Random Becky

Happy Valentine’s Day!

Today is my 13th Valentine’s Day with Aaron.

He was my first Valentine.

Who would have thought that in 1999,

What our future would hold.

We have experienced many special moments together.

We have shared countless laughs.

We have laughed until we cried and cried until we laughed.

I am honestly not sure what brings you closer to someone,

Joy or pain.

It is hard to tell.

Joy brought us together,

Pain taught us about the sustaining love of Jesus Christ,

And commitment keeps us going.

I am so thankful to have a husband like him.

He is not perfect.

I am far from perfection.

The truth is I feel exceedingly blessed to be married to a man of God.

It is a priceless gift and such a blessing.

When Aaron and I started dating,

We used to play a little game called

“I love you because….”.

We take turns completing the sentence.

Sometimes they are silly things,

Sometimes they are hard things,

Overall, it is a way for us to focus on the little things in our relationship that

Makes our marriage and love unique to us.

We have extended this game to our children and they love it!

When they were little(r) they wouldn’t say much.

Now they dig deep and share why they love us.

It is precious and I love it.

We all do!

It is a great game to play in the car, especially when tempers are starting to show.

I hope you have a wonderful Valentine’s day!

How great is our God????

He is amazing!

I am so thankful he is not finished with the work he is doing in and through Susie!

I figure she can say it best, here are her words:

“

“I am alive, in recovery with quite the headache. My two greatest fears/prayers have been answered in that the baby is also alive and I still have my speech, as well as my personality and ability to smile. Thankful for each one who was there for Ben today I’m the waiting room and through prayer. Undoubtedly, this was way harder on him than me, as I was unconscious all I know about the tumor itself is that I do have cho wafers on my brain which indicated that the tumor did show some signs of malignancy. Still , God is in control and through His love and mercy, all must be well! I am so thankful that my husband is here lying beside me and that my parents and Johnny could see me doing well before they headed home to be near the kids. Can’t wait to see them again after I look a little less scary “

I write this morning from the comfort of my favorite house,

With my favorite little boys in arms reach.

My husband just left for a day of work.

We are having some morning cartoon time before school.

Today is just like every other day.

One thing is different.

This morning my heart is heavy for a dear friend

Who is currently undergoing surgery to remove a baseball

Size tumor from her brain.

She is the mother of 3 children and pregnant with her 4th.

She and her husband Ben are missionaries, serving full time

With Athlete’s In Action.

They love the Lord.

They trust in Him completely.

I am thankful for that.

Please join me in praying for their sweet family today and in the days to come.

I will post updates as I have them.

God bless.

P.S. You can check out their blog here:

http://www.benandsusiethomas.com/

This is Noah.

In the picture above, he was helping me lay out quilting pieces.

He is always helpful, really.

He loves to help cook, clean and fold laundry.

He always has, and I am so thankful!

For the last couple of days he has been thinking about

Some pretty deep things.

Questions I am answering openly and honestly.

I don’t know why he is thinking about these things,

But I am so glad he is talking to me about them.

Yesterday he asked me a lot of question about the baby I miscarried.

His sibling.

My first child.

He wanted to know, what happened.

He wanted to know how big she was.

He mentioned how long people live and how our baby

Only lived a short while.

He want to know how the doctor “got the baby out of my belly”.

How the baby died.

What the baby looked like when they took her out.

Where the body was.

The questions came as if being projected from a machine gun.

The bullets hit my heart and penetrated.

The sweetness of his honesty softened their blow.

The thoughtfulness and innocence fell like a salve on my wounds.

I was honest, I didn’t belittle the gravity of the situation.

I told him the baby, died and that we didn’t know why.

I told him there was not much of the baby left when they removed her.

I told him I honestly didn’t know what they did with the baby.

While my thinking has changed and I have moved through the grief

And consider it a joy to have felt the signs of life growing inside of me,

This question was hard for me.

I wish that I would have properly buried my baby.

However, I live in the reality that there is nothing I can do about that.

God has showered me with His perfect peace and allowed my healing

So I can openly talk with others about the loss.

Praise God.

In addition to this conversation,

Noah wanted to know:

“Who made God?”

“Do people grow up in Heaven?”

“Do babies go to Heaven?”

I love his sweet heart.

I treasure our conversations, silly or deep in thought.

I am thankful, beyond words, for my sweet boy.

My boys are growing up.

They are getting big.

They play well together.

They are finding their differences impact their relationship.

They are growing closer and also showing a separation.

It sounds so conflicting, but it has been a natural process.

I am amazed every day by their relationship.

I am encouraged and challenged by the way the treat one another.

They truly love one another.

They encourage one another.

They include one another.

They share a special bond,

One that I have nurtured carefully,

But cannot take responsibility for.

It is a gift from God and I pray it continues.

Since the beginning of January, the boys have played basketball.

It so much fun to watch them play with other children.

They are not on the same team.

As their first practices approached, I wondered how it would work.

I knew it would cause some anxiety for Collin especially.

The truth is, he was timid, but he quickly found his place.

He frequently looks at us and waves, but he is doing that less and less each week.

For Noah, my concern was him coming on too strong with the other kids.

That never seemed to be an issue.

He is probably the least experienced on his team.

He is not inclined to sports naturally, but he plays every week.

I love going to their games.

I LOVE it.

Love maybe to small of a word.

It is one part herding cats and 1 part organized chaos.

It works somehow.

As a homeschool mom, I struggle with supporting

The individuality of my boys.

I find it difficult because they are together all the time.

They rarely get the opportunity to venture off without the other one.

There are good and bad sides to this equation.

I think their bond is strengthened and challenged by being so close.

When you live, eat, share a room and play with your classmate,

You learn a very beneficial set of skills.

Top that off with your mother acting as teacher, disciplinarian and cook

You gain another great set of skills.

As a homeschool mom, I can’t leave work at the office because

The office is home.

The truth is, I too am learning an amazing set of skills.

Everyday we spend hours communicating with one another.

Some days I wish someone else was here to help field all of the

Chatter that fills the rooms in our house.

The opposite side of that coin is we have had to figure out how to deal with

Our issues as they come up.

And that, my friends, is one of the gifts of homeschooling my children.

We are learning how to communicate well with one another.

We cannot avoid issues with each other, no matter how trivial.

We cannot escape or ignore each other.

Some days our school room is a flutter with productivity and patience.

Some days we sound like a squeaky wheel.

Some days we are a well oiled machine.

Some days we are a square peg in a round hole and nothing goes as planned.

No matter what shape the day takes,

We are together.

We are learning more about one another.

We are sharing our lives.

For that I am exceedingly grateful and overwhelmingly blessed.

I am sitting in the living room.

Bread is baking in my oven.

The boys have been sent to their room for a little quiet time

Before bed.

*They got nerf guns for Christmas and they require a cool down period if

Played with in the evening. This goes for grown-ups too!*

I am reflecting on the last year and sipping hot tea.

A year ago today, I received a call, early in the morning.

A call that no one wants to get.

My mother in law had died in her sleep.

It was completely unexpected and we were all devastated.

There is comfort in knowing she is no longer plagued by the illnesses that

Held tight to her for so many years.

For the last year, my father in law has had weekly meals with us.

Almost every week.

It is time I treasure and look forward to every week.

Today brings to an end the anticipation of firsts.

First Christmas,

First Thanksgiving,

First Birthday without the birthday girl.

These are the big days, the landmark moments shared with family.

I am happy to have made it through these days.

Things were different.

Things will never be like they were

And we seem to have found a way to make it through the hardest times together.

For our family, relying on one another is not enough.

We rest firmly on the Lord.

I am thankful we don’t have to figure it all out on our own.

The vulnerability of processing her death led to unexpected

Healing in other areas of my life.

So tonight, I sit and think about her life.

I miss her hugs.

I miss her.

A lot.

Dear Noah and Collin,

Thank you!

Thank you for the many gifts I have received,

Simply for being your mommy.

Thank you for your silliness.

Thank you for your humor.

Thank you for your encouragement.

Than you for your charm.

Thank you for pushing me to be selfless.

I love you.

I love being your mommy.

I love being your teacher.

I feel so thankful tonight.

I love you so much.

~Mommy

A couple months ago,

Aaron and I had the enjoyed a special night out.

We left the kids with my parents, got all dolled up and spent the evening at the

Dayton Art Museum.

There is something romantic about walking through a museum at night.

I am not sure what makes it romantic, but for me it was.

We were there as invited guests of the musuem, as part of a social media promotion.

The DAI had simply asked several local bloggers to help get the word out.

When I received the invite, I jumped at the chance!

There have been opportunities like this in the past, but this is the first one of it’s kind

That really appealed to me.

Don’t get me wrong, I love the DAI.

It is beautiful.

Historic.

Huge.

Yet somehow intimate.

There are many beautiful, classic pieces of art on display, but I lack time to

Take advantage of the pleasure of spending time enjoying the museum.

So, back to the reason I accepted the invite and spent an evening there…

The exhibit was showcasing Norman Rockwell.

It is officially entitled,

“American Chronicles: The Art of Norman Rockwell”,

Presented by PNC.

Norman Rockwell is an iconic artist and I remember seeing images he created while growing up.

My grandmother had a puzzle showcasing one of his works, and I remember staring at it for hours.

This particular piece made me giggle and wonder.

There was a little boys, about 10 years old, at the doctors office.

I remember staring at the background of the puzzle more than the image of

The doctor or the boy.

It was fun to see what hidden things were placed around the office.

When we were at the museum, we learned this was the way all of Mr. Rockwell’s

Pieces were designed.

His work is steeped in history as well as full of imagination.

His images ring true to much of the history that is being written by our day to day lives,

That is what struck me most about touring the exhibit.

While there, we started by enjoying many of the covers of The Saturday Evening Post.

It was fantastic.

The beginning of the experience leaves you in awe as you can study

The images up close and personal.

They are large paintings, so you really get a good look.

As you move on, you progress into a more political collection.

There is also a video you can sit down and watch.

Finally you make your way into a fun addition to the exhibit.

You can use props and pose as you wish, to make your own

Saturday Evening Post cover!

It is so much fun!!

Aaron was a good sport!

I am so glad I wore this dress.

So, make sure you bring a camera for this part.

After you get your covergirl/boy on,

You are treated to a huge display of cover-sized frames full of his work.

This part could suck you in for a day.

I was moved by the enormity of the room and how many covers Mr. Rockwell had created.

Considering how much time and attention to detail he included,

It is truly an amazing site to behold.

Take your time in this room.

Soak it all in.

Overall, the display is a site to behold and a treasured evening to be shared with

Someone you love.

Aaron and I equally enjoyed the experience and have decided to go to more events like this in

The future.

It is a great way to get out of the same-date-every-time-we-go-out rut.

I hope you make time to go to the DAI to enjoy this exhibit.

You will not be disappointed.

It was everything I hoped it would be and more!

You can find all the info you need over at

daytonartinstitute.org

Hurry though, the Norman Rockwell exhibit concludes Feb 5th.

Be sure to let me know if you go!

On his way to bed tonight,

My husband picked up or fat, old puggie and said,

“Good night Owl”.

Weird, right?

He was teasing me about the fact that I am now a night owl.

It is true.

Somewhere, somehow things have shifted and I am now awake until

The weeeeeee hours of the night, most nights.

Tonight I am nursing a cold with cough syrup

Laced with codine so hopefully I will get to bed before too long.

We shall see.

I am going through a long diagnosis procedure

On a medical issue(s) I am having, so I suspect that may be the cause

Of my odd sleeping schedule,

But while I am up I have plenty of time to think.

Sometimes I am alert enough to read and remember what I have read.

Other nights, I hang out with the late night tv guys.

I wonder why there are only late night tv guys?

I digress…

Most of the time my mind wonders from thing to thing.

Sometimes I sew.

Sometimes I clean.

Sometimes I stare blankly at the tv.

It depends on the night.

Lately, my thoughts have been swallowed up by decisions I need to make about school next year.

We are leaving K12, for a variety of reasons.

The biggest reason is we want to start using a Christian curriculum.

So I have been floundering in an ocean filled with options,

But no current.

I seem to float around aimlessly with no shore in sight.

Until today!

A couple weeks ago my friend, Christan,

http://doithalfway.wordpress.com/

Gave me a book she had used.

I just started reading it tonight and I have found it to be such a great resource,

I wanted to share it with you all!

It is called “Homeschooling Methods”

By Paul and Gena Suarez.

For me, it explains all of the lingo from the homeschool community.

If you are considering homeschooling your kid(s), this may help.

I just thought I’d share.

Nighty night!

http://www.amazon.com/Homeschooling-Methods-Seasoned-Advice-Learning/dp/0805440178/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1325821352&sr=1-1

Hello and welcome to 2012!!

I cannot tell you how excited I am for a new year and new start.

I don’t have much to say, but I wanted to share some of my favorite pics from

Christmas with you!

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