So yesterday morning was crazy!!  It started off with a million little things we had to get done all before heading off to school…and to top it off…it was picture day!  I had on my calendar that picture day was on Thursday…not Tuesday…and very last minute, the kids informed me otherwise!  Yikes!!!  The school had bumped it up two days and thus threw me into a stressful morning of frantically trying to help my kids find the right outfits to wear, to then miraculously transforming their little bed heads into glorious little “hair-dos”! 🙂  I won’t mention that we have a hairbrush/comb thief who comes each night to hide our hair stuff!!  It takes 10 minutes just to find everything that’s been hidden so I can do my kids hair each day!  But anyway…

What really slowed us down though, was my oldest daughters bangs.  They were way too long… and she just had a haircut a month ago!!  How can they be so long already?!

With only five minutes left before “pile into the car” time, I decided to do a quick “trim” so they’d look nice for pictures.  In a hurry, I wet them, and combed them down straight…just as my own mother used to do to me.  Now, please do not laugh when I tell you how the women in my family “cut hair”.  I took a long piece of scotch tape, and stretched it over her bangs just above her eyebrows.  Once stuck on, I began to trim below the edge. I know…you’re cringing, aren’t you…but that’s how it’s done.  I pulled off the tape only to find that they were now crooked.  Ugh!  Two minutes and counting!!   Trying to look in control of the situation, I tried to straighten them and only made them worse!!!  Oh no!  My daughter smiled up at me knowingly..and even somewhat compassionately…this was not the first time I had done this to her hair, I am embarrassed to say.  I blew them dry and tried to look confident in my abilities…  But the truth is, I can’t cut hair to save my life.  I guess I should have taken the prerequisite course on “Putting the tape on straight” class that was offered to me…

The good thing is, God gave her pretty blue eyes and a winning smile that will distract you from seeing her uneven bangs!!  Next time, I will have a professional take care of her bangs…someone who knows how to make them look straight…my Mom! 🙂

In the meantime…I need a little more practice…anyone need their bangs trimmed?

Who doesn’t enjoy a good love story?! Every week, I look ahead to see what new romantic movie is coming out on the Hallmark channel, or on Masterpiece, and I set my DVR to record it!  I especially love it when it involves some adventure, a bit of mystery, and a handsome hero who wins over the love of a beauty!
I remember when I first saw the Keira Knightley version of Pride and Prejudice in the movie theatre.  Do you remember that scene towards the end of the movie when they meet on the bridge?  There was that morning sun shining through the mist that was all around them.  The handsome and strong Mr. Darcy was walking toward Elizabeth in that really amazing coat he was wearing, and her hair was all wispy and beautiful in the breeze.  By the time they spoke…the passion of it all was so much that I literally gasped OUT LOUD in the theatre! Ha! Ha! I looked to see if anyone had heard me…but everyone’s eyes were glued to the screen!! Phew! 🙂

Love stories…but did you ever stop to think that we are a part of the greatest love story of all time?  True!  It is the love story between the God of all Creation… and mankind!!  When I tell people that I’m a believer in Jesus Christ…I also tell them that I am NOT a believer in religion or rituals…I’m a believer in a real, personal relationship with an incredibly loving God.  It’s not about what I do, or don’t do…what a relief…because if my salvation were based on works or deeds, I’d fall short!!  It’s about what HE did, and what HE does!  Jesus Christ is the Hero of this love story…not me!

So, I was thinking today… that if I were asked to explain the entire Bible to someone sitting next to me on an airplane who had never heard what it was about before, it would probably sound like a love story, and it would go something like this…

Once upon a time, there lived a woman.  Her name was mankind.  She was created by a Handsome King who made her to be beautiful. But one day, she was deceived by an evil enemy!  She believed his yucky lies, and not only did it allow this evil enemy to enslave her, it also separated her from the Love of her Handsome King…  She believed that she was no longer loved, that she was ugly, despised, and all alone.  She soon found herself lost in sin and darkness…trying to fill the emptiness in her life with all things unlovely.

But…the Handsome King DID love her, and He came up with a plan to save her!  🙂

The Handsome King humbled himself, and paid the price for her salvation with His own life…His own blood…the sacrifice that was required to buy her freedom from the evil enemy.  He’d done nothing wrong…He simply loved her…and He was tried as a criminal…He was severely beaten, and killed…for her.

But…He’s the Hero in this love story, and so it doesn’t end there.  He goes on to defeat the evil enemy by coming back to life!!  The evil enemy did not see that one coming!  But Jesus, the Handsome King, and the Hero of the Story…comes out ahead! 🙂  If mankind simply believes in the King’s love for her, then she’s set free.

See?  It’s a love story plain and simple.

Romans 5:8 says, “But God showed His great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners.”  Thank You, Jesus (My Hero!) for loving me…:)

John 3:16 “For this is how God loved the
world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life.”

Have you ever written God an angry letter?  Told Him what you REALLY thought?  I have…and you know what?  It set me free!

It was Tuesday, September 27, 2005…a little over a month after our son, Kael, died of a cord accident in the womb (two and a half weeks before his due date).  Mike walked into the room one morning to see me packing a backpack full of stuff…journal, Bible, pen, kleenex, water bottle, more kleenex, and snacks.  I told him I was going to have it out with God that day, and I didn’t know when I’d be back…but I’d be back before it got dark.  I also said I’d call him and let him know where I was just in case!  I was carrying such anger inside (so much so, that my joints were beginning to physically hurt).  I didn’t WANT to be mad at God…but I just cou
ldn’t help it.

I remember it was a quiet, sunny morning.  All the kids in the neighborhood were already in school.  I got in my car and just drove.  I turned on the radio and a song came on called, “Your’e Dancing with the Angels…” Really, God?  Angry tears streamed down my face.

Finally I found just the right spot.  It was a park in Rocklin, California that sat up on a hill and overlooked the city below.  The only other people there were a couple of maintenance workers way off in the distance below. Perfect.  I parked the car, grabbed my backpack, found a bench to sit on, called Mike to tell him where I was, and stared out at the field below.  For a long time…I just sat there…almost waiting.

You have to understand, the anger was like a weight strapped around my neck and it was choking me from experiencing life again.  All of my joy was gone.  My dreams of holding my first child were smashed to pieces and I was drugging myself at night with sleep aids to be able to escape the pain.  I was just so broken inside and so mad at God!

I took out a notebook and I began to pen Him a letter.  It was not a sweet letter at all…it was pretty yucky!  I let Him know exactly what I thought about it all!!  It was soaked with my angry tears… and everything I felt in my heart toward God and what He allowed to happen to me just gushed onto the paper!  I figured, he saw it there in my heart anyway…so why not get it out in the open?!  I would stop and cry…and then continue.  Cry, and continue.  Cry, and continue…until it was all out!  I wrote pages…and as I wrote and as I cried, I could feel my heart almost softening inside.  Something was happening to me…something I did not expect to happen when writing a mean letter to God.

With every angry word, it’s as if the chokehold was lessening and I was beginning to feel His love again!  He was setting me free!  With tired tears, I finally told God, “I don’t want to go home the same today.  I want to be set free of this anger and I want to feel love and joy again.”  As crazy as it sounds, I forgave God.  I told Him that no matter what happens in my life, I will always trust Him because He sees the big picture that I do not see.  Even though I didn’t understand why…I CHOSE that day to trust Him and not to be angry anymore.  The best decision I have ever made.

I sealed up my angry letter to God, and I declared that when I threw my letter away at the park trash can…that would be me throwing my anger away with it.

My healing began that day.  I was suddenly filled with hope. I got in my car a changed person…still broken, but not angry anymore.  My joints even healed up!  There was a lot more healing to come and a long road ahead of me, but I wasn’t to face it alone.   I had surrendered my heart to him, I had finally let go of Kael, and allowed Jesus to begin to heal me.  My journal entry for the following day begins, “I feel so different!  Oppression and anger is gone!  I can feel love again!   I feel HAPPY.  Yesterday was a monumental day.”

It’s been almost ten years.  On Friday we will celebrate on earth, our Kael’s turning 10 in heaven!  Our family is going to spend the day at the beach!!  I have watched God restore, heal, bless and love us!  I have seen others drawn closer to Jesus because of what we went through…and that’s special and dear to our hearts…sort of a tribute to Kael in a way! 🙂

1 Peter 5:10 says, “…and after you have suffered for a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to His eternal glory in Christ, will Himself restore, support, strengthen, and establish you.”  Amen to that!! 🙂

Happy Birthday, sweet Kael!  We love you, miss you, and look forward to the day when we can hold you again!

Those of us here in California LOVE hearing that this might be an “El Nino” year ahead…that rain is coming!!  This drought has been crazy, right?!  Like so many others, each day I carry out my bucket of collected shower water (that I collected from when I was waiting for the water to get warm), and I water my plants with it.  There have been “army showers” and many other water reductions over here…and my skin feels so dry…I’m constantly moisturizing!!  Ugh!  All of our lawns are brown…sort of hanging onto life by a thread so they might hopefully be revived once this drought is over!  It’s awful!!

Rain…  We need lot’s of rain!  But there are two words that are giving us all a little hope over here… “El Nino”.  🙂  Rain is coming!

Just like this California drought…my life has been full of dry seasons too!  I can think back on many times where I just felt like I was dragging myself through a desert, and nothing that I was praying for was happening!  In fact, things felt like they were getting worse!!  I just couldn’t see anything changing for the better!  Like Elijah in the Old Testament, I was praying for relief from the drought, and God was saying, “Hang on…there’s a rain cloud up ahead that you just can’t see yet…trust Me, Tami…don’t lose faith, and you will experience my incredibly refreshing rain.” An “El Nino” for the soul (for Elijah’s story you can read 1 Kings 18)!  🙂

I will be the first to admit, however, that hanging on is hard.  For me, it usually involves agonizing waiting, moments of tears, frustration, trusting God when I don’t see any change…and believing when so much around me says to just give up. But hanging on is the key to surviving in the desert…I think even Bear Grylls would agree with that! 😉 So hang on I must!!

And then it comes…finally! It’s so refreshing…and it’s worth every painful minute of waiting in the desert, right?!  Answered prayers suddenly abound!  Everything seems to cry out about God’s perfect timing! I’m even left thanking Him for that desert experience because it brought me closer to Him and made my heart stronger!!  It seems He DID have a plan, after all (even though it was different than mine)!!  🙂  He always brings promised rain…sometimes it just requires believing Him for it before I can yet see it!

“Ask the Lord for rain in the spring, for He makes the storm clouds.  And He will send showers of rain…”  Zechariah 10:1

Today I’m believing for God to shower down His refreshing rain again, I’m asking Him for the strength to hang on in the desert…and I’m already feeling excited to see those things come to pass that I’ve been praying and believing for.  Rain is coming! 🙂

Dancing. It’s one of those things I love to do…but I’m really not that good at.  Oh, I can ballroom dance some (Mike and I took lessons a trillion years ago), I can do a little country line dancing, swing, and I can even do that ridiculous “funky chicken” dance (only for certain more privileged people who pay me money first).  But if you were to put on hip hop music and plunk me into the middle of a club full of people dancing…it’s a “no”.  It’s a “get me out of here, I’m going to make a fool out of myself and probably others too, no.”  I will become an instant wall flower trying to devise some excuse to get out…and fast!  Maybe it’s the people, or the atmosphere, or the fact that I try to copy what others are doing and it all comes out even weirder…or the fact that I’m really not that coordinated when it comes to dancing to a beat?  Whatever the reason, my insecurity comes out on the dance floor BIG TIME and I want to run and hide until a slow song comes on!

But at home…it’s different.  Every once in a while our family has what we call a “Family Dance Party!”  We put on music and all dance as silly or as serious as we want…no one is judging and everyone is dancing crazy!!  (It’s also a great calorie burn!! 😉 )  It’s so much fun and it brings us close at the end of a busy day.  Everyone sleeps well afterward, and I can eat more chocolate the next day!!  The joy we feel when we dance together is HUGE!

But today I’m going to let you in on a little secret.  Shhhh….don’t tell anyone!! 🙂  When no one is at home, I often put on loud music and I dance.  I’m serious!   There it is.  My secret is out!  I have an audience of ONE who I know loves it!  When I want to worship Jesus…REALLY worship Him with everything in me…I put on loud worship songs and twirl around, sing, dance and probably look ridiculous!!  But I don’t care…because in those times it’s not about me…it’s about this incredibly loving Savior who gave it all so I would know Him today…and it’s about loving, blessing, and giving to Him with everything I’ve got!!  I also know it makes the enemy mad because it’s such an outright declaration of joy and trust in God!  So I often dance before the Lord when things around me aren’t going so well…it’s faith in action and it brings results. 🙂  I like to imagine how it blesses God to know that no matter what is going on around me, I am still worshipping Him…for WHO He is and not what He does or doesn’t do for me.  It’s about Him.

Psalm 149:3 says to “Praise His name with dancing, accompanied by tambourine and harp.”  I can honestly say that I don’t have a tambourine…or a harp for that matter…who knows?  Maybe those are next!  😉  But I have two feet that can dance…cue the music!

Somewhere around 1830, a ship sailed from England to New York carrying very precious cargo… my Kyte ancestors! 🙂  Mr. and Mrs. Kyte, along with several of their kids, came to New York and settled around Geneva, New York.  My great great Grandfather was one of those kids, who according to story, was born a few days before they docked.  I’m trying to find out his parents’ names, why they came, and where in England they came from.  Sounds easy enough, right?  Wrong!  New York didn’t start keeping track of most records until 1880!  There are many family trees of Kyte’s in England, and many in New York…but finding the missing link to connect the two has proven to be more difficult than I realized.

I thought my England side was going to be a breeze…I don’t know why…maybe because the records would be in English??!  After all, I was able to trace my Swedish side without any Swedish speaking abilities whatsoever!  How hard could England be! “I’ve got this, right?!” That was what I said two years ago, and I’m still trying to find them!! “It’s blooming awful!!”  is what I’m saying now…that’s my English side coming out! 😉  “I think I shall go have tea!”

So, this past week I have put on my Ancestry “detective cap”, and have gotten to work trying to find clues to the past!  As frustrating as it can be to hit so many “brick walls” in my searching, I actually do LOVE the search!!  When I actually find something important, it’s like I’ve found gold!!  My tools include some aging photos from an old Kyte album to work with, a few Census records from 1850 on, a million subscriptions to ancestry websites, and family stories that have been passed down to me.  Don’t think I’m weird or anything…but now my bedroom wall looks like this…I know, I know…I’ve got some crazy awesome decorating skills, don’t I?  My husband gets to climb out of bed each morning to see my great great grandpa staring him down! 😉  I told Mike, “It’s just temporary!  I promise!”  (I hope!) Sorry Hubby…have I told you lately how wonderful you are?!

But today, you will all be relieved to know that I think I may have finally tracked down the old Episcopal church in New York where many of them were born, married, died…and thank God, the churches back then kept records!!!  They are going to search the church books for me and let me know what they find out!  I won’t lie…I’m really praying they find the information I am looking for!!  It’s funny though…this church needs to have my request in writing with my official signature on it…so I have to actually stamp and mail it!!  Snail mail means only one thing…I have to wait LONGER!  It’s a good think I’m so patient…;)  Have you read my blog on waiting?? 🙂

On Saturday, I’m heading to my Aunt Barbara’s house to look again at some old photos and such.  She is our family historian, and has done such a wonderful job over the years hanging onto all the photos and stories and documents! Here is a picture of us just two Easters ago…while the rest of the family was socializing and eating appetizers, you know, doing normal stuff on Easter…she and I were looking through old albums and family Bibles looking for more clues! 😉  My Mom was helping snap photos of… photos for us…something else weird we do.  So she snapped this one of us as well!  (Thanks Mom!!)

As I was just writing the previous paragraph in this blog today, I had to pause for a call from New York…there may be a lead on a much needed cemetery record in Penn Yan, New York!!  “Oh boy!  Oh boy!  A cemetery record…is there anything more exciting?!”

I know it…you don’t have to say it.  I already know it. 🙂

Here’s a sweet thought though…searching for God is much easier than ancestry searching!  He’s like finding gold EVERY day!!  “You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all of your heart.”  Jeremiah 29:13  Seeking out clues about Him is way more exciting and beyond fulfilling!!  Have a blessed day!

Have you ever been in the outdoors amongst tall pine trees and just looked up?  The blue sky…the tall trees…the birds, the branches blowing in the breeze… I did that several times this past week while on a family trip to Oregon.  I don’t know about you, but when I look up at those tall trees and the sky above them, I feel “small”.  Not insignificant small, but whoa…God is BIG small!  That sentence came out weird!  🙂  It’s as if I’m being given a whole new perspective on how HUGE God is and how amazing it is that He would love someone so small like me!!  Is it just me, or is it that in that moment, problems seem to shrink, stresses aren’t so stressful anymore, and the eternal things seem to be more important than the earthly problems that surround?  Hmmm…maybe I should plant some pine trees in my back yard!! 🙂

Today I was just feeling overwhelmed by a tough circumstance that we’re facing. I’d like to tell you that I wrote down Bible verses and proclaimed God’s promises over our lives FIRST…but no….I can’t.  That did not happen until much later this afternoon…after I had already done the following:  First, I whined to God.  Then I griped and complained a lot.  Then I sulked a bit.  Then I tried to lose myself in a novel!!   Then I questioned God’s goodness….ugh!!!  It was going downhill fast.   I felt like I was standing inside a beautiful forest of pines…only I was looking at my muddy shoes instead of looking up!!

It was then I remembered Habakkuk!!!  Thank God for Habakkuk!!

The story of Habakkuk has always been one of my favorites…mainly because I love the ending…it’s a good one!  Who doesn’t love a good ending?!  But you can’t just skip ahead and only read the end…you have to endure the beginning and middle with him first!  It just makes the ending all that much better…trust me!

Habakkuk was a man living in Judah during a time of extreme violence, oppression, and even war.  He saw the weak and helpless being continually mistreated by evil men.  (Sounds a lot like things going on in our world today)!!  Overwhelmed by the circumstances surrounding him, he begins his story feeling as if God has left earth, that evil men are in control, and everything is basically hopeless.  He can’t help but see all the devastation around him…the trouble, the plundering, the violence, the lack of justice.  He’s mad at God and begins to question His motives.  “God, how long shall I cry, and You will not hear?  Even cry out to you, “violence!” and You will not save.”

Honestly, I know I’ve asked God some questions like that before…and I have learned that’s okay.  God wants us to be real with Him, right?

Okay, back to the story…

Habakkuk stands still and waits for God to answer.  And He does.  God tells Habakkuk of future things to come.  He tells him that those who are evil will eventually fall.  What the evil men have done to others will eventually happen to they themselves.  As a result, the earth will know all about God and His beautiful glory!  God has a plan for justice to prevail…He is the Hero of our story!  Sounds like a good ending, right?  Yes, but it’s not even the best part!!

I love this…Habakkuk realizes that his focus has not been on God and His amazing power…but rather on the awful circumstances that are surrounding his life.  He’s looking at the wrong thing!!  He’s looking at his muddy shoes!!!  (Okay, I added that part!)  🙂  He then has a change of heart realizing that it is possible to rise above his circumstances, and even to rejoice in them, by focusing on God who stands above all…not on the horrible circumstances around him!! He doesn’t deny his troubles, but instead he chooses to trust God in the midst of them, full of faith instead of fear, and even declares one of my favorite verses in the Bible… you’ll LOVE this…it’s power-packed faith!!

“I will wait quietly for the coming day when disaster will strike the people who invade us.  Even thought the fig trees have no blossoms, and there are no grapes on the vines; even though the olive crop fails, and the fields lie empty and barren; even though the flocks die in the fields, and the cattle barns are empty, YET I will rejoice in the Lord!  I will be joyful in the God of my salvation!  The Sovereign Lord is my strength!  He makes me as surefooted as a deer, able to tread upon the heights.”

So for me today…I’m going to do a “Habakkuk”!!  I’m going to look up…not to the trees, but to Jesus…my Hero! 🙂

I’ve been thinking a lot lately about how busy I’ve been this summer…and that’s putting it mildly! Honestly, this Mama’s exhausted!  It’s been one activity to the next, and although it’s been FUN stuff…there’s not been any “down time” for this wiped out (FRIED, is more like it!) mom!  It’s my fault really…I overbook us and plan way too much.  I want the kids to have a great summer….and so we try and cram in everything and everyone we can all within 7 fast weeks.  But secretly, I will tell you that I’m thrilled school is starting up soon (9 days and counting!). Then my life can sort of get back to “normal”…or as close as I can get to normal anyway!

Last Thursday night, I left the gym (I’ve been doing a crazy “spin class” several nights a week…), and I basically dropped into my car, “dropped” because spin class leaves my legs trembly and sore…and I began to cry!

But wait!  It’s not as bad as it sounds, really!!  You should know that I cry when I’m tired…just like a baby does.  “Baby Tami is starting to cry!!”  🙂  AND it wasn’t the spin class that made me cry either.  I can be wimpy sometimes, but not THAT wimpy!!  (Okay, sometimes I will admit I come close to crying at spin class…it’s quite a workout!)  But seriously, I was just DONE!

Anyway, I thought the class would be good for me to work off all the stress from the craziness of the week and the stress in all the preparation for upcoming events,  but it left me feeling even more exhausted and just drained, I guess.

Then it hit me.  In all the busy and the crazy non-stop going on around me, I have not been taking time to allow myself to be filled up…at all.  I’m drained and worn out…and now crying like a baby in the gym parking lot!  What’s happening here?!  It was then in the car, I offered up a silent prayer to the One who I know can fill me up like no other, “Jesus…I need You. Fill me up to overflowing as only YOU can…and help me accomplish everything that is overwhelming me right now…”  I’m not kidding when I say that my drive home was different.  I put on music and just allowed the Creator of the Universe to love on me!!  Sounds weird, but I’ve been learning that He LOVES to love on us!!  Crazy, huh?  In this car ride home, it wasn’t about my trying to please Him with my singing or talk His ear off with lengthy prayers or anything…it was just me being quiet and soaking up His affection for me like a sponge.  I came home a new, filled up Mama.  The next morning I remembered this story…

In the book of Matthew (chapter 8), Jesus and His disciples got in a boat.  Suddenly there was a TEMPEST and waves began to crash into the boat!  I love this part…Jesus was sleeping!!!  Can you imagine?  Sleeping through an incredible storm!  He found rest and refreshing in the middle of a storm.  No worry or fear at all.  The disciples were in terror and woke Him up.  He basically says to them, “Why are you afraid?  Where is your faith?” and then He calms the wind and the sea so that everything becomes still.  How cool is THAT?!  I wish I could have been there to see it!!  Sleeping…in a storm!  I want to be like that!! 🙂

Since Thursday, each time I have begun to feel stressed out or tired, I’m trying to imagine myself lying next to Jesus in the boat, heads side by side…either star gazing or sleeping.  🙂  Waves are crashing all around us, disciples are running around panicking nearby…but we’re not worried.  I’m just allowing myself to be filled up with more of Him…to snuggle up in the boat next to the One who made me.  I’m not praying or singing songs to Him in these moments…I am not trying to “accomplish” anything in these moments…it’s really all about floating in a little boat with my very best friend…and letting myself be filled up by His incredible love for me.  Maybe it’s because it’s a personal relationship…and like any close relationship, the love goes both ways.  🙂

“The Lord your God in your midst, The Mighty One, will save;  He will rejoice over you with gladness, He will quiet you with His love, He will rejoice over you with singing.”  Zephaniah 3:17.  I’m telling you, He LOVES to love us!

Since we are on the last week of swim lessons for the summer, and because I am just so proud of my kiddos… I decided it was “reward time”!!! 🙂  So I bought myself a Grande Vanilla Soy Latte at Starbucks!!  Oh! You thought I was going to reward THEM, didn’t you! My mistake…I should have clarified.  I meant, a reward for ME!

When you think about it, I did have to get them up and ready super early every single morning, I had to track down run-away flip flops and suit bottoms every single morning…while my “helpers” were busy fighting with each other.  I had to cram them, along with their towels, snacks and waters all in the car and seat belt them in, peal down the driveway without running anything or anyone over AND actually get them there on time!  Phew!!  That’s hard work, right?   You’re not buying this, are you? 🙂 Okay, just so you don’t think I’m mean or anything, I DID get them treats too!  Our bill was like $15.00 or some crazy amount to spend on coffee and a few scones.  They really did do SO great with their lessons…but it was really all about me! 😉  Joking!! (not really joking!).

The best part was, I was SO caffeinated after that, that in fast-forward speed, I not only grocery shopped, I also prepared our dinner for the evening and stuck it in the fridge.  I reorganized my entire kitchen, did zillions of dishes, wiped yucky sticky I-don’t-know-what off the kitchen chairs, cleaned out the fridge and pantry…and still had enough caffeine in me I probably could have run a marathon!!  I got more done in two hours than I had in two months this summer!!  I felt like I was on “Running Wild with Bear Grylls” and I was at the top of the Swiss Alps with tears in my eyes, yelling, “I DID IT!!!  I didn’t know I had that in me!!”

I’m kind of dramatic, I know.

It just felt so good to get so much done.  Caffeine!!!

So, it should come as no surprise that this morning after swim lessons, we were back at Starbucks!  I wanted MORE!!!  I NEEDED more!!  I felt like I was calling out for ice chips again (like in my “Thirsty” blog)!  “I have an EXTREMELY messy house so I need more of your powerful caffeine…er, I mean, can I please have one tall vanilla soy latte please?”  You might as well throw in a zillion of your most expensive scones and cake pops to keep my kids happy on the ride home too! Oh!  And take my money…this will all be worth it (and much cheaper than a housecleaner) by the time I crash on the couch this afternoon!

I admit, I may have a problem (hang on, let me pause to take a sip of my latte)…okay, I’m back.  There are worse things, right?  I used to be addicted to snacking on M & M’s…and all that gave me was a tummy ache and a longer gym workout!  Broke that addiction FAST!

No one is perfect.  I’m the first one to admit that I don’t have it all together, and that I need a little help sometimes, even if it’s from my friendly neighborhood Starbucks.

I have a little plaque on my kitchen counter by the sink.  It’s a reminder to me on those days when I need more than a little cup of caffeine.  It says, “I can do all things through HIM who strengthens me.”  Philippians 4:13.  It reminds me that He who made the mighty coffee bean, is FAR greater, and keeps me coming “back for more” of HIM!  The best part is, I don’t crash on the couch afterward either!

One of my favorite things to do as a family is to watch American Ninja Warrior!  We’ve been loyal fans for a few years now, and we even have our own favorite competitors!!  For those who don’t know what it is, it’s a competition of athletes to see who can complete a set obstacle course in the fastest amount of time.  It’s a spinoff of a series from Japan.  If they mess up on the course they are disqualified from the competition. If they make it to “Mt. Midoriyama” in Las Vegas, and complete the course they become the winner.   It’s SUPER exciting!!  So much so, that the other night while I was cheering on one of the competitors, my six year old had to tell me to “Chill, Mom.”  What?!  Okay, maybe Mommy is getting a little too into it!  Was it my jumping off the couch as if to grab a imaginary ring to swing on?  Or was it my loud yelling at the tv , “Grab it!!” that made her say that, I’m not sure.  Whatever it was, I was told to chill. “Well!  I never!!”  🙂

So, I was thinking today that my morning sometimes feels like an obstacle course! 🙂 Maybe I could be the next American Ninja Mom!!  Are you ready?  It’s exciting…you’re going to be on the edge of your seat…here goes:

In my quest to reach the coffee pot (my Mt. Midoriyama) I launch from my bed to hop over all the scattered toys that have somehow ended up on our bedroom floor (from the kids playing in there the day before).  If I make it to the bathroom without stepping on a sharp little Barbie shoe, the corner of a yellow block, or an upside down hot wheels car, I’m safe!  The crowd cheers.

My next challenge is to use the bathroom, put on my bathrobe and slippers, and pull my hair back into a ponytail…all while answering zillions of lengthy, detailed questions by my two youngest (who somehow always hear me the very second I get up).  If I can do this without saying something unintelligible or crabby, I’ve made it to the next level with great success.  Again, the crowd cheers me on, I flash them a winning smile, and even give them a wave!

I’m starving, so the next goal is to scarf down a yogurt before the kids chase me to the kitchen and want their breakfast first.  Sounds selfish, but Mamma must eat first for the strength to make it through the rest of the course!  This is tough, and the crowd gets nervous on this one.  It requires tip toeing on my part, a lot of fast yogurt-eating, and a loud fridge door suction sound that always alerts them to the fact that I’m in the kitchen!  But this time,  I make it!!  Phew!

In the next obstacle, I am making three totally different breakfasts because none of my kids will eat the same thing without a horrendous battle that I’m not ready for at 6:30 in the morning!  It must be fast or they get mean…real mean!  I’m pouring waters, milks, syrup, throwing vitamins through the air to my hungry group, and toasting different things…all at the same time!  The microwave and I are both heating up and I’m trying to find the coffee spoon.  There it is…I found it!  Kids are soon happily eating at the table!  Done!  The crowd goes WILD!

Mt. Midoriyama is in view.  The coffee is almost done…and honestly, so am I…

Coffee!!!  Mt. Midoriyama for Mama!! 🙂  I won!  I won!  Now for Level two…getting everyone ready for the day…here we go!

AMERICAN NINJA WARRIOR — “Dallas” — Pictured: Kacy Catanzaro — (Photo by: Peter Larsen/NBC)