly loyal fan. But when I met Jeff, I discovered that I was not worthy of being considered a fan. My friends who knew Jeff warned me of his intense passion. They weren't kidding. I thought I was dating a completely different person when I first saw him at a football game. Football affects his life. I'm serious. I often hope certain teams win not because I really care that much about the game, but because if they do, my husband will be in a good mood. 2008 was a great year in our marriage because the Titans won so many games! During the off season I sometimes forget what a huge fan he is, but I was quickly reminded of his passion on Saturday. It was the first MTSU home game, and Jeff was pumped. The game was at 6:00 p.m. and he left the house at 9:30 A.M.! He and his buddies got the tailgate set up in our prime tailgating spot. They smoked barbecue and grilled ribs. They had a pinata representing the mascot of the opposing team. They even turned the bed of Jeff's truck into a swimming pool. The plan for the next home game? A shrimp boil and a hot tub. Yes, they are going to try to pump warm water from the Service Master van into the bed of his truck. Life is never boring with my husband during football season. What will he ever do if Graham doesn't like football?

I Can't Get No Satisfaction

I can remember opening Spurgeon's daily devotional to the date I was going to leave for France months down the road. There was something exciting about reading the devotional months ahead of time, knowing on that day I would embark on a great adventure. I remember last year looking at expiration dates on foods and getting really excited at the thought that I should have a baby by the time. I love the way that our dog, Steve, eagerly awaits our arrival at the back door and how Graham's face lights up and his arms flail when Daddy gets home from work. It's all about anticipation. Anticipation of something great. Anticipation that keeps us moving, keeps us breathing, keeps us hopeful.

I realized today that I often don't anticipate the things that I should. Sure it is wonderful to anticipate a great trip, a baby, or being with the ones you love, but there is something more that we should anticipate. How often do we honestly anticipate the coming of our Lord? Is it not in the forefronts of our minds? We anticipate so many wonderful things in life, but we seldom anticipate THE MOST wonderful thing in life. As Pastor Lee said today, "we are far too easily pleased." Pleased over that cup of Starbucks, the new outfit, or even something as grand as a marriage or a baby. As incredible a these things can be, the do not offer complete fulfilment. As Pastor Lee spoke, my mind went to Derek Webb's song, "The Wedding Dress." Webb sings, "I am so easily satisfied by the call of lovers less wild." When I was at Covenant, I visited Lula Lake land trust several times. One of the elders in my church told me about the place and advised me to keep walking after seeing the first waterfall. For years and years he had gone to the land trust and stopped his hike at the first waterfall. The first waterfall is beautiful and worth the short trip, but if you continue a few more minutes down the trail, your eyes fall on a tall, glorious waterfall. It makes the first waterfall appear as a rapid. Mr. Henegar had been satisfied with the small waterfall which was only a taste of what lay a few hundred feet away.
I don't want to be too easily satisfied by the things of this earth. I want to anticipate heaven like our dog anticipates our return home and like Graham anticipates an embrace and being thrown up in the air a million times by his Daddy. Above all else, I want to anticipate eternal communion with my Heavenly Father.

R is for....

Rectal. Yes, we have a thermometer in our linen closet that is clearly labeled with an "R". As soon as we used the thermometer, Jeff ran to get a Sharpie. "What do you need that for," I wondered to myself. Then I saw Jeff draw a big fat "R" on it. "Oh...I see." Jeff wanted to ensure that we never made the mistake of using a rectal thermometer as an oral thermometer. Pretty smart I thought. There are some people who have not been as fortunate. Ashley, my friend Lauren's sister, told me this lovely story earlier today.

One day Lauren was watching her younger brother Adam, and it appeared that he was not feeling well. Lauren decided to take his temperature, but he did not have a fever. She then called her mom and said, "I don't know what's wrong with him. He doesn't have a fever." To which Lauren's mom replied, "Ugh...which thermometer did you use?" "Oh you know, that one on Ashely's changing table." Lauren is quite brilliant and doesn't make many errors, for she is well on her way to obtaining her Ph.D at Notre Dame. But this one afternoon, she made a brutal mistake. Needless to say, it left a bad taste in Adam's mouth. Hopefully he has recuperated by now, and hopefully none of you make the same mistake. They do look different. The rectal thermometer is short and stubby, and well, you know what an oral thermometer looks like. So if you are ever sick, and you're at my house, please watch out for the thermometer with an "R" on it. "R" is for rectal. I just thought you should know.