Christian Music

I have to confess that I have never been the biggest fan of Christian radio stations.  I know that is terrible to say, but I am being honest.  I love Christian music, especially praise and worship, but sometimes the songs they play on the radio can be a little "cheesy".  When we lived in Abilene, we got a Christian station out of California that was awesome!!  The one here not so much.  However, I was convicted one night when all the kids piled in our bed and Chapel was playing music on my iphone from my playlist.  Owen and McKay knew all the words to the songs by Usher.  It was HILARIOUS.  There weren't any bad words, but probably not the most edifying lyrics for my boys to have memorized.  I have always found it easier to run to Beyonce rather than praise and worship, but God has changed my heart!!  So, I asked my mom to give the boys some Christian cd's for Christmas.  Our favorite one is a kids version of popular praise and worship songs, kinda like those kid bops cd's.  It is amazing how quickly the boys have memorized the lyrics and all have a favorite song.  Even Chapel yells at me from the back to play the "never let go" song!  As I was putting the boys to bed the other night sweet Owen asked, "mommy what does grace mean, like "your grace is enough" from that song we listened to?".  It took my breath away.  The crazy thing is, we talk about grace a lot in our house.  We tell the boys all the time that we are showing them grace when they deserve a spanking or time out!  We've talked about grace before when discussing salvation and I thought they knew what grace meant.  But, it wasn't until a song we listened to in the car with a chorus of "your grace is enough" did Owen ask and open up a discussion of God's grace.  How cool is that?  It was such a wake up call to me to remember how important it is what I and the boys listen to in the car.  As a mom I feel like I do a pretty good job discussing God's truths with my boys daily.  But, it just goes to show that we all learn different ways and Owen needed to hear it through song rather than me vomiting words at him.  There is power in music and I am so glad God used it in Owen's life.        

A New Year!

Happy New Year!  The older I get the faster the years pass by.  I've heard my parents say this a million times, but it really is true.  I feel so blessed to have 3 precious, healthy boys and an adoring husband.  With a new year comes resolutions and new priorities.  My #1 resolution is to do LESS!  Sounds crazy huh?  But, for a mom of 3 boys with crazy sports schedules, and a wonderful group of friends, we find ways to stay busy ALL the time.  So, I want to be at home more spending time with my boys.  I got some great kitchen tools for Christmas and I plan to cook more elaborate meals and learn new things in the kitchen.  Of course, they will be healthy (organic) meals hah, hah!!  But, I'll make sure to cook lots of BEEF for Owen and Wess.  The boys got a lot of great games for Christmas, a trampoline from Santa, and electric "spark" scooters from Meemo and Grandpa.  So, we should have plenty to do.  Also, I am planning to run a half marathon with my mom and 2 sisters in June.  I have never run anything more than a 5K, so it should be interesting.  We are planning on doing the rock in roll in San Diego to make it more enticing!  Wess started a new job with State Farm, so his schedule is changing from crazy, inconsistent hours to a very predictable schedule.  We are both excited to have more of a routine with his schedule and our finances.  I haven't asked the boys what they want to accomplish in 2012, but I am reminded as I write this how important it is to set goals.  So, I will make sure to ask them and write them down.  I look forward to another year with all my boys accomplishing our goals!

Best Birthday Ever!

                                                   

McKay enjoying my birthday cake at Bella's

Chapel eating a big bite of cake

Owen enjoying my birthday dinner

This week I turned 34 years old!  I went for my almost monthly hair appointment, which was fitting, because I had just counted a new record of grey hairs on my head the night before!!  The number 34 doesn't bother me, but 4 grey hairs does.  Wess planned his almost yearly surf trip a couple of months ago, and it happened to fall the week of my birthday.  I assured him it was not a big deal and celebrating on my actual birthday rarely happens anyway.  Last year he planned a surprise girls weekend for me and several of my girl friends in Dallas.  We had a blast and still laugh over some of the funny things that happened that weekend.  I can't believe it has been a year since we celebrated in Dallas- time is flying by these days!  All that to say, I wasn't expecting much this year, especially with him not even being here.  But, boy was I wrong.  It turned out to be my best birthday ever!  I feel a little guilty saying that since Wess wasn't even there, but I don't think it would've have played out the way it did.  He made sure my birthday was special.  He took the boys shopping for my present (lulu lemon running pants) and made big plans for the night of my birthday.  The plans were to go to Mama's Pizza, which is my favorite pizza place in Fort Worth.  However, Wess didn't realize we had a baseball party there the night before, and although I love Mama's there is no way I could eat it 2 nights in a row!  It took some convincing to talk the boys into a different place.  They had been given strict orders from Wess and they were afraid to make any changes.  After discussing with Wess the change in location, the boys were back in business!  We went to our neighborhood Italian restaurant, and before we got there McKay pulled out two twenty dollar bills and told me they were taking me to dinner and I was not allowed to pay- no matter what!  It was precious, and for the first time I saw McKay growing up right before my very eyes.  We enjoyed a nice dinner and they reminded me how good they had been for my birthday, which was a direct order from their father.  They were buzzing the whole dinner about the surprise- the cake.  Wess had his friend Barney take the cake to the restaurant earlier that evening and when we arrived the boys let the staff know we had arrived.  McKay was a little shy talking to the staff of the restaurant, but Owen led the way!  They could hardly contain themselves through dinner.  I know they were excited to surprise me, but I think they were even more excited to eat the cake.  The whole Bella's staff sang happy birthday as they brought out the cake, and when the song came to "happy birthday to _" the boys shouted out "mommy"!  It was precious.  When they placed the cake in front of me there was a picture of Wess holding a sign that said "miss you and love you, happy birthday".  That's when the tears started rolling.  I felt SO blessed by my husband who went out of his way to make my birthday so special.  But, I shouldn't have been surprised because he always goes out of his way to make me feel special.  And now he is teaching this to our 3 boys.  It truly was my best birthday ever!