Disney Day 3

Another great day! Today was also cold and cloudy but still fun. We spent the day at Animal Kingdom. We saw two of the most amazing shows. "Finding Nemo" and Festival of the Lion King". Both different but both spectacular! I loved the costumes and choreography. In Lion King, the cast came out and chose B3 to march around in the finale. He loved it!! We got to see some beautiful animals on the safari, like the white rhino and elephants. Marshall and B1 went to ride on the Expedition Everest and became part of the year of a million dreams. One of the cast members chose them out of the line and moved them to the front! They were so excited that they rode twice! B2 has been getting lots of character autographs and photos. We met a cast member from Sugar Land and another from Friendswood. We bought some cool mouse ears (one set will need to be replaced as we left them on the bus to bless someone else). :) We had dinner and are just about to fall out! Marshall took B1 and B2 to play mini-golf and B3 and I are about to head to bed. Tomorrow is the day for the Magic Kingdom and I want to be rested up and ready to go!

Disney Day 2

Oh my! What a day! We got up early and spent the day at EPCOT. We got to see all kinds of fun stuff. We saw a very cool show called Turtle Talk. Totally sweet! We also did the Mission Space ride. B2, B3 and I did the one that was less intense but Marshall and B1 did the higher-excitement one. Let's just say that my "thrill junkie" husband walked off with an air-sickness bag in hand (unused but handy just in case)! He recovered enough to ride the Test Track! We saw lots of cool stuff in the World Showcase and then got our snacks and headed to the hotel. Then we were in for a real treat. Marshall made reservations for the Hoop-Dee-Doo Review. What a blast! It was so worth the 9:30 dinner time. The food was good and the show was so much fun. Well, there was a tie between the show and the couple, D'nea and Steven, who sat in front of us and played the "Hoop-Dee-Doo" game with the all-you-can-drink draft. When the finale came around, Marshall was chosen by the cast to go on stage. He got to play the Indian. I took plenty of pictures that I hope to share soon! The kids and I laughed so hard! He even got to talk about it on the bus back to the hotel! Marshall rocks for putting that together for us. B1 and I decided that he just likes to say, "Hoop-Dee-Doo" Just ask him! My feet hurt and I am so exhausted. There will be no trouble with getting the kids to bed!

Disney Day 1

Well, we pulled off one of the most exciting secrets I have ever been a part of!! It was brilliant in its covertness. Virtually flawless. We (mostly Marshall) planned a secret trip to Disney World. Yes, we kept it a secret!! On Monday morning we woke up at 3:00, packed the car, got the kids up at 4:45, dressed them, brushed their teeth, and put them in the car. They had no clue where we were going!! B1 figured it out when he saw the terminal sign to Orlando but like the great big brother he is, kept the secret until the others figured it out. We got on the plane and B3 had his first plane trip! He even got to sit in the cockpit with the captain-after we landed of course! While we were on the plane we had the kids convinced that we were just going for the day and that we were there to check out a super new Wal Mart that was being built. When we landed, B2 and B3 saw all the Disney stuff and figured it out. The look was priceless!! What a blast! We did have a kink in the plan though. Once we got to our hotel Marshall realized that his wallet was missing. It caused some stress for a bit but once we got everything taken care of, (thanks Billy) he was more upset about the loss of his sticker. B1 had given him a red smiley face sticker that he has had for about 10 years. It is very special to him so it will tough to get over. We finally got settled into our room and then went and had a yummy dinner. After, we went to Downtown Disney. What a trip! We loved the world's largest Disney store but went nuts in the Lego store!!! Uncle Erik would not be able to come out!! Stay tuned for more adventures in Disney for the Slot Family!! (When I get my computer running again, I'll post some of the fun pictures!)

Finely Choreographed Chaos

I was telling my aunt the other day that I believe that my life is defined as "finely choreographed chaos". :) Certainly not choreographed by me, but by my gracious Lord. In August, we spent a week on a mini-vacation, then ten days at my youngest aunt's house learning how to make pickles the way my MeMaw used to. Even using my great-great-grandmother's pickling crocks! (no, not the shoes). On the day before we were to start school, we got a call that my oldest aunt was sick. It turns out that she had a seizure caused by a tumor in her brain. So the children and I have spent most of the last six weeks up in East Texas with her. So instead of doing Greek and Latin and Algebra, we are learning things like ministry, compassion, and flexibility (not my strongest quality). God has been teaching me that even though I spent most of the summer writing out beautiful lesson plans (thankfully in pencil) and working on science experiments and history field trips, He had already written out His lesson plan for me which includes none of those things! I am learning things like how to pack quickly, how to do school in a hospital waiting room or a strange public library, and how to spend my 15th wedding anniversary without the one with whom I have spent those 15 years! Instead of reading classic Greek literature or even plowing through my Summer reading list, I have been doing massive amounts of reading about herbal healing, nutrition, and cancer. My children are not happy with lowering their intake of white sugar. My husband has missed us. My aunt is not happy that I took away her beloved Oreos and replaced them with lots of supplements, green tea and spinach. It sounds like I am complaining, but I'm not. I am grateful that we are able to help in such a way. My Aunt Mo is very special to me. I am really just being thankful that I am not in control and laughing that I am enjoying just taking each day as it comes and as Elisabeth Elliot says, "doing the next thing". So, while I may not have choreographed this particular dance, I sure am happy knowing that my partner in all of this, God, knows each dance step that we need to take.
When I was talking to my Dad last week, telling him all about what we are doing, he said something to me that really helped me put it all in perspective. He said that he heard a quote that pertained to my life. "It's not as important to teach your kids to count, as it is to teach them what counts".

Libraries

I love libraries! I could spend hours in one. Wait. I have spent hours in not one but many! When I was younger, my best friend, Sherry, and I used to walk from her house to the library where I would check out the Beverly Cleary books for the hundredth time. Then we would walk to Mister M and get a Sprite in a glass bottle, drink it, and return the bottle for a nickel. (Remember those days?) I spent long summer hours reading Little House in the Big Woods at the tiny library in the town near where my grandparents lived. When I was in high school I could drive to the library in the next city and they were open on Sunday! College gave me the huge 24-hour library at Texas A&M-whoop! When I started working in Alvin, the police department was next door to the library. The first thing I did when I moved back to my hometown was renew my old library card (which I still have!) and we got library cards the first week we moved to our present home! It has become a rite of passage that when each of our children turned 5 they got to go to the library and sign their names on the backs of their new cards. We have also mourned the temporary closing of our church library to make room for a new elevator. I love libraries! So, today was our library day because the children have already finished the summer reading program and were going to receive their trophies. We all checked out our armfuls of books, carried our prizes from the summer reading program and loaded into the car. (usually I have a rolling cart that we wheel in and load up with books but we used only bags today!) Then I experienced one of my favorite things: The sound, if you could call it that, of my children devouring their books in the back seat. I love looking in my rear-view mirror and only seeing the tops of their heads! They are totally quiet for the entire ride home! I find myself enjoying the peace and sneaking a peak into my mirror to watch. Then I thank God for what He has allowed me to do everyday! I am a Happy Mom At Home!!

Re-run

For those of you who missed it last October, CBS is re-airing the 48 Hours show they did on the Whitaker case. The first time it aired I was so nervous hoping that they would portray the police department (and Marshall) and Mr. Whitiaker's faith in a positive light. They did a good job and I have to say I was surprised. I plan on watching it again and this time maybe I won't be so nervous! I will still have to tease Marshall about not having a picture of his wife on his desk! (He really does-tons, but the camera angle didn't show it!) :) Saturday night at 9:00 Central.

Helping Heads

Well, as some of you know, I did have a former life. :) For nearly eight years I worked as a dispatcher for the Alvin Police Department in Alvin, Texas. As a matter of fact, that is where the Lord placed both Marshall and me so that we could meet and fall head over heels in love-well, he did anyway. I took a bit longer! I really loved my job and the people that I worked with. They became my family and most all of the members of the department come to our wedding. I received an email today from my sweet APD friend Roger. One of the officers there has a son, Brian, who has Pre-B Curser Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia. The police department is fully supporting officer Hill and his family during this time. Really supporting. Most of the officers, including the chief, gathered this afternoon to shave their heads in a show of camaraderie to Brian and to raise money for the family. Brian is in remission now but will have to undergo 2 1/2-3 more years of chemotherapy. To read the story go to http://www.hcnonline.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=19769397&BRD=1574&PAG=461&dept_id=635585&rfi=6. Please pray for this little boy and his family when you think about it.

Have a great day and go hug your babies!

My Prince Charming

Well, I had the craziest weekend! I was all set to attend the SETHSA conference on Friday and Saturday. We spent three days playing the "clean room game" (Mom's idea of a great way to spend the first days of summer!). My children were going to spend the weekend at Nana's house in the country with The Swan Sisters (My two aunts). I had spent weeks on my shopping list, tweaking it just right so that I could get maximum shopping in between attending the amazing workshops. Marshall was on a golf vacation with his father and brother and was coming in Friday to go with me on Saturday. Things looked awesome and I was excited! So, you know that something had to change my plan, right? Well, the children and I rode up to meet my Mom and everything was great! The a/c in the car worked and it is a Honda so it got greater gas mileage than the Suburban, and we played the alphabet game and B3 even found the "X" all by his five-year-old self! We met Nana and hugs and kisses and admonishments to behave went all around and I left them blissfully shopping in Target. So, I did what any mother of three who was alone for a few minutes would do: I went across the street to WalMart and did my own shopping!! I got some essentials for the conference-dark chocolate M&Ms-and I picked up a couple of cute t-shirts for myself. I was on my way home, singing too loudly probably, when I got a call from Marshall. I had to turn down the radio to talk so when I did I noticed that the car was overheating-yikes! He told me to stop where I would be safe and let it cool down. Well, three hours later, I had moved about 45 miles! I ended up staying the night in a very small town at the closest hotel I could coast in to. The manager was so very gracious and kind to me. He even called a mechanic for me. My friend Dee Dee called me to say that she was going to be able to meet me at the conference. I tried not to cry as I was telling her that I wouldn't be there. Sheryl's side note-this is the one thing that I really look forward to every year. My sweet friend worked overtime to try and help me. To make a long story shorter, and to get to the reason for the title, my sweet husband left his trip early to come and rescue me. He knew how much the conference meant to me as a homeschooling mom and he did everything he could to get me there. Talk about a Prince Charming! We had a great time together and got to hear some great teaching on some things that we can work on in our home. What about the car you ask? Well, a very nice Christian mechanic fixed the car for us and less than an hour later the engine blew out! But, God really taught me some things this weekend:

1. It doesn't matter how many lists I can make (and Marshall will tell you that I am the queen of lists). He is still in control.

2. When my sweet husband says, "Let me be your husband and do this for you." It is perfectly acceptable, even in this post-modern, feminist society, to say, "yes, Dear" and mean it. (Thank you Lord for opening my eyes)

3. God is still God even if my plans change. He will always look after me because He loves me and I am his child. He will always provide for me and protect me.

4. He owns the cattle on a thousand hills and if He wants to provide us with a new car, He can. If He chooses not to, that's OK too. He is still God.

I hope that if you are reading this you have that relationship with our Savior and know that He loves you very much. If you don't know that, please let me know. I would be so happy to talk with you about it.

Bless all of you!

Our weekend

In our family devotions this morning, we talked about believing what the Bible says over man may say. (We are reading Starr Meade's Training Hearts Teaching Minds and are only on question #3 :)) It was nice to be able to show our children that we are to measure everything against scripture. Everything. Hmmm...do I do that? It's easy when training my children to say, "Now, how does God feel about that?" or "What does God's Word say about that?", but do I do that in my own life? Interesting question. One I am going to have to think about for a while. Especially now when we are in the beginning of Summer and evaluating what we are going to be doing in the Fall. I also just last night finished reading Dr. Voddie Baucham's book Family Driven Faith, which has really challenged me. I loved it! I had to read it very slowly to let it all sink in. There are lots of points in there that we will be praying about in our home. I may have to read it again :). We heard Dr. Baucham preach in March and while he was speaking he said, "If you can't say 'amen', you gotta say, 'ouch'!" I love that! You can hear his message at http://www.gracefamilybaptist.net/ and go to their pod casts. It is the one titled Biblical Headship. It was a great message!

On a different note, we had a great Memorial Day weekend. Marshall and the boys have been creating a plan for a tree house in the back yard. We have some big beautiful oak trees and just recently we had them thinned out. The boys went shopping and when they came home they started work.

Here is how they started:

Needless to say, Mom tried to not pay too much attention and trust that Dad knew what he was doing to let her baby, who is only 11, up on that great big ladder all the way up there...but I digress...

While Dad and B1 were up on the ladder making all kinds of noise, B2, B3 and Mom were planting our Grape Tomatoes in the old tires from our Suburban (don't look at how worn they are, Dad) Since we are new to the garden thing we decided to start simple. We love Grape Tomates and we have four huge old tires so here we are!

Now I need to go finish my butter pecan ice cream for dinner! Yummy!

My first post!

Well, here it is. My first post. Who would have thought? I asked Marshall what he thought about my having a blog and he said that I could blog all day if I wanted. I don't really think he meant it, do you? ;) After I get more proficient I will post some pictures from the projects that are going on around here. I hope you all have a very blessed Memorial Day. Thanks be to God for those who have served or are serving our country.