Das Not Funny! Friday: A real winner

Your regularly scheduled laughs at my children's expense are being postponed this week to reveal to you my nerdiness. Reader discretion is not at all advised. Unless you have an aversion to nerds, then you might want to look away.

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Hey folks. Well, I stayed up super late just so I could draw a winner for the kikoi/iTunes giveaway. Okay not just for that. Actually, a friend and I had plans earlier this evening and I'm up because I'm still a tiny bit giddy from the little excursion we took.

If, at any time, I've ever deceived you into you thinking I was cool get ready because I'm about to blow my cover big time.

When I texted (clearly the spell check powers that be have not caught up with the coolness of 2010 because "texted" has a red squiggly line under it and I know it's a real word) my friend to confirm our plans for tonight, she texted me back saying she had to run an errand. Let me just say that when she told me where we'd be going I got a tad lot excited. This place just makes my little heart flutter for reasons totally inexplicable to me. Remember that time I was NOT Type A? Yeah. That's now.

Anyway, I know that you're just dying to know where we went, aren't you? Well, brace yourself people. Serious nerd alert.

Staples.

Yes, the office supply store.

I can't tell you how much I love going into office supply stores. My affection for them isn't something that I share freely, er....at least until now. But y'all, I love them. Something about the fresh paper, all the pens full of ink, the crisp, new folders and the stickers and post-its. Well, it's more than my little self can take.

Oh. And tonight. GET THIS. They have this new snazzy idea. There's this little station filled with fun shaped paperclips and soccer ball erasers and highlighters and large paper clips and magnets and other such fun and you get a little tub and you can put as much in as will fit and it's ONLY $5.99.

I just about peed my pants I was so excited. I may have even clapped my hands. Seriously. I dropped my container once on the counter and once on the floor. I guess my hands were a little shaky from all the excitement.

I'm totally serious.

See? I told you I'd totally ruin any coolness you ever saw within me. Who gets that excited over office supplies? Especially when THEY DON'T EVEN HAVE AN OFFICE TO SUPPLY?!

Me = total dork.

So how do office supplies relate to the winner for my kikoi/iTunes giveaway? They don't. Not one bit. But I thought you should know the truth about me. And the truth is. I'm a freako nerd. Welcome to my world.

Alright, now for a winner. Thanks to Random.org the choosing of the $15 iTunes giftcard is totally unbiased by my nerdy, office supply store loving self. There were a total of 16 eligible entries (Because not everyone knows how to follow directions...ahem). Random.org chose lucky number 1 as our winner!

Wooo hoooo Chasity!

Congrats! Email me at beaverbunch (at) gmail (d0t) com and we'll work out getting your gift card to you.

In the meantime people, enjoy your weekend. If you need me, I'll be sniffing my new erasers and sorting my new five dollar and ninety-nine cent container full of office supply goodies.

I'm totally serious.

iTunes Giveaway: Last Chance!

You have until 11:59pm EST today to enter my giveaway for the $15 iTunes gift card. All you have to do is either buy 1 (or 2) of the remaining kikois or blog, tweet or post on facebook about the kikois for sale. All the funds from the kikoi sales will help bring home orphans by supporting the adoption of my friends Chris and Lindy.

Click here for full details. Don't forget to leave a comment for EACH entry. Please leave those comments over on the original post. Thanks!

I ran a 5K and my shins are still mad at me for it

Well, I did it. I ran a 5K.

My goal was to run the entire time without stopping to walk. With my ever encouraging, supremely amazing friend Lindsey jogging happily by my side, joyfully dumbing down her run BIG TIME to stay with me and chat me up while I jaulked and gasped for air and occasionally grunted something that sounded like responses to her questions, we crossed the finish line without even a hint of a walk.

Then my shins promptly snapped in half.

Well, it felt that way at least.

I had a second goal that I didn't really mention to anyone until after the race. I really didn't want to finish last. I mean, if it was either not walk and finish last or walk and finish 2nd to last, I'd have settled for last. But, Lindsey encouraged me to step it up the last 25 or so yards and pass some people right at the end.

It felt good. You know, until I stopped and my shins began hurling obscenities at me.

In case you've missed my previous running posts, you should know that, typically, I LOATHE running. But, as Lindsey has reminded me time and time again during my training for the 5K and during the actual race itself, this is a goal that I am actually seeing come to fruition. As a Mom, often our goals are either short lived (ie. clean the kitchen, wash the laundry, repeat) or it can take years to see our goals come to pass (ie. raise respectful children, have a family who serves the Lord without hesitation). But running, well, it's a goal I can set and reach in a fairly short amount of time.

Truthfully, two weeks ago I went out for a run and ended up stopping about 1/4 of the way through. With tears streaming down my face, I came home feeling so defeated. I began thinking of ways that I could get out of the 5K and it seem like a good, valid, not-my-fault excuse. "Maybe I'll get mastitis or maybe I'll sprain my ankle!"

Seriously. I.wanted.out.

But now that I've accomplished a goal that I never even thought I'd set for myself, it feels good.

But don't think I'm going to become a die hard runner. Because let me tell you, I saw some pretty special people on Saturday. Wow. If you're an avid runner, this isn't a slam on you because, Lord have mercy, if I offend you it's not like you couldn't chase me down and hurt me. But, you know, runners are a rare breed, I believe.

I seriously saw a 60-something year old man jogging around the parking lot, pre-race to warm up. He jogged over in front of the 10 or so Port-a-Johns, jogged in place while he waited for one. Went in, did his business and then came out jogging and jogged away.

I have to wonder if he was inside jogging and peeing at the same time.

Then, there was the Chuck Norris wanna be runner. As he laid on his back in the grass, warming up by doing round-house kicks and pelvic thrusts, I almost couldn't look away. After he wind-sprinted across the parking lot 9,732 times I realized that, WOW. HE'S SERIOUS. Chuck ain't playin'.

Oh. And there was a woman in some weird shoes who wore a shirt that, apparently, she'd been previously attacked by a shark in. I'm serious. Shredded, from the breast down. SPE-SHUL.

Then, of course, there was the guy with long curly hair, tied back with a bandanna, in his tie dye shirt, jean shorts and BARE FEET who stood in front of us at the starting line. See? Specialness. Maybe he should have spoken to shark-shirt lady about her shoes.

Maybe I don't get out much anymore, or maybe I'm always the one being stared at, but I found the pre-race people watching worth the torture that my shins endured.

I mean, people. IT'S THREE MILES.

Which I mean, sure, that's Everest to me, an overweight, out of shape, stay-at-home Mom, 4 months postpartum. But for the avid runner I just had to chuckle at how serious they all were.

But I will say, those runners impressed me mucho. I mean, the guy that won ran his 5K in something like 13 minutes. I WAS BARELY THROUGH MY FIRST MILE AT 13 MINUTES. Actually, that's not true, I think 13 minutes is when I looked at Lindsey and said, "We're almost half-way, right?" and she checked her watch, chuckled and said, "Um. Not really."

And then I died inside. And maybe threw up in my mouth a little.

Das Not Funny! Friday: I heard it through the grapevine paper thin walls

It's Friday! Woop! I am so excited and totally past dry heaving (or at least for now) over the fact that my first ever 5K is tomorrow night. I ran the equivalent to a 5K last night just to see if I could and I DID IT! I did have to stop once so I didn't get smoked by a car, but otherwise I ran/jaulked the whole time. This is HUGE people. I am NOT a runner by nature. Not one bit.

At any rate, I'm stoked I made it a whole 3.1 miles without croaking. Also, if you haven't entered to win my giveaway that supports my amazing friends' adoption, you totally should. Click here for details or that little link above my posts.

Alright today's Das Not Funny! Friday funnies come to you courtesy of my kids and the commentary I hear between them while I am in the other room. These are just the ones I could remember off the top of my head and maybe some that I just heard while typing up this post. Hope y'all have an awesome weekend!

Ashlee: "Awww. Ellabella. You're so cute! I'm not your Mommy though, Ellabell. So you can't drink from my boobies."

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Elizabeth speaking to an over dramatic member of our family: "Oh Oli-vi-a. Seriously girl. It's not that bad."

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Aaron: "Knock-knock."

Elizabeth: "Who's there?"

Aaron, before Elizabeth can finish: "BOO!"

Then...silence. Apparently Aaron doesn't understand closure in a knock-knock joke.

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Elizabeth: "Her name is ELLABELLE!"

Ashlee: "And you're her kid!"

Elizabeth: "No. I'm her Mom."

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Lucas: "You know what my baby says? My baby says 'WAAAAA'."

Elizabeth: "That's nice."

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Lucas: "Stop calling me Lucas and call me The Man!"

A GIVEAWAY! Strike while the iron loom is hot!

**** Final Update (7/26/10)****

All the kikois are sold! Yay! But, if that makes you super sad b/c you're just now reading HAVE NO TEARS! Lindy is sending back TWENTY more kikois for you guys! They'll still be just a measly $15 a piece and certainly just as beautiful! Check back in a week or so and I'll hopefully have them photographed and ready to go!


****New Update****

Pinky Linky is SOLD. Sorry folks!

****UPDATED****

Clearly my brain is NOT functioning correctly! I forgot to post one of the kikois! See the 1st one on the list, "Pinky Linky!" Sorry if you've already bought one and wanted a pink one! If it's not already marked "SOLD" and you want to switch, let me know ASAP!

Again, MY BAD. I'm a nerd.

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Original Post:

It's no secret that I have a heart for orphans. Well, at least I hope it's not a secret. It's also no secret that I'm all about my new favorite baby wearing product, The Kikoi (pronounced key-koy). Okay, technically it's not a product. But, it is a fabulous way to wear your baby in numerous different ways. I know there are tons of nice brands of baby wearing paraphernalia out there but what I can promise you that the other brands cannot is that these kikois are cheap and 100% of the profits go to support international adoption. The adoption of the baby(ies) of my dear friends Chris and Lindy Thompson who are currently serving as international missionaries in Kenya.

Can I just tell you that missionaries don't really make a ton any money? So, funding an adoption with little-to-no income is pretty tough. Chris and Lindy are not using ANY of their ministry funds to pay for their adoption. And, I bet if they knew I was posting this huge 'ol long blog post about their adoption they'd probably ask me not too. But, DARN IT! those are my pseudo nieces and/or nephews waiting to come home and I intend to do anything and everything I can to see them home quickly!

So, what's the point? How do orphans and kikois relate?

Glad you asked.

You see, I love, love. LOVE my kikoi that Lindy brought me back from Kenya last year. Truthbetold, I didn't really think it was that awesome until I had Ella. I mean, I used it some with Aaron...

(11 month old Aaron)

And quite a bit more with Olivia when she was littler, but still not tons.

(7 month old Olivia)

But with Ella, well, I use it ALL THE TIME. Especially when we are out and about and she's screaming like her carseat is on fire she doesn't want to sit in her infant carrier or ride in the stroller. A couple nights ago, Luke got home later than normal and I wrapped her on me while cooking and serving up dinner to my other 5 hooligans children. It's been a sanity saver for sure.

(That's a 3ish week old Ella in there.)

And, I even have some friends (including Lindy) who wear them as skirts and they are so cute! I haven't figured out how to do that yet.

Anyway, Lindy sent home to me 10 brand-spankin' new kikois this past week. And, let me tell you, I'm questioning my friendship with Lindy. I mean, these kikois she sent are SO BEAUTIFUL and vibrant. When she gifted me a kikoi did I get a beautiful, vibrant kikoi?

No. I got puce green. Thanks Sista. Thanks a lot.

Not sure how to use a kikoi? Click here for a sorta informational video. Of course, I use the term informational loosely. Very loosely.

At any rate, you can purchase these fabulous kikois for a mere $15. They measure approximately (and I say approximate b/c I only measured 1 and they are hand made so they could vary by an inch or so) 39 inches wide by 65 inches long. For you seamstresses that would make them almost 1 yard wide by almost 2 yards long. (Obviously, I'm a math genius.)

Here's what I have for sale for $15 a piece (that's so cheap it should be a crime). Three guesses on who helped me "name" them.

******Pinky Linky is SOLD.******

******Ralphie is SOLD.******

*****Sherbert is SOLD.******

******Callie Pink is SOLD.******

******Earl Grey is SOLD.******

*****Seablanket is SOLD.******

******Greeny Beany is SOLD.******

****** Yellow John is SOLD.******

******Yellow John 2 is SOLD.******

******Elizabeth Ashlee is SOLD.******
(Not my Elizabeth or Ashlee. Just the kikoi.
You know, just to clarify, in case you were curious.)

(Please pay no attention to the circular blobs in the middle of each photo. Apparently, when you have dust in your nice, new camera, removing said dust by blowing into your camera with your mouth is not the best idea. Slobber can get on your sensor. Clearly, I'm a genius.)

Purdy, ain't they? But please, don't just take my word for how marvelous they are. Here are some friends of mine who have and use kikois. They are the real experts. Or not.

Here's what my BFF Amanda had to say about her kikoi:

I love, love, love my kikoi! I have to admit that when Jessica told me that she got one for me I completely underestimated it. "It's just a simple sling. How great could it be?" I had already gotten a Baby Bjorn and thought that was the be-all, end-all in baby carriers. I quickly learned otherwise!

I have used the kikoi since Annabelle was born. Even now, this 16-pound, 9-month-old loves to sit in her comfy red sling. I love it because it is versatile. She can ride sitting up or lay flat for some of the best naps she has ever taken. I also love it because it is portable. I just cram it into the diaper bag with everything else. Mostly, I love it because it is simple. It takes two people to get a newborn into one of those carriers with straps and buckles everywhere like the Baby Bjorn (which costs $70). I just leave the kikoi tied all the time, throw the baby on my hip, slide it over both of our heads, and she's ready to go. She literally starts shaking and grunting with excitement when she sees me grab it. Don't let the simplicity fool you. It's my favorite sling and I use nothing else!

(Amanda and her daughter Annabelle,
who was almost brand new at the time)

Also, my bloggy friend Tia bought one not too long ago and wrote me this,

I found out about the kikoi through my super sweet and awesome bloggy friend. It looked simple, easy and like it didn't take much effort. That is exactly what I needed for my chunky baby since she has a very very active two year old sister. Once I received my kikoi in the mail I was a little confused about how it was supposed to feel while carrying my large load of a baby. I watched Jess's informative videos on it and once I gave it another try I was hooked. I use my kikoi while grocery shopping, during family outings, while cooking dinner and pretty much anytime carrying my baby is needed. I've even found ways to use it while not carrying her. When I have her in the umbrella type stroller (without the umbrella) I just slide it over the handles (while still tied-knot on backside of stroller) and let it fall over the baby. It's loose enough to keep her from getting hot but it keeps the sun off of her sweet baby skin...and when the wind is blowing too hard I just pull it up over her head. And the other day I figured out that if I get tired of carrying her I can put her in the grocery basket, strap her in and then slide the wrap over her body and around the shopping cart seat (knot on back of seat) and it will keep her from falling over :-). We REALLY love our kikoi! I think you need one too.

(Tia and her daughter Isabelle)

After reading all of that don't you want to support adoption and buy one of these beautiful pieces of fabric?

Here's what you should do. Email me at beaverbunch (at) gmail (dot) com and tell me which one you like. (You can find the name of each one in the photo. Click to enlarge if you need to.) I will email you instructions on how to pay and once your payment is received I will ship it to you! Easy peasy!

Now, for the giveaway part.

I will randomly give away one $15.00 iTunes gift card to someone who either purchases or promotes the purchase of a kikoi. Don't want a kikoi, but want in on the giveaway action? No problemo! Here are some additional ways you can enter to win the iTunes gift card.

* Twitter about this post, linking this post's URL in your tweet. (You can obtain this post's URL by clicking on the post title and then looking at the web address in your address bar.)

* Facebook about this post, linking this post's URL in your status.

* Blog about this post, linking to this post's URL in your blog post.

Please leave one comment for each entry. You can create an entry for each option available. For example, if you buy a kikoi leave a comment saying, "I bought one" or something. Then, if you also twitter about this post, leave a separate comment saying "I tweeted! Here's the link to my tweet: http://...." If you additionally facebook about the giveaway, then leave yet a 3rd comment saying such and leaving a link to your facebook post.

You get the idea. I will use Random.org to randomly choose ONE winner for the iTunes gift card and send it to you via your email address. Entries for the giveaway must be submitted by 11:59pm EST on Thursday, July 22, 2010. The kikois will be available until all are sold.

So, buy a kikoi or spread the word and let's un-orphan a few more babies and decrease the 147 million orphans world-wide one family at a time. Whatta ya say?

Random

This is going to be a random post. All over the place.

What's new around here?

A lot.

Luke and I took the three littlest kids to the farmer's market on Saturday. It was awesome. We'd never been to a farmer's market before. It was eye opening. We've also watched Food, Inc. It was informative. But, we've wanted to go to the farmer's market long before watching that movie. Watching it just sort of spurred us to go sooner rather than later. We bought lots of fresh produce and also some meat. We've been debating/talking about buying half a cow. We've heard it's healthier than buying grocery store beef. We bought some from some of the farmer's at the market and I've just finished browning some hamburger. Can I tell you there was hardly any fat? Wow.

Luke and I made our first batch of homemade laundry soap last night. I've been debating doing it for a while now and after I read this post and then realized we were about to run out of the store bought stuff, I figured now would be a good time to try it. I used this recipe. I've washed two loads today. The jury is still out on how much I like it. It's awfully lumpy/jelly like. And, there's hardly any scent. It was super easy to make though and cost next-to-nothing.

Ella has begun "biting" me with her gums when she nurses. It hurts. A lot. When I tell her "NO!" she grins at me. Earlier, I pulled her off and gently flicked her mouth and said "NO!" She grinned bigger. Great.

Our neighbor's cat had kittens. So, naturally, Elizabeth wants a kitten for her 6th birthday. Ithinknot. Thankfully, my (step)Dad took her last night and bought her a fake cat. It looks so real. It's subdued her desires to have a real cat. Thank you, from the bottom of my cat-loathing heart Dad. You are a LIFE SAVER. THANK YOU.

The 5K I signed up to run in is THIS Saturday. Holy moly. I think the dry heaving has started. (Gag.snort.cough.) Yep. Definitely.

Tomorrow is sort of an important day for us. I'll try to give details soon. If you feel led and/or you remember, we'd appreciate prayers.

There is so much laundry piled on our love seat that our children are (at this very moment) pretending like it's a mountain and climbing to the top. Elizabeth's wearing a batters helmet while she climbs. I think that's a safe precaution. It's pretty high up there.

Later this week I'm having a fun giveaway. Or, at least I think it's fun. And, it will help bring home 1 or 2 of the 147 million orphans that have no place to call home. Stay tuned!

He's my glimpse of the beginning

I loved reading your comments on my last post. All of them. Even if you don't believe the same things I believe, I appreciate your honesty and I'm honored that each of you care enough about me and this silly little blog to share your hearts with me. I'm humbled.

I pray that you will see my heart in the words that I'm hoping to pour out for you.

I've been working on this post since April 26th. I'd write a little then back off for a few days. Then write some more then walk away for a week. It's been an evolving post and I think I might have all of my thoughts out. Maybe.

I know I've blogged before about how I've changed since I became a professing Christian. And, I know that there are those of you who read this that knew me before I am the person I claim to be now. And, the truth is I'm pretty much the same person as before.

But I'm also completely different.

I'm still too loud.
I still talk too much.
I still say things that teeter on the edge of hysterical and slightly ill timed.
I still love to spend my time laughing, more than just about any other thing.

But, I'm also dramatically changed.

What the me of right now possesses that the the me of college and pre-kids never understood is Jesus.

Please. I'm begging you. If you'd normally stop reading a blog because of something religious being mentioned, I'm asking you not to stop just this once. Because I have some things that I'd like to say and they probably won't make a single, solitary difference to you. But maybe they will. And, I'm praying for the maybe.

There's a song by Addison Road called, "What do I know of Holy?" One of the lines says, "Then I caught a glimpse of who you might be. The slightest hint of You brought me down to my knees."

I'm praying that if you've never caught a glimpse of who He might be that today you will. Not necessarily from my words or this post because, truthfully, I'm not that important. But I pray that the God of the universes calls to you and out of the corner of your heart you catch a glimpse.

Now...Who is Jesus to me? Glad you asked.

You see, I think there's a huge misdirection in the life of Christians and churches today. I think that, unfortunately, Christians and churches alike see Jesus and think of salvation as the end result.

"Change your ways, believe in Jesus and you will be SAVED!!"

Yes, that's true. Believing in Jesus will save you. It will save you from an assurance of eternity separated from God. But, I want to share with you where I think that most Christians (myself included) have missed the mark. You see, we often times see the salvation as the end of a journey. We sell ourselves short by saying we believe in Jesus, going church, changing some things and we then are saved.

I'm here to tell you that I don't really think salvation is the end. I don't think that the whole "then we are saved" is the final result.

Sure, I'm burdened for the eternity of people that will never choose Jesus. Yes, their eternity is vitally important. But where I think we Americans water down our faith is when we believe that the final destination is salvation.

You see, I'm a changed girl. I used to allow my body and mind to be used by whatever man I saw fit. I used to allow my soul to be captivated by things that were not healthy and certainly not encouraging. I used to allow my mind to linger on things that would ultimately damage my relationships and poison my heart.

And, then I met Jesus.

My love for Him wasn't overnight. I knew I needed more of Him but, truthfully, I wasn't sure what that looked like and I just knew I didn't want to be any place other than heaven when my body was left without a spirit. However, I can't tell you that I instantly fell in love and on such-and-such day my life began looking drastically different. I still struggled with lustful thoughts and allowed my heart to dwell on jealously and greed.

I wasn't changed overnight. But, I thought I should have been. I would beat myself up over my mistakes and obvious flaws because I was sure that any real Christian wouldn't struggle with such things. Afterall, calling yourself a Christian and then allowing profanity to spew all over another person is slightly, no blatantly, hypocritical. Calling yourself a Christian and then having lustful thoughts, even allowing them to engage your mind is just not permissible. Is it?

But, what I have slowly come to realize is that salvation isn't the end. It isn't the true definition of what a Christian is. Salvation doesn't mean that I've finally arrived. I've still got so, so, so much to learn. And truly the learning doesn't even BEGIN until salvation has occurred.

My point is, I am really beginning to believe that heaven is a byproduct of loving Jesus and that knowing God is the real reward.

Think about that.

Yes, heaven will be a glorious place. A place with no sin, no hurt, no hunger, no orphans, no sickness. My mind cannot grasp that no matter how hard I try. But I still think that heaven is a secondary prize of loving Jesus. Because, loving Jesus gets us to God.

God is the prize. He's the #1 benefit. He is what you get when you strip away all of the things that come along with labeling yourself as a Christian. Sure, heaven is awesome. But God? He's phenomenal.

David Platt wrote in his book Radical, "We realize that we are saved not just to be forgiven of our sins or to be assured of our eternity in heaven, but we are saved to know God."

Heaven isn't the reason that I pray over my thoughts and plead with God to control them. Desiring to know God more intimately is.

Heaven isn't the reason that I pray that my eyes will only be for my husband and that my desires will build within me so that I only crave his affection.
Desiring to know God on an intimately personal, yet totally vulnerable level is.

I didn't decide it was time for me to become a Christian because it was suddenly a little easier to control my tongue. I didn't decide it was time for me to become a Christian because I finally found a way to read my Bible more frequently. I didn't decide it was time for me to become a Christian because out of the blue my thought life became less centered on sexual immorality.

I didn't decide it was time for me to become a Christian because suddenly I am better equipped to do those things. It's actually the total opposite.

I am able to better control my tongue and my thoughts because I follow Jesus. I read my Bible more frequently because I desire to know Him more. It is possible for me to sometimes forget how I whored my body to men because as I desire to know more about Him, God is slowly erasing those memories from my mind.

I sure hope this is making sense because it's so hard to convey this with written words. What I'm trying to say is that

Reading my Bible
+
Controlling my tongue
+
Pushing away lustful thoughts
+
Having more self control
+
Speaking more kindly

DOES NOT equal Christianity.

I am not a lover of Jesus because I am finally able to do those things on my own accord. It's the total opposite.

Because I have seen how Jesus is the lover of my soul and because His Spirit (the one that rose dead men from their graves) lives within me am I now able to do the things I listed above.

Because of His Spirit's power deep inside my soul I have more self control, I speak more kindly, I'm better equipped to push out lustful thoughts when they enter my mind, I can more easily control my tongue and I desire to read my Bible, study it even, so that I can understand God's character.

My claims of being a believer in Jesus are not rooted in my desire to enter heaven. They are rooted in my desire to know God. And Jesus is my in. He's the one holding the back door open for me so that I can sneak in. In John 14:6 Jesus spoke these words, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me."

Can I just tell you that before I understood Jesus, before I caught a glimpse of who He is I thought that He was an arrogant jerk? I thought that he had an awful lot of gall for claiming to be the be-all end-all. Can I also tell you that just a glimpse of Him changed my perspective?

It is my whole-hearted plea with the Lord that each person that I love and each person reading these words would also know God on an intimate level. One that changes you to your very core. My prayer is that God would reach into your soul and pull out the seeds of sin that have deeply planted themselves in the dark places that you never thought could be touched.

Trust me, I know those parts. The parts of you that you are afraid to confess to the darkness of night even when no one else is home, the doors are locked and you are certain, certain not even your faintest whisper would ever grace the ear of another human, yet you still don't utter a word because who thinks/does/says those things?

Please believe that the God of all creation who chose to send himself in human flesh so that he could meet you where you are knows your darkness and he loves you anyway. How I wish I could show you how much my heart aches for you to feel that love. It drives me to my knees.

Yes, I desire to see you "get into" heaven. But I really believe that being with you in heaven would just be icing on the proverbial cake. Seeing you flourish in the love that the Lord himself has for you would be my heart's greatest desire. Knowing that you could be missing out on experiencing the greatest love ever known makes tears spring to my eyes.

I desire it so deeply for you. And yet, my fear is that many people reading this profess to be Christians and have never felt that love. Many people reading profess that they know God apart from knowing Christ Jesus. And, that doesn't make me love them less. Nor does it make God love them less. But it does ensure that they are missing out on knowing and abiding in the love the Creator has for them.

I can testify to that because the me of 7 or 8 years ago never knew this kind of love. She never knew that even though her claims of Christianity were voiced, her heart had never truly felt the Father's love. She never knew that the sin that had grown deep roots could never be removed unless she allowed the Lord into the darkest places of her soul. She never felt complete. She never felt the desire to move outside of what was comfortable, what was normal and forsake her own desires because that meant knowing God even more deeply. And, she wouldn't have cared even if I had told her what she was missing.

Me. Now. I feel it. Yes, I struggle with holding my tongue and anger and jealousy and still, infrequently - lust. But the grip that those things held me with so tightly, will never again hold me captive. You see, knowing the God of the universe is more important to me. Knowing His plans and His desires for my life far reach my own desires. Knowing that His perfect plan will increase my faith and equip me with just what I need is enough.

So who is Jesus to me?

He is the conqueror of my darkness. He is the lover of my burdened heart. He is the One that knows me intimately and yet chooses me anyway. He's the One that chose to get his hands dirty when he reached down to pull me from the pit.

He's my glimpse of the beginning.

I have a question for you

Okay, so I've had a post saved in my drafts for a while now. I've changed the title quite a few times as the post has evolved. I've been praying my way through it because I want it to say just what is bottled up inside my heart.

I've even debated not even publishing it.

But, after listening Sunday's message from our Pastor, I've realized even more that there's a question I need to ask myself and in turn, bring its answer from within the recesses of my heart and put it out here.

But, before I attempt to answer this question myself, I'd like to first ask you.

A few things first...

* You do not have to be a Christian to answer. (Although, if you post spam in Chinese/Japanese/Mandrin characters I will delete you.)

* I don't want your "church" answer. I don't want a Sunday school answer. I want a raw, real answer.

* Be honest. Honesty is healthy.

* If you feel uncomfortable answering in the comments section, you can email me your response and I'll post it for you, in the comments anonymously. You can email me at beaverbunch (at) gmail (dot) com. Please put "Answers" in the subject line so I won't think you're spam.

Okay, so here it is. It's a simple, yet a totally sincere question from my heart...

Who is Jesus to you?

I look forward to your comments.

Prayers for Bennett

Hey folks. I'd like to ask you to send up some prayers on behalf of my blog-friend Adrienne. Although I've never met her IRL (in real life) we've emailed back and forth several times and she has just encouraged me in countless ways.

Yesterday, Adrienne delivered their son Bennett at 26 weeks and 5 days. Adrienne has had many complications throughout this pregnancy. After having 6 miscarriages Adrienne was finally able to maintain her pregnancy with Bennett. He is their 4th child though, since they've welcomed 3 others into their home through adoption. The last two little ones in their house have joined them in the last 8 months and both of their 2 littlest ones are just over year old! Their oldest son, Owen, is just 4 years old! They've gone from 1 child to 4 small children in just a year. What a blessing!

That's just a snippet of their story. Check out Adrienne's blog and lift up her family, especially Bennett in prayer if you will. I know that they have a long, long road ahead of them.

Thanks friends.

Das Not Funny! Friday: Find a new twin

Hey folks. Although it's been a quiet week around this blog, that doesn't necessarily equate to a quiet week around the house. Yesterday might have been the most beautiful southern summer day I've ever experienced in my 30 years of living exclusively in the south. It seriously felt like spring time. It was exceptional and I'm sure God sent it specifically for me to enjoy. Me and everyone else who wasn't living in a cave yesterday. I think the humidity was actually less that 1,000% which is just a few percentages less than the previous 20 days.

Anyway, I only have two funnies that I remember this week. Actually, that's not true. Aaron and Olivia have become quite the comedians but it's difficult to convey to you the hilarity in words since it typically includes over exaggerated body language and toddler jibberish that I'm not even sure where to begin with spelling them accurately. Because accuracy when spelling jibberish is apparently high on my list of things I must do with pin-point accuracy.

Just know that Aaron thinks it's hysterical to inflict bodily injury on himself and Olivia sings. Constantly. And by constantly I mean all the time. And it's typically accompanied with dancing. And it's hilarious on about 57 levels.

Anyway.....

This one is courtesy of our babysitter/nanny. (I struggle to call her just a babysitter because she's more than that, but calling her our nanny just feels wrong.) At any rate, she told me of the following conversation that happened earlier this week while she had the kids outside playing.

Lucas: "I don't want to be pals anymore."

Ashlee (talking as if the world was ending): "But we're TWINS!! If we can't be pals we can't be twins!"

Lucas: "Well, find a new twin then."

His love for his sisters is sometimes only surpassed by everything else in the world.

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Lucas to me: "Mom, since I've been so good today, in the morning can I add chewy gums [fruit chews] to my cereal?"

Ahhhh. Because that would taste especially yummy. Or not.

Y'all have an awesomely superb weekend.

One year

One year ago today we were homeowners, without our home even listed for sale.

One year ago today I was still in basking in the new knowledge that a baby was growing inside me.

One year ago today we felt burdened for missions but sat confused on how God would work it all out with a baby on the way.

One year ago today I lost my step-mom unexpectedly. And my sister lost her mother.

One year ago today I knew less about God.

One year ago today I didn't know the things I know today.

One year ago I was so caught up in today that I forgot that a year from now my life might look totally different. And, I still struggle to remember this.

One year from today I pray that my life is closer to being fully consecrated to a mighty God.

One year from today I pray that I will be that much more in love with my Savior.

One year from today I will look back and remember all that God has done for us and stand in awe, just as I do today.

One year from today God will remind me that He is in the details and on the mountain tops, He's in the valleys and in the major decisions.

One year from today I pray my Bible is a little more worn, my heart is a little more full of His words and my sin is a little further removed from my day to day.

One year from today will be marvelous. I just know it.

Das Not Funny! Friday: Dressed for success

When Luke and I were in college, Luke made it a habit of dressing nicely anytime he had an exam or a presentation. I thought it was ridiculous to dress up just to take a test, since my normal attire of athletic pants and a t-shirt seemed to be just as test worthy as a skirt or dress pants. In fact, about the only time I dressed up was when my sorority made me OR when all my other clothes were dirty and dress clothes were the only thing that didn't reek. Nonetheless, Luke insisted that he was better test taker when he "dressed for success."

Yes, I still make fun of him. Yes, I still wear athletic pants and t-shirts most days and Luke wears a tie and dress slacks. Clearly we were being molded for our current jobs even way back then.

Anyway, after watching Ashlee sprint across the yard earlier this morning and giggling at her attire (dress, leggings and white athletic socks with her crocs), I concluded that our children have taken after their father in most ways. And, quite possibly, their desire to dress for success could be genetic. (Insert HUGE exasperated Mom sigh)

Most days, I allow the older 3 to dress themselves. The only parameters I set are that their choices must be modest and weather appropriate. No tiny undershirts without an overshirt for the girls and no sweaters when it's 99 degrees outside. You know, so they don't dehydrate themselves by sweating out their weight with the heat index being well over 100 degrees. Gotta love the South.

At any rate, most times my older three, the girls especially, come out in some interesting garb. Once, I took them into Wal-mart after we'd left a tea-party and they had on their "fancy clothes." We got a lot of looks but, honestly, I don't care. The only time I've really paused was just after Easter when Elizabeth wore her Easter shoes and a nice, church dress to church with GAP athletic socks. Oh well. People surely understand that I have bigger fish to fry than whether or not my kids look perfect.

And truthfully, I think it allows them some control in a world where they have very little control. And, it often gives Luke and I a good chuckle when we see what they deem as appropriate clothing. Here are some examples. This is the clothing each of our older three children chose for a few hours of outside play time.

Nothing says "I'm a real cowboy" like your boots with some shorty-shorts. Right?

Ashlee loves to dress herself in "pretty dresses." Nothing says purdy like a baby pink polyester dress and your crocs. Nothing. Notice that she's also sporting a shotgun. I'd guess that would be necessary to keep the paparazzi at bay. I mean, she is a diva.

As for Elizabeth, well, she's her own girl. I mean, nothing says summer sporty casual like black sweatpants under last year's too-short dress. I think the headband-being-worn-as-a-necklace really sets off the outfit. Don't you? Naturally, you'll need to accessorize with a bat and ball. Afterall, you don't want anyone thinking you can't play ball just because you're rockin' a dress.


Nighttime attire is always interesting around here. When the twins turned 4 back at the end of May, we decided to celebrate with some old sparklers I found in the bottom of a box. Since it's summertime and it doesn't get completely dark until 2am, we had them go ahead and get completely ready for bed while we waited for it to be dark enough. Sidenote: it never really got dark enough. At any rate, this is what they wore for bed that night. Please make special note of Lucas' favorite bedtime shirt also featured here.

Ashlee is of the mindset that pajamas are pajamas and no one said they ever had to match.


Apparently these are Elizabeth's favorite pajamas. It doesn't matter how many times I move them to Ashlee's pajama drawer, they always end up on Elizabeth's body. The good news is that if she ever encounters a flood in the middle of the night she is good to go.

Headbands are all the rage at our house right now. Our girls even go to bed with them on and I have to repeatedly remind them to take them off. When worn correctly, my girls look amazingly cute wearing a headband.


But if one hair accessory is cute, then 3 must be cuter, right?

And if 3 are cuter, then over the top HUGE must be gorgeous. Wouldn't you agree?

Go big or go home, that's what I always say.

Hope y'all have a weekend that's dressed for success.

Ella Joy at 3 months

Totally unrelated preface: David Platt's book Radical is available in audio version for the next 24 hours for ONLY $2.49! Click here for details. I'd suggest you go download it NOW if you don't own it in paper version. Or, perhaps, even if you do.

Okay, now about my Ella...

Today my sweet Ella Joy is three months old. THREE months old.

Will someone please tell her to stop growing? I've tried. She's being very disobedient and growing more every day, despite my authoritative tone.

Ahem. Anyway, several people told us that by giving her the name Joy we were certainly to have destined her to be a joyful soul. I don't know if that equates in my book, but she certainly is joyful. And, she fills us with joy as well.

(The look on her face in this photo cracks me up.)

At three months old, I promise, Ella is progressing much faster than any of the other children. At her 2 month check up our Pediatrician said she was as attentive as a 4 or 5 month old. The doctor attributed her alertness to the fact that she always has something or someone to look at in our house. I guess I could see how that would make her a little advanced.

She has started to laugh, although she's truly only belly laughed once. So, naturally, each time I have a few minutes with just my chubby cheeked princess, I spend every second of it trying to make her giggle. Her laugh and smile are just so sweet and I cannot resist her.

In a matter of a few days, Ella not only discovered that she has a tongue but also how to blow bubbles. And, she spends most of her awake time grinning and blowing bubbles. She is finally tolerating her car seat much more often. I finally wised up and thought that maybe she was getting bored so I added some dangly things from the handle and she enjoys looking at them and grinning.

I also went to a local consignment shop and bought her a new (to us) playmat. The one we had I threw out after it kept collapsing on Aaron and Olivia. She seems to really love laying under it and looking at the things hanging above her and, of course, grinning.

She has started sitting in the Bumbo seat and at first she looked like a bobblehead doll. But over the last week or so she's doing much better controlling her head. She loves to sit in there and watch everyone and smile at passers by.

As for sleeping, well, it's going. She has slept 2 or 3 nights exclusively in her crib but usually she begins and ends the night in her swing with possibly 1 stretch of sleep in her crib. BUT, she's not sleeping stretches of the night in our bed anymore and I think that's progress! She still loves to be swaddled at night. Though, Luke and I don't give her much of a choice about it. We joke that we swaddle our kids until they are old enough to ask to not be swaddled anymore. That's totally a joke. Aaron didn't start talking until the week after we stopped swaddling him. ;) She usually has one good stretch of sleep, typically her first stretch, that lasts 4-5 hours. After that, she wakes every 2-3 hours to eat.

What I love most about Ella right now is her desire to be in the mix of everyone else. She is so content to just sit and watch everyone around her. I also love her fat, chubby cheeks. Luke and I have never had a rolly poly baby in all 5 of the previous kids. I am so loving her chubby little thighs and chins.

She is finally, finally taking a bottle semi-consistently (can something be considered consistent if it's only semi-consistent?). Wouldn't you know that she's now content to take the same bottle as all the others took? Yay! Which makes it possible for me to sometimes do this:

I just can't tell if Lucas is proud to be feeding his littlest sister or not. What do you think?

You know what though? We are all proud of our littlest girl. Each and every one of us. I just don't know how we ever managed without her.

The Stinky-waa waa Song

I found these kids in my house today. I thought about kicking them to curb since clearly I don't have kids this old (I mean, I just had them all like 2 weeks ago plus, I'm still young and hip - no comments about the Mom shorts please - and so I couldn't possibly have two 4 year olds and an (almost) 6 year old). But, then they serenaded me and I thought, "What the heck? I'll let 'em stay."

So, I present to you,

"The Stinky-waawaa Song"

Let me interpret for those of you who either
A) Don't understand little kids,
2) Live somewhere other than the south and you cannot decipher southern little kid
or III) Cannot understand due to the awesome audio quality of this video.

I'm a little striped skunk,
Sleeping under someone's bunk.
No one wants to sleep with me,
I'm as smelly as can be.

Stinky-waa-waa!

The preceding song is sung approximately 573 times a day around here, in varying decibel levels and with increasing silliness. Sometimes with hand motions or a small knee bounce for added rhythm. I use the word "rhythm" loosely.

Have I mentioned lately how much I LOVE my job? Because I do. A lot.

Due to the recent number of videos on the blog, can you guess what I found a couple weeks ago while unpacking a box? Yes, I know we've lived here for 3.5 months and I still have boxes stacked up in most rooms. Stop judging me. I moved boxes from our old house to here that had NEVER BEEN UNPACKED in the two years we lived at the old house. If you'll seriously look at the state of my home as I scan the camera around our dining area, you'll see that housekeeping isn't exactly my spiritual gift. I'd love a spiritual gift of a cleaning lady 2 days a week if anyone is looking to unload one. For free of course.

Also, please make note of the attire that my kids are wearing. Yes, Lucas and Ashlee are in their PJ's, even though they'd already gotten dressed for the day. Apparently, mid-morning calls for PJ's in our house. And, I will tell you that Lucas felt it necessary to take off his underwear under that offensively yellow night shirt that he LOVES beyond every other shred of clothing that he owns. Sorry if the neon yellow made your retinas bleed.

3 guesses who the camera hog is in our house.

It's never a dull moment around here. Never.

Das Not Funny! Friday: Verbiage

I have so many drafts saved that I'd like to post about.

I'm on Chapter 5 of Radical by David Platt and I still need to post about Chapters 2, 3 and 4. It's so good. Just go buy it and read it. Seriously.

I appreciate all the comments about my Mom shorts. Maybe they aren't THAT bad since most of you claim you don't know what I'm talking about. Either that, or you all have Mom shorts too and your opinions mean squat. Seeing as how all the folks who have no clue what I meant were Moms, I'm going with option B. Heh. I kid. Sorta.

I also have a post that I'm praying about posting. It's about Mommy anger. I'm amazed at how I can love these little blessings so much and yet sometimes, get so stinkin' angry at them. Can anybody else relate?

Anyway, on with the funnies...

There have been so many funny things going on around here. Aaron is really starting to talk and anytime Ella sneezes his sweet little self says, "Less lewe Lellllla. Less lewe Lellllwa." (Bless you Ella.) It's hysterically precious.

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Elizabeth came out of the bathroom one afternoon, holding an empty bottle. She said, "Mom, we're outta tizer in the hanatizer bottle."

Our kids have called it "hanatizer" for a sweet forever and, I don't correct them because I think it's that cute.

------

Lucas was sitting in front of the TV earlier this afternoon as we watched cartoons. Elizabeth and Ashlee, in turn, couldn't see. So, I said to him, "Lucas, your Momma wasn't a glass maker Buddy."

To which Elizabeth replied, "Nope. You were a teacher."

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The flies in our house are out of control. It might have something to do with the 3 children who leave the door open in an effort to cool off the yard, I'm guessing. At any rate, fly killing has become a hobby amongst our older 3 kids. Elizabeth asked me the a few days ago, "Hey Mom. Where are you hiding the flyswapper?"

I told her we don't swap flies.

She stared at me like I'd lost my mind.

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I know. Those weren't awesome. Forgive me. It's been a long week. Y'all have a great weekend!

Draw the curtains, nail down the blinds

We have a unique living situation. As you all probably already know, we sold our house at the beginning of March. Currently we are renting a house. We are renting it on a "campus." That's about as specific as I'd like to be with our living location and broadcasting it to the interweb, so if you know where we live I'd appreciate the ambiguity as well in your comments.

The reason I'm bringing it up today is because at this very moment, right outside my front door is this:


Yes. Three HUGE inflatable bouncehouses/slides. Where we live they are celebrating. A celebration that only takes place every 5 years, to my understanding. Which means, it's a BIG celebration.

And, we are not really invited to play on those lovely, fun, totally-would-wear-my-kids-out toys that are RIGHT OUTSIDE OUR FRONT DOOR. Yes, that's our lawn furniture and toys laying in the grass. Squeals and laughter are echoing through our house as the sounds of children enjoying themselves on these bounceable toys. And, there's a band playing somewhere on the not so distant lawn.

Those things pretty much make our RRIAP look like a deflated kiddie pool.

Wow. I've never drawn our blinds so tightly as I am today. I think I'll blindfold my kids and carry them out to the van 1 by 1 and leave for the entire afternoon. Thanks to a friend who will make that possible by loaning us her house this afternoon.

I sure hope no one gets the bright idea to look out the window. Something tells me I'll be playing zone defense this morning, with my zone being all the windows/doors on the front side of our house.

Bring on the meltdowns.

Like a fart in the wind

I have blogged about running before. 7 times to be exact. (Hint: Click on each of the words in that 1st sentence to see my previous posts about running.) 1 of those times was to promote Run 4 Revolution so really it had nothing to do with me running.

The last time(s) I posted about running, my running streak lasted 10 days.

TEN DAYS.

Like a fart in the wind, it was gone quicker than it came.

Today I registered to Run my first ever 5K. Yes, I know I blogged about running a 5K once before but I never ran in it. In fact, I chickened out/hyperventilated from nerves the morning of the race. But now, I'm actually running. Like for real running.

Like, I've been running for about 7 WEEKS. Weeks, not days people. That's pretty monumental for me. And, the craziest part is that I am actually enjoying it.

Truthfully, I don't really run. I jaulk. It's like a half jog/half walk. I haven't mentioned my jaulking here on the blog before now because it could have been like the whole "fart in the wind" thing again and then I'd be 0 for 2. And my dignity can't take that kind of a record.

I'm actually registered to run a 5K on July 17th (I even paid a registration fee!). My friend Lindsey has been my Drill Sergeant accountability partner and kept me in check, asking if I'm running and concerned with how I'm actually doing. She even made me a spreadsheet telling me how much I should be running each day so that I don't burn out. And, even once, she dumbed down a run and ran/jaulked with me. She talked the whole time, while I gasped for air, and made it rather enjoyable for me. (Lindsey is training for the Boston Marathon so when I say "dumbed down" her run, she REALLY dumbed down her run. It would be like a Rocket Scientist doing addition flash cards with a 1st grader.)

So, I'm running or something like that. And, I'm proud of myself for not quitting. My husband has been a constant source of encouragement. Because, you see, I'm NOT a runner by nature. In my athletic prime, I wasn't a distance runner. In fact, I PREFERRED the days we did wind sprints over the days we did distance running. I sorta liked sprinting as long as the sprints were 1 lap or less around the track.

And, I imagine this running/jaulking thing will be something I continue to do. Even though, technically, my favorite part about the running is the stopping at the end.

Kikoi: The Trilogy

When I posted about my kikoi so many (three) of you jumped on board and wanted one for yourself. Well, I should have known that the kikoi takes some getting used to. I got my first one a few months after we got Olivia's placement and, truthfully, I didn't like it all that much.

But then, I figured out that it really didn't matter what the "right" way was for using it. The point was, I needed to use it. When we had Ella, I dug it back out because I really didn't have a choice. I NEEDED both of my hands all day and Ella NEEDED me to hold her. So, I decided to adapt, improvise and overcome. (That's my husband's college baseball coach's motto. Smart man. He has a lot of kids. I bet it wasn't really meant at all for baseball.)

At any rate, I LOVE my kikoi. I love it beyond the amount that anyone should love a long piece of fabric. And, after I shipped out 2 kikois I got 2 responses saying that they had no clue how to use it. Or, that they had tried to use it but it was awkward.

I totally understood. And, I equally wanted them to love their kikoi as much as I love mine. So, behold, below is a trilogy of sorts on how to use your kikoi. Keep in mind I really have no idea what I'm doing. I'm also going to add some commentary in reference to each of the 3 videos. Truthfully, I would have preferred that this all be consolidated into 1 video, but my cameraman kept stopping the video (twice) and the camera he was using creates a new video each time. And, I have no stinkin' clue how to combine them all. So, bear with me people.

Also, as Luke pointed out I probably could have just emailed these videos to the two people who asked about them but what would be the fun in that? Who would provide such lovely kikoi footage to the rest of the world?

No one. That's who.

First up, how to tie your kikoi into a good knot. Seriously, could the bottom of my foot be any grosser? I won't tell you that I had JUST had a surprise pedicure THAT VERY MORNING. Seriously, I am such a hick, as if my southern drawl when I said, "foo-yut" didn't tip you off to my hick-ness that nasty foot did. If you've ever question which area of the country I'm from, these three videos should make it CLEAR AS DAY. South, deep south. That's your answer.

Also, the side "commentary" is from Olivia. She's off camera strapped into her booster seat. I'm SHOCKED she was so quiet for the making of this film. She typically interjects her thoughts anytime someone else is talking. Even though her thoughts are undecipherable.

Okay, roll that beautiful bean footage...

Kikoi 1 from The Beaver Bunch on Vimeo.

My plan was that the cameraman wouldn't stop tape but rather pass off my babe to me in one fluid motion. Guess not.

For video #2

I realize it appears as though I'm flopping my 11 week old around like a rag doll. Apparently, having an average of a baby a year over the last 6 years has made me a little confident in my baby hold techniques. Other people have told me that I'm this way but seeing it makes me understand exactly what they mean. There were a couple of times that I wanted to reach through the screen and take my baby out of my own arms. Mind you, it never feels like she's being flopped around and I have never dropped one of our babies. And, truthfully she really is safe and secure within my grip. But have mercy.

Also, WHY HASN'T ANYONE TOLD ME ABOUT THOSE SHORTS? If you've ever seen me in those shorts and not said, "Um...what's with the Mom shorts? They are not working for you." you are officially dead to me. DEAD. Seriously. I have Mom crotch AND Mom butt in those! People! I thought we were friends! I'm burning those shorts. Or, at the very least, throwing them to the WAY BACK part of my closet and only pulling them out when I have nothing else to wear and it's 157 degrees with 200% humidity. You know, when it's so stinkin' hot I don't care how my butt looks because I'll be inside sitting directly in front of the air conditioner on my ugly Mom butt.

kikoi 2 from The Beaver Bunch on Vimeo.

Onto the 3rd video, if we must...

Please note that the cameraman told me to bend over like that to show how the baby is securely in place. But, I'm sure Michael Jackson had a grand excuse as well for his baby dangling mishap, so let's just move right along...

The ugly face. Clearly my desire to help is only nullified by me plastering an ugly face all over the interweb. Glad I'm not one bit concerned with myself. Too bad the still frame of video 2 just shot the water out of my ugly face theory.

kikoi 3 from The Beaver Bunch on Vimeo.

Finally, for those of you who this video actually applies to, it would be good to note that I don't untie my kikoi between uses. This makes it available more quickly when I need it and I also think it helps to stretch the fabric and gives you a little bit of extra room that I find so helpful. I know with my green kikoi it feels a lot more relaxed.

Anyway, hope this helped you gals. And for those of you who have never had a kikoi, well, I hope you'll tell me next time I have on Mom shorts. You owe it to me.

Winner

Remember this post? You know, the one that made me famous? Heh. Yeah, I'll admit I almost forgot about awarding a winner. I went back and forth, back and forth over whether to be lazy and award someone with stupid, useless Beaver points (which, I mean SOUNDS cool) or to award someone with an ACTUAL prize.

I chose a prize. I mean, if you like what I'm giving away, it's a PRIZE. Otherwise, use it as a coaster.

Annnyway..... (insert drumroll)

The lucky winner is the 8rd (chuckle, chuckle) commenter which was The Bannister Family! Congrats Bannisters! I'll be giving you a copy of David Platt's new book Radical: Taking Back Your Faith From The American Dream.

You can see my original post of Elizabeth's messed up birthday cake by clicking here.

And, as for clarification on the "fixed" version of the cake...if my memory serves me correctly (which most times my memory does not serve me at all, much less correctly so take this as you will)...

Almost 4 years ago, when I ordered this cake, I stood beside the lady as she wrote out our cake order. On her scratch pad she wrote, "Happy 2rd Birthday Elizabeth."

To which I said, "Don't you mean second?"

In turn, she scribbled out the entire "2rd" and wrote something, undecipherable, above it. Yes, I should have asked for further clarification. No, I didn't. Clearly.

And, just for the record, when I write "2rd," in my head, I hear the word "terd."

Poop is inevitable when you read my posts, people. Even when I talk about cake. Deal with it. I do do.