Author Archive for ewm – Page 33

Lucky 13!

07 // 19 // 10    
comments // 21

See that young bride up there? The one smiling so big it looks like she has a coat hanger in her mouth? She was crazy-happy that day! And confident and optimistic and absolutely bubbling. She and her love were setting out to build a dream together.

Today, I hardly recognize her.

This is not because I lack joy or confidence or optimism in our marriage, but because I’m 13 years wiser and living a completely different life.

That girl in the photo, she has no idea what marriage requires. She thinks she does. She thinks she knows something about stick-to-it-ness. She has heard the rumors of the hard work of marriage and only half believes them.

But today, on the Lucky 13 Anniversary, the former bride reflects on all the leaps of faith, the laughter, the listening, the patience, the growth.

Today, she knows the rumors were true. And she knows that of all the reasons her marriage is strong, luck is not one of them.

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Photo © 1997 Larkin Photography

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Sunday Grace

07 // 18 // 10    
comments // 0

Family, what are you thankful for today?
Highlights from this week:

My new solar system mobile
Hot dogs and apples
Books!!!!! (She insisted on all the exclamation marks.)
Legos
3-hr naps (Oops, probably just jinxed myself.)
Raspberries, except for squished ones
3-hr babysitting breaks
Fun lunch with big kids
Playing in the sprinkler
The big Playmobil world we set up
Neck massage
Going to Aunt E’s tomorrow
Having solo time with just Smiley
My sister/Aunt E
A night out and a rooftop dinner

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Sunday Grace, our family gratitude journal, is updated weekly.
Read the entire series here.

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Happy customers

07 // 16 // 10    
comments // 4

The pricey crib, carseat and highchair survived only two kids…


But the well-loved, $20 pop-up tent? Good as new.

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Lesson learned the hard way

07 // 14 // 10    
comments // 3

No matter if the drinks only come in one size, and the kids only finish half of them, and I’m out an extra $2…

It’s always worth it to buy two milkshakes.

Comments (3)

Buyer’s remorse

07 // 12 // 10    
comments // 1

I have nobody to blame except myself.

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Comments (1)

Sunday Grace

07 // 11 // 10    
comments // 2

Family, what are you thankful for today?
Highlights from this week:

Backyard camps
I made it to yoga
Hubby’s job is 5 minutes from home
A pretty morning bike ride
One more day till my birthday
A very productive day
Rascal (We are all so happy you were born!)
Healthy kids
Star Wars AT-AT vehicle
Two babies: baby back ribs and baby brother
We get to eat white bread with our bbq
Great swim meet
Party! Gifts!
Sweet 6-year-old buddies
Safe travels

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Sunday Grace, our family gratitude journal, is updated weekly.
Read the entire series here.

Comments (2)

Glowing

07 // 09 // 10    
comments // 2

When she twirls, my heart skips
For it’s not every moment that she so freely abandons her guard.

She spins and spins under a darkening night
Surrounded by strangers and friends, all waiting for the sky to explode.

With her every turn I catch my breath
And feel myself light up before the show even begins.

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Comments (2)

Diving in

07 // 07 // 10    
comments // 2

The big kids’ first-ever swim meet proved to be one of those parenting moments I was not sure I’d survive.

Just being at the meet was an accomplishment enough, given the preceding weeks of anxiety (first theirs, then mine).

But when the time came for lining up, the kids rose to the challenge as they consistently do. And I rose too–dutifully standing behind the cones, a mere inch from the dividing line between parents and swimmers.

I watched my first swimmer dive in, then splash and squirm through the slowest, most painful 25-meter freestyle of my life. I very nearly vomited up a ball of nerves right there on the pool deck.

I witnessed my other child slip into the pool for the backstroke with only a
Don’t-Talk-To-Me-I’m-Nervous game face poking out of the water.

I made it through four events without tears. Each time I cheered loud enough to mask my quivering. And each time, our swimmers emerged beaming and triumphant. My face nearly cracked with pride.

And then, just as I was feeling stable enough to congratulate the kids without sobbing, Hubby leaned over and whispered, “Whatever you do, don’t think about that one Olympic commercial.”

Jerk. And there went the floodgates…

Comments (2)

Need Me?

07 // 05 // 10    
comments // 1

Take a number and get in line.

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Only two more days of the ParentsConnect contest…Please keep voting! Thanks!

Comments (1)

Sunday Grace

07 // 04 // 10    
comments // 0

Family, what are you thankful for today?
Highlights from this week:

Pizza night
Robots that say “malfunction, malfunction”
Silly accents with my brother
Our new vegetable garden
Smiley’s half-birthday
Barton Springs
New backpack
Smiley saying new word: “goggle”
I got an 18-month-old milestone photo
The Hardy Boys books
Kale, ketchup and chicken
Baby A is home!
The Boxcar Children books
Dad got to have lunch with us
Books that I read, books that I write (She may beat me to the bookshelves.)
We met Baby A
Rainstorms
Kids tried hard at first-ever swim meet

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Sunday Grace, our family gratitude journal, is updated weekly.
Read the entire series here.

Comments (0)
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