Mom Mistake #4,372

My to-do list had one important task today...make pumpkin bread for Meghan. My daughter is away at college and has yet to receive a care package from home. I sent her an envelope with some gift cards and Katherine Hepburn stamps but the side of the envelope was sliced open and all the contents stolen.

Today was my second attempt at sending my girl a little bit of home.

But, where was my salt?

I'd thrown all the ingredients into my mixer but couldn't find the salt.

Then I remembered. David! My son had killed a squirrel and was tanning the hide to send to a friend in Australia. (They don't have squirrels there.) I bet he took my salt.

I was furious.

Down into the backyard and into our basement I stomped. Mumbling aloud to myself. Steam pouring out of my ears. Squinting, my eyes adjusted to the dark room as I searched for this salted-carcass.

Sure enough, I found the squirrel buried under a pile of table salt, three salt containers empty on the ground.

When I got back upstairs I barked at my husband, "What is David's cell phone number?"

"What's wrong?" He asked.

"Your son used all of my salt on his squirrel hide. I went downstairs into his Frankenstein laboratory and discovered all of my salt is gone. I'm furious, Paul!"

I punched in the numbers Paul gave me and waited. Drats! I got his answering machine.

"David, this is your mother. I'm furious. I am trying to bake this morning and can't find the salt. So, I went into the basement and see that you've used all of my salt on your squirrel skin. Thanks a lot son. I can't begin to tell you how irritated I am right now. What a selfish thing to do. So, when you get out of school I want you to get your butt in your car and drive over to the grocery store and buy me some salt. Don't come home without it!"

Paul sat at his desk staring with a quizzical yet somewhat fearful look.

"What!?" I asked. "Do you think I am overreacting!?" I yelled, daring my husband to go a few rounds with me.

"Well, yes. It seems a bit over the top Joanne. It's just salt."

"You clearly don't understand. How would you like it if I used up all of the paper in your printer? How would you work then? Salt is something I need!"

Clearly my husband didn't understand. So, I made an about face and marched into the kitchen, yelling over my shoulder, "And, it isn't over the top Paul. This is righteous anger!"

Slamming the kitchen door, I walked heavy-footed back to my pumpkin bread...and discovered my salt.

It had been sitting on my counter all along.

Walking back into my husband's office, much more lady-like this time, I asked Paul for David's cell phone number again. Paul watched as I made the second phone call in as many minutes.

"Hello Son, it's your mother again. I'm sorry about the message I just left you. I found my salt. Boy, this is embarrassing, I shouldn't have gotten so upset. I hope you can forgive me...and don't worry about buying any at the store today. Well, uh, I'm really sorry David. I love you."


Paul tried not to laugh. "Righteous anger, huh?"

Lemonade Dreamer

My son was talking to my husband today at the coffee shop. I thought I would let you listen in on a quick snippet of their conversation:


David: Hey Dad, you know what I want to do one day?

Dad: Funny, I was sitting here just thinking to myself, "What do you want to do one day?"

David: Well, one day, I want to have a $100 bill on me when I drive by kids selling lemonade. I want to walk right up to them, and when they tell me the price I want to slap down my $100 bill and walk away.

Dad: Wow David, I really hope you get the chance to do that one day.

David: (Pausing) Hey Dad, you know, if you're feeling generous today, I'm really good at selling lemonade.

What? You wouldn't have thought of this?

After seventeen years of parenting, either I am completely tuckered out, or I have plain lost my mind.

When my little girl told me that her balloon was stuck on the ceiling, I didn't bat an eye as I watched my teenage son take matters into his own hands.

There is a new Sheriff in town and his name is David.

Homecoming 2008

Last weekend was homecoming for my oldest two children. Since Meghan is now a Senior, and her brother David a Freshman, they were able to attend it together. It was my daughter's first dance and my son's too. Meghan made it special by wearing the same dress I wore to my Senior homecoming dance in 1985.

Her idea, not mine.

For all of my wonderful relatives who have left phone messages, text messages and emails...HERE ARE THE PICTURES...and I am having Paul draw up the restraining order!

To share a quick story with you all, Meghan had called me frantic on the Monday before her big night when she realized the kids had waited too long to get dinner reservations. "Mom, remember that idea you had about having a few couples for dinner before the dance?" "Mmmm hmmmm..." I nervously replied. "Well, are you still up for that?"

A few couples for dinner = nineteen Seniors, eight adults and ten younger children.

We all had a great time. The extra blessing was that Meg's date was Aaron, my dear friend Kim's son. Meghan and Aaron have known each other from church since they were eight years old. They are good friends and had a great time together.

David had a great time too. And no, he didn't take a date. Call me old fashioned but a 9th grader is way too young to even think about taking a date to a dance!

Make a Smilebox slideshow

WANTED!

Make a Smilebox greeting

EXTRA EXTRA READ ALL ABOUT IT

Make a Smilebox greeting

Feeling a little sentimental today...

This is a picture of my son David. It was taken on his seventh birthday, when he was just about half the age that he is now. While sitting in church together on Sunday he put his hand in mine. It was then that we both realized, his hands are now bigger than mine. This precious little boy who I cuddled and kissed, who would do anything in the world for his mommy, is now almost standing eye to eye with all five foot six of her.



His father took him down to sign up for Freshman football this evening. We are both very hesitant about him playing to begin with, but it is what he wants to play and we told him that if he did well in school and got a 3.0 GPA we would consider letting him play. His father, my husband is the Freshman football coach for the high school he will be attending next year which makes David want to play even more. What is going on here? My son is going to play high school football? When did my baby start growing up?



You know how us mom's, every once in awhile stop and realize that our children are no longer small little itty bitties anymore?



Today is that day for me.

Wordless Wednesday

How Hard Are You Looking???

And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with ALL your heart. Jeremiah 29:13

While driving my son David to school, he pointed out a cat sleeping on the roof of a neighbors house. I was not only amused but once again amazed at my sons' ability to see things that most people do not see. David is our child that can find a needle in a haystack. This gift has been used to our family's advantage. Lost car keys...ask David. Lost permission slip...get David to help. Missing a shoe...David can find it. When we are out in a rural setting, David shows us bugs and animals that we would never ever have seen on our own.

"David, you should be some type of special investigator or detective when you grow up." I told him while turning our car onto the freeway. "Why do you say that mom?" He curiously asked. "You just have such a gift of seeing things that no one else has the ability to see." I told him. He surprised me by his relaxed reply. "Mom, anybody could see the things I see...they just don't look hard enough."

His response reminded me of God's words in Jeremiah 29:13, "And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with ALL your heart." The word seek means to diligently inquire, to pursue, to search from place to place or to hunt. God promises that we will find Him if we look for Him with all of our heart, with more than a casual glance in His direction. If we purposely fix our gaze to see and believe, He is waiting for the opportunity to show His hand in our lives. There is a saying, "Is seeing believing? No, believing is seeing." Only then will see God in ways that our imaginations couldn't begin to dream.


How hard are your looking for Jesus in your life today? Are you seeking Him like a bird dog on a hunt? Or, are you taking a casual glance at His word in between phone calls and shuttling kids from one place to another? Let today be the day that you diligently seek and pursue Him. Make a conscious effort to look for the Lord in anything and everything that may come your way. Open your eyes my friends...then stand in awe of the God who loves you and watch our all powerful God at work!

I think David said it best, "Mom, anybody could see the things I see...they just don't look hard enough."

David's Turkey Bowl

David has been begging me for months to schedule a date when his friends could come over for a football game. I finally made up some postcard invitations 'David's 1st Annual-Two Hand Touch- Turkey Bowl!' He handed these out to kids at school and everyone at church. I had warned him that having it the day after Thanksgiving, there may not be a good turnout. What a blessing when thirteen friends showed up. This included our pastor and the pastor from David's school. It was so much fun watching them out there. The only injury belonged to my husband Paul while trying to live out his 'glory days'.

His knee didn't get that memo.

Apple Crisp Showdown!

One of the most hectic times of day for me is the afternoon. After driving to three different schools, picking up four very different children I then bring my brood of chicks home and they cluck-cluck-cluck around me in our kitchen. As I try and figure out what to make for dinner, my children share stories with me of their day, a few pull out homework to work on at the kitchen table while the rest search like a pack of wild dogs for a snack to devour. It was during this time last week that my son David (13) asked me to make him an apple crisp for his class. Being the wonderfully attentive mother that I am…I forgot. My son reminded me by a hand scribbled note taped to my bedroom mirror at 10:30pm that the apple crisp was needed for school TOMORROW. Guess who was up at 6am making apple crisp?

Apparently my son David had a showdown with his friend Luke over whose mom made the best apple crisp. On the way to school yesterday morning I tried to convince my son that there was no way that his friend would ever admit that my apple crisp was better than his own mothers. As he stepped out of the car, with the piping hot dessert in his hands my son said, “Mom, I know that. I don’t expect Luke to tell me that yours is better, he has his pride mom. But there is a way that I will know. If he tells me that yours is almost as good as his moms then what he really means is that yours is better. That is how I will know.”

Everytime our family sits down to dinner, my son David tells me how great my cooking is. He usually says with a mouthful of food, “Thanks mom, this is great!” I am not exaggerating, he tells me this almost every night. I am aware that he is a growing boy and that his taste buds aren’t fully matured. He would compliment a Twinkie and Dr.Pepper as a meal, but my heart swells every time he says it. What a reminder to me of the power of a sweet word, a kind word. The Bible says in Proverbs 12:25 “An anxious heart weighs a man down, but a kind word cheers him up.” My son is such an example of this verse to me.

So today I am including for all of you my famous apple crisp recipe for your Fall pleasure.

Oh, and just in case you're wondering...Luke admitted that my apple crisp was almost as good as his moms'.(David was thrilled.)

Joanne’s Almost As Good As Your Moms'-Apple Crisp
INGREDIENTS
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 cups rolled oats
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1 1/2 cups packed brown sugar
• 1 1/2 cups butter (I never said it was fat free!)
• 2 quarts peeled, cored and sliced apples (I use two kinds, fuji & Macintosh)

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).

2. In a large bowl, combine the flour, oatmeal, cinnamon, nutmeg and brown
sugar. Cut in until mixture is crumbly.

3. Take half of the mixture and pat it into the bottom of a 9x13 inch baking
dish.

4. Cover crumb mixture with apple slices, then sprinkle apple slices with
remaining crumb mixture.

5. Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 45 to 50 minutes or until apples
are tender.