vacation is the best.

i'm currently in the post-vacation blues.

you know, remembering how great it was and recognizing that it's back to regular life...

so, to help, here's a vacation blog!

no pants and rolling around = happy child.

see, it was a learning vacation.

fun family dinners at local cool restaurants... 

water park!

my favorite picture.

my other favorite picture. that is pure joy.

it's vacation. so he got to try ice cream. 

(though i'm pretty sure grandpa already gave him a taste...)

yep. that was mine. giant rice krispie treat.

family photo before leaving!

seriously. great wolf lodge is the best.

or we were just desperate for a vacation.

a little of both, i'm sure :)

ah, madrid.

so i traveled the world the other day.
spent a week in madrid, loving on and challenging high schoolers to think more deeply about their spiritual walks. and making lots of jokes along the way.
spoiler alert: we had a kid that beat boxes. and i rapped. really well. ish. a lot. my rhyming skills got usage.
be jealous.

as for pictures, i thought i'd share just a few.

we were a part of a lot of ministry, which i don't really have pictures of: street evangelism (done well), ministering to homeless and prostitutes, evangelism classes, lots of prayers, and lots of church activities.

we saw everything. really.
palace, cathedral, all the plazas, especially plaza mayor, puerta del sol, prado museum, buen retiro park, etc. we also went to toledo... just gorgeous.

selfie in toledo. you're welcome.

stole a picture at the prado with las meninas before the student i convinced to take my pic got yelled at. worth it. sorry student.

group picture at toledo.

the palace.

buying amazing, delicious candies that we searched many stores for.

the center of spain! in puerto del sol.

plaza de toros. luckily we didn't have to watch a bull fight.

we saw pictures. gross.

looking out of the window from red box ministry (look it up. crazy cool organization).

into puerto del sol... basically, times square in madrid.

the church we were a part of. beautiful mission. reaching a dark place with the love of Jesus.

so there you have it.

good stuff, right?

ready or not!

i'm finally packed.
and have micah all packed up.
lists for everything my parents will need to take care of him.
meals for matt in the freezer.
notes for each day i'm gone.
a valentine's gift from micah and i to matt.
and then one from me to matt.

i am so excited to just be myself for the next week for maybe the last time in a reaaaaally long time.
to be a short term missionary. a tourist. a leader.

ahh.  
to madrid i go!
8 days. lots of evangelism. and a bit of sightseeing. hopefully a little speaking spanish.
i've got books on the kindle, podcasts on the iphone, and paper ready to play a lot of MASH.
oh, wait. i'm going with high schoolers who weren't born in the 80's.
here's for hoping that i don't just spend my time missing matt, micah, and bailey.

prepare yourselves for an overload of pictures upon my return!

mom inventions.

so, a lot's going on in our world.
micah's been crazy sick.
by crazy sick i mean double ear infection, pink eye, cough, cold, fever.
not that crazy.
matt's rotations are not fun. night float.
yuck.

and i leave for spain in a week!
meanwhile, life continues.
and i've been thinking of some inventions that would make me rich.
but i'm not good at actually making things.
so if someone could get this done in the next few hours, that'd be great.

1. drive through everything. imagine that world. so much productivity. 
2. outlet covers that actually camoflauge into the wall. somehow, even with the little covers, they are magnetized to toddlers. must. touch.
3. silent vacuum cleaners. naptimes would get much more cleaning action.
4. vegetables that taste like candy. adios, fretting about nutrition intake!
5. a toy that magically keeps kids awake in carseats. or a police escort when you cut it too close, so you don't get stuck at red lights or in traffic in order to get home before those eyes close.
6. something that's so entertaining that i could shower while micah's awake. ahh. showers. 
7. child safety locks on: kleenex, toilet paper, wipes. for obvious reasons. i care about the environment. and it's definitely taken a hit since i had a kid. good thing i cloth diaper.
8. make fireplaces less interesting.
9. self cleaning toys. you know, like ovens.
10. puzzles that have a button on the back and put themselves all back in the correct places. i don't want to spend micah's nap time putting puzzles back together.
11. coats that become nearly invisible while stuffed into carseats.
12. snow that is not so cold that it can't be played in.
13. snowgear that is not bulky. i mean come on! we live in america! 
14. dog bowls that only dogs can eat from. and kids can't play in.
15. toilets that appear empty until being used for the correct purpose.
16. eliminate all sharp corners.
17. only cushy carpet. OH! that doesn't keep stains.
18. a food catcher. that is not my dog.
19. kid music that is not mind numbing. and that i won't randomly sing in the night and hate myself for it a little.
20. restaurants that have playplaces that are not mcdonalds. imagine that.
21. a constant 5 extra minutes when trying to go somewhere. because inevitably: poopy diaper.
22. a snack that doesn't have the ability to: spill, stain, squeeze, stick. the four s's.
23. reaaaaaaally long distance baby monitor. like so you could go on a date. it should also have a built in firefighter/securityguard/mom so that everything's covered. because, come on. we have him cry it out anyway. actually, that shouldn't be invented. but a girl can dream!
24. shirts that camouflage snot, spit, and food but are still trendy.

that's all for now.
who's with me?!

my word.

beware. this is a rare more serious post.
i blame it on all the reading i've been doing of shauna niequist.
introspection overload over here.

praise be to the Lord.
to God our Savior,
who daily bears our burdens.
Psalm 68:19.

i read that verse three times a day. every day.
it's on the back of the book we read last before nap (jesus loves me).
holding micah's hand as he runs his pointer finger under the words.
yeah, i teach reading. so what. who cares.

recently, i watched a sermon that encouraged the congregation to pray about asking God to give you a word to describe 2014.
and then find a verse that goes with that word, and make it your mantra for the year.

my word was praise... despite circumstances, sometimes.
and my verse?
i figured i should use the one i read all the time.

and today, i hit a wall.
partly because i accidentally forgot to drink coffee. this factor could me more like mostly rather than partly.
partly because micah's still sick.
partly because i wanted to go see detroit friends. (which i did anyway... with the sick boy. a little selfish? maybe.)
partly because i haven't slept much for four days now.

and i just put him down for his nap, read this book and verse like always, and was re-struck with my word of praise.

calmed me right back down. plus i drank coffee. but still. i'm choosing to believe it was jesus.

but, praising in spite of my burdens today.
i reread that as spit instead of spite.
praising in spit of it, too.
because there's a lot of that around here.

i need to get some sleep.
oh, and you should watch the sermon. it's here. 

book club, round 2.

i posted once before about books i was wanting to read.

and i'm in that place again.
i want to be in a book club.
(anyone, anyone?)
we could even do a book club/cooking club/mentoring combo. that's my dream situation.

these are the books i've been thinking about/reading/wanting to read lately:

read this one recently... and it sort of changed my perspective on life.

it's that good.

my soon-to-be sister-in-law bought it for me.

connie rocks.

so, matt bought me this one as part of my christmas present:

almost done with it.

also incredible.

i'm also reading this one as a devotional that matt also got me:

so, so great.

my brother bought me this one and it's next on my list:

other ones i want to read?

because what could be better than books by comedians?!

speaking of which, i still haven't read this one that i heard is amazing:

you know, plus other ones...

this one comes out soon. and i want to read it.

and pretty much all books by pastors that i admire.

plus all the classics.

and some funny ones.

oh, and then i have to relearn spanish in the next 3.5 weeks.

haven't spoken/read/thought it in 2 years.

before i go to madrid.

yeah, madrid. mission trip style. for 8 days.

don't get the wrong idea... i'm beyond excited to go!

just stressed because, well, i forget a language that i'll need.

so i should only be reading this book.

just have to memorize it.

should be easy.

ugh.

scarred for life.

really.
i am.
and as a disclaimer: if gross baby things gross you out, don't keep reading.
because what happened to me yesterday is by far the grossest thing that's ever happened to me.
it's so gross that i feel it's necessary to write down to remember.

you know, for when micah's older.
so i can embarrass him.
just kidding. i'm going to be the cool mom.

but here's the story:

it was bath time. because micah got syrup in his hair and freaked out. ha.
bath time finished, micah loves to do naked time.
so, i let him run around a little.
(lesson learned the hard way: naked time no more.)
it's hilarious. he's so cute and chubby and just loves being naked.
so we're in the guest room, looking at some legos.
he's standing.

suddenly, he grunts.
i was kneeling in front of him, playing legos with him.
i look behind him... actively pooping.
without thinking, i did something i wish i could take back.
i stuck my hand out.
started catching poop.

it gets worse... then, while i'm kneeled in front of him, catching his poop, he started peeing.
all over my pants.
then i told him to walk to his room (trying to stay calm).
he begins walking fast, with my running behind, trying to catch the poop that's still coming.
i was barefoot.
i managed to step in it?!
poop footprints from guest room to micah's room.
he peed again on the walk. just right on the carpet.

by the time he was on the changing pad, he had gotten poop all over himself.
and obviously, i was covered. as were my feet and sweatpants.

a half hour later, we were all cleaned up physically.
but emotionally, i don't know that i'll ever be wiped clean of the memory.

you're welcome for sharing.