Spring

I am not usually one who is depressed by winter.  I mean, what teacher doesn't love a good snow day, right?  I don't mind snow much, mostly because I don't often have to drive to work in it.  Instead it usually means cozy days snuggled under blankets, a fire in the fireplace, and baking cookies with my boys.  Most years I don't mind waiting patiently for spring.  As a Nebraskan, this serves me well, as spring can often take it's own sweet time in arriving.

This year feels different.  I am very anxious for warm weather and sunny skies.  The stark snow and barren landscapes of winter have seemed too close to my own emotional outlook this year, and have felt  oppressive.  I think I am hoping that the cheery sound of chirping birds, sunny skies, and warm breezes can help transport me out of this season of grief.

I am learning that grief doesn't go away.  I thought at first it might.  The sharpness of it will dull with time, but it never leaves.  We are all adjusting to our new roles in life, the altered picture of our family.  I don't know if it will ever feel normal, or okay, but it is becoming less "new".  I am learning to deal with it, but it was somewhat of a surprise to me that everyday still brings tears.  Every single day.  I don't know if that will ever change.  And I guess if it doesn't, you just learn to keep going.

I am hoping the arrival of a new season, the season of new life, will help breathe new life into my heart.  I am feeling ready for some happy and some sunshine.  I know my Dad wants that for us to.

My Girls

We had a wedding shower on Saturday for my brother Creighton's fiance Lindsey.  It was so much fun to spoil her and see family and friends!  My Aunt Connie took this awesome picture of my sister Sarah, me, and Lindsey.  I love it!  I also love that Lindsey is now an official member of the family.  I tell Creighton all the time that if I could choose anyone to join our family, it would be Lindsey.  She is wonderful, and we are so lucky.

My niece Brooke is in the corner.  Besides my Mom, we are the ONLY girls in our family!  Can you believe it?  Sarah is currently pregnant with the 6th grandson for my parents. 

I hope Lindsey's future includes some girl babies for us to love!

My Cuite Bug

Isn't he just stinkin' adorable?!

When he put them on for the first time at the eye doctor, he looked around for a minute, gasped, and said, "Oh Mommy!  It's beautiful!  I can see so much STUFF!  And hey!  Did you know there's a Taco Bell across the street?  I've never seen that before!"  It was precious.  I am amazed at how well he functioned without them.  It makes me sad that we didn't notice he needed them sooner!

Later that night, Sammy had swimming lessons.  After I had given him a shower in the locker room, I put his glasses back on.  He looked down at the floor and exclaimed, "OH MY GOODNESS!  There is all kinds of yucky dirt on this floor!  Why didn't anybody tell me about this?"  Oh the details you can see with your glasses on!!  Everyday since has brought new discoveries for Sammy, now that he can finally see the world around him,

Sammy's Getting Glasses!

Sammy and Evan have had a busy 2011.  They've been busy making lots of medical bills! :)

In January, you might remember that Sam had his run in with the toybox and got 7 stitches.  In February, we took him to the eye doctor after he failed his eye check at his 4 year check up.  We found out he is slightly near sighted, but more importantly has a rather severe astigmatism, which makes everything extremely blurry for him.  Ever since, we've been trying to get glasses ordered for him.  My adorable Sammy has the BIGGEST blue eyes you've ever seen.  But apparently they are so big it means that we need to have glasses custom made in order to fit his face.  I think we may finally have a pair we can order this week.

Evan, meanwhile, has been making many trips to the orthodontist so that we could have an evaluation done.  We discovered that his bottom jaw is bigger than the top jaw, making it impossible for him to chew on his molars.  As he begins to grow, the problem is going to get worse, and eventually he won't even be able to chew with his front teeth.  The problem is genetic, and we were lucky enough to have the orthodontist tell us it's the worst case he's ever seen.  Awesome!  So for now, Evan is going to have braces put on for the next year to make a temporary fix that will allow him to chew for the next few years.  When he stops growing at 16 or 17, he will need more orthodontics, and jaw surgery where they will remove a significant portion of the jaw bone and reshape his bite.

I don't know how I managed it, but I think I have passed on the absolute worst of my genetics to my poor kiddos.  Thank goodness we live in a time where there are ways to fix and deal with these things!  Now I just have to pray my poor husband doesn't collapse at the thought of all our medical bills :).

My Kids Ate My Blog

I can't believe I haven't been here since January. 

I love my blog, but my life?  It likes me to stay SUPER busy.  You know the story...work, drive kids around to activities, doctor appointments, homework, drive kids around to more activities, try to keep the house clean.  So I won't bore you with the details.

Today I am home with a sick Sammy Bear.  He has a fever, aches, headache, and a deep wet cough.  My guess is the flu, so we are off to the doctor this morning.  With the boys' asthma, we don't mess around with lung issues/infections.

All of which has left me some time to write while my baby is snuggled up next to me, sweating his way through his fever.  We have some exciting things happening around here I would love to tell you about!

My brother is getting married in 6 short weeks, which has provided us with a flurry of wedding activity!  We've been busy making 600 mints, addressing invitations, picking out dresses, and getting fitted for tuxes.  Speaking of dresses, my bridesmaid dress came in yesterday.  When I tried it on, we discovered it was fine in the waist but would barely zip around my rib cage.  So, I will be getting a few ribs removed so that I can zip my dress and not pass out from lack of oxygen at the ceremony.

Just kidding.  But I do hope the seamstress can work miracles, or I will have to give up breathing for the day.

Charlie is getting geared up for Kindergarten round up on April 1st.  He is SO excited and SO nervous.  Every day he is full of questions like, "What if my teacher is mean?"  "What if I don't like it?"  "What if I don't know everything they teach me?"  I remember feeling the same way.  Poor baby.

I am counting down the days to summer.  I have vowed to NOT sign the kids up for anything other than once a week swim lessons.  We need some healing of hearts and minds around here, and I think some time to slow down and relax is just the thing.

We are in the depths of tax season, which means that my poor Jeff is working so hard.  I am so grateful he is such a good provider for our family.  I love that he has such a wonderful work ethic.  But I do worry about him this time of year.  I am praying he stays healthy, and that the stress doesn't adversely affect him.  And I miss him terribly.  I just can't get my fill of that guy.  Have I mentioned lately that I love my husband?

Me?  I've been getting by.  Every day includes a moment where I am hit by a wave of loneliness and sadness for my Dad.  I've learned to let it wash over me, and to pray pray pray.  I am trying to focus on strengthening my relationship with the Lord to get me through.  My church choir is one of the high points of my week.  The singing helps brighten my week and my soul.  I'm so glad I have music to turn to.  I've also put pictures and sayings about my Dad all over my house.  It helps me to see his face everyday, and to send him a message to heaven that I love him.

Thank goodness spring is on the way!  I am dreaming of birds tweeting, warm sunshine, and planting some flowers in my yard.  Only a few more weeks....

Birthdays and Other News

Boy, did we have a crazy weekend.

On Sunday, the dog got out of the yard, and I ended up having to chase him like the marathon runner I am NOT.  That crafty dog kept looking over his shoulder to make sure I was still behind him.  I think Aspen was having the time of his life, and thought he had invented a grand game for us to play!  He is lucky that I love him, and that I have been running on the treadmill, or there is no way I would have kept up with him.  Luckily for me, he got distracted by a pile of dog "doodoo" that he needed to sniff, or I don't know what I would have done. 

This all happened as we were supposed to be leaving for my nephew Colin's birthday party.  We were late to the party, and had only been there for about an hour when disaster struck again.  Sammy and the other cousins had already finished eating, so they went into the basement to play.  Somehow, Sammy tripped, fell, and face planted right on top of a toy box.  He took a chunk out of his cheek, and we had to take him to the emergency room.  He needed 7 stitches on the top layer, and some underneath.  I have never seen so much blood!  He also severely bit the inside of his cheek, so eating has been a challenge today.  I don't know if you can tell in the picture below, but his cheek is so swollen it looks like he has an apple stuffed in his mouth.

My poor Sammy bear!  He was impressed he got to watch Toy Story at the hospital, and he was so, SO brave.  He didn't make a peep while they were stitching him up, and he held so still.  I am so proud of him!

And today?  Today is my Charlie's birthday.  It was 5 years ago that this 10 pound, 23 1/2 inch bundle of joy was placed in my arms:

 And here is me, shortly before I was ready to push Charlie into the world.  I love how Charlie and I were both so surrounded by love and family and friends that day.  My parents were both in the room to see each of my children enter the world, and I am so thankful.

I love that my Dad is holding my hand in this picture.  I love that I had the most important men in my life holding my hands as I met my new little man for the first time.

Sometimes I miss Daddy so much it steals my breath away.  Today is one of those days.

I am thankful that God has given me Charlie, and that he is 5 today.  He is so spirited, and creative, and amazingly smart.  Sometimes it steals my breath away that I am lucky enough to be his mom.  And today is one of those days.

Despite the craziness, the stitches and blood, the sorrows, and the hard work that goes into my life, I am thankful.  And so blessed.  So very blessed.

SNOW DAY!

Good morning!  It is the happiest of days in a teacher's life this morning!  We are having a SNOW DAY here at the Sole Woman.  It's been snowing since yesterday morning, and we have about 6 inches on the ground-and it is still going strong!  Here's a picture I took this morning with a new photo program I am playing around with on my iPhone (I love the old fashioned feel it gives photos):

I am sitting with my coffee, looking at the snow falling quietly outside the window.  My family is all tucked inside, warm and safe.  Jeff is working from home today, Evan is taking advantage of his day off by sleeping (he is SO 12!!), and Charlie and Sammy are snuggled up on the couch under blankets talking about what they will be doing outside later today. 

Bliss!

Since I have nowhere to go and nothing to do but enjoy my coffee, I thought I would give you an update of life around our house.    I forgot to mention that my darling husband bought me for Christmas the gift I have been dreaming of for the last 8 years....drumroll please....a KitchenAid mixer!!  (And she is a beautiful cherry red too!)  I guess I haven't talked about it a lot here, but I love to bake.  I love to do things homemade.  My go to stress reliever is bread baking, much to the delight of my husband.  I think he secretly loves it when I have a bad day, because he knows there is a loaf of fresh baked bread in his future.  Since I first moved into my own space, I have been using my mom's cast off mixer, which was a gift from her 1974 wedding.  About 6 months ago, he lost a leg, and I had to prop it up on a piece of wood so it wouldn't wobble while I mixed.  The thing drove me bananas.  If the recipe called for more than 3 cups of flour, the batter would climb up the beaters and try and get into the motor.  It was beyond frustrating to try and mix up dough for Christmas cookies.

I will admit that I screamed when I opened it on Christmas morning.  I love it.  Seriously.  I am not one to keep appliance on the kitchen counters, but I love my mixer so much, she has a place of honor on the counter.   (And besides, she's red!  So she coordinates with my kitchen!!)  I have been trying out lots of new recipes, and I have been playing around with made from scratch cakes.  Do any of you have any recipes for homemade cakes?  Or tips?  Mine haven't been the greatest.

This week I had to submit all of Charlie's documents and paperwork for Kindergarten registration.  It's really starting to hit home that he's going to school next year.  I know every mother feels like their kids grow up too fast, but it is UNBELIEVABLE to me how quickly his first 5 years have gone.  In fact, he is turning 5 on the 17th, and he is beyond excited.  I know he's ready for this new adventure, so I am trying to get my heart to accept this.

I am off to bake some bread!  (Not because I am stressed today :)  Just because it sounds nice!)  I hope you are warm and cozy on this January Monday.

Back to the Grind!

I went back to work today, after a lovely and much needed two weeks off.  I needed the sleep, I needed the down time, and I needed the family time.  It's been a long first semester, and I definitely needed the recharge.  Although I wasn't overly excited this morning about returning to work when the alarm went off at 5:30, the day was nice.  No students today, just a work day to get things done in our classrooms, and I feel ready again to tackle some school work. 

Having a routine is good for me and the kids.  I am feeling ready to get started on 2011, and make a fresh go of things.

Now I just have to convince the boys of this!  Charlie had a huge temper tantrum before we left about how much he hates school, how bored his there, and how he absolutely would NOT be getting his shoes on, thank you very much!  Ever since we got home this afternoon, Evan has alternated between moping and wailing about how much he shouldn't be required to go to school, he already knows everything he needs to know in life.  The stubborn/ dramatic gene?  It runs strongly in this family.

As for me, I am going to try and stay positive, stay relaxed, and remember my New Year's goal of realizing I am NOT super mom, and I don't have to be either.  I hope you have a great week!

It's Not too Late to Sign Up!

The new session of the Bible in 90 Days at Mom's Toolbox begins this Monday!  It's not too late to sign up.  I will be mentoring a group this session and would love to have you join me.

For more information, please click here.

Wouldn't this be a great way to start 2011 off right?  HAPPY NEW YEAR!

The best gift I've given this Christmas season...

Just popping in to tell you about this GREAT cause, this WONDERFUL little boy with Down's Syndrome who YOU can help, just like I did.

His name is Cliff, and he is alone in an orphanage in Eastern Europe.  A blogger named Janette is helping to raise money for Cliff's adoption grant fund, so that when he finds his forever family, their expenses will be paid for.

Please read about him here.

Won't you join me in helping him?

Good Bye 2010

I have very mixed feelings about the departure of 2010.  It was far and above the WORST year of my life.  It did bring the arrival of my nephew Grant, but this was it's only redeeming quality.  August 2010 included my Dad's disastrous surgery.  The next 8 weeks held a miserable struggle for him as he worked to heal and recover.  (Although it was so hard to watch him be so uncomfortable and in pain, I will be forever thankful for this extra time I had to tell him how much I loved him.)  And of course, September brought his death, an event I don't know if I will ever really recover from.

For these reasons I am not sorry to see 2010 go.  2011 has to be better, right?

On the other hand, this is the last year that held my Dad's presence in my life in a physical way.  I am so scared to leave that behind and face a whole year without him.

I spent some time this morning looking back at my 2010 goals that I set back on January 1st.  They included home sanctuary, health, and relationships.  I am going to stick with these again this year, as I don't feel like I did a very good job at most of it.  Sanctuary is definitely the hardest for me.  This year brought a change in schedule for us, as all three boys became old enough to become involved in activities.  Although I limited the boys to one activity each, it still made our evenings after school crazy!  This has made for my most difficult year trying to balance work, family time, and household tasks.  It left me with precious little time for working to make our home a clean and relaxing space.  This is a whole post in itself, but I really feel sometimes that women got a raw deal from the feminist movement of the 60s.  Sure we can have better paying jobs, but this created an economic situation where most women need to have jobs to support their families.  Now we have full time jobs on top of all the responsibilities that women have always had....raising the kids and managing the household.  It's like having three or four full time jobs at once.  And I am standing here in front of you admitting I am not very good at handling and balancing all of that.

Anyway, I'll get off my soapbox now.  I am going to keep trying in 2011 to achieve balance, and find time to create sanctuary.

I learned a lot in the relationship area this year.  I learned you never know when you won't get to see someone again.  I told my Dad in his birthday card that our experience with his surgery taught me to never waste an opportunity to say I love you, to give a hug, or to appreciate.  I am going to work hard to never forget this, and carry this forward into 2011 and beyond.

Health also took on a new perspective as my siblings and I all realized the genetic woes that are stacked against us.  I found out I am in a dangerously  high risk group for heart attack with my high cholesterol problems and genetic history.  I got a treadmill, and changed my diet even further.  I finally, finally, finally lost 10 pounds.  I am hoping for more in the coming year.

I'm going to keep plugging away at these goals this year, and I'm going to forgive myself for not being perfect at achieving them last year.  I am working every day to remember it's okay to be human and not super woman. 

I hope all of you have a wonderful New Year's Eve tonight, and more importantly a wonderful 2011!  Thanks for spending some of your time (which I know is precious!) to be with me here at The Sole Woman.  You are part of what makes the adventure fun for me.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Merry Christmas!

I can't believe another Christmas Day has passed, in the blink of an eye. I am sad to see it go...I love the holiday season so much! We had a wonderful day yesterday, filled with:

Brotherly Love


Handsome boys ready for church on Christmas Eve (with Evan singing in the choir!)


New family members

Celebrating Christmas Eve at my Mom's house... It was nice to be together, but also much harder than I thought it would be without Dad there. It was so hard to not have him with us, but we made it through one more "first". We made it through together, as a family.


More new family members...this is Lindsey, my brother's infinitely awesome girlfriend. She feels like she has been my sister forever. There are so many things that make her fit into our family perfectly, and it feels like God sent her to us as a gift.


Christmas morning Christmas Trees...


Boys ready to open gifts


...and Hot cocoa and Christmas cookies for breakfast

It was a good holiday, and we felt surrounded by family and love. If you celebrated Christmas yesterday as well, I hope that you had a wonderful day! I count all of you that come here to read my little corner of the blogosphere as one of my Christmas blessings. THANK YOU for spending time with me here at the Sole Woman!

Happy Anniversary

Today would have been my parent's 36th wedding anniversary.

I have been thinking about my Dad, and my parent's marriage all day long. One of the biggest blessings that God has given me is my parent's example of marriage. My Dad and Mom were always loving and kind to each other. I can only remember them arguing in front of us kids once when I was growing up. This doesn't mean they didn't have differing opinions, but they were so respectful and kind to each other when they did.

My Dad always spoiled my Mom on special days like birthdays and anniversaries, but he did special things for her in the everyday moments too. He provided me with a wonderful example of what a husband can be, should be, and needs to be. His example helped lead me to Jeff, and I am so thankful.

When my parents celebrated their 30th anniversary, my siblings and I surprised them with an anniversary party, complete with all of their friends and family. It is one of the few times we were really able to pull one off on my Dad. I will never forget his expression of shock as he walked in the door to my house and saw everyone gathered there to celebrate them. We thought we would be able to do a bigger more formal party for them when they made it to their 40th or 50th anniversary, but it turned out to be our only opportunity. I am so grateful that God gave us the inspiration to throw them that party. I am also grateful that we had a friend who is also a photographer take pictures of that night. They are treasures to me now.

I wish that my parents had been able to celebrate many more anniversaries together. But I am so lucky to have been a witness to the 35 1/2 years they were together.

I love you Mom and Dad. You are both my heroes.

Are you making a New Year's Resolution?

Unbelievably, we only have 11 more days of 2010. I have some major issues with this, but that is a whole other post for later in the week.

In the meantime, I am thinking about New Year's Resolutions. One of mine is to spend more time with God, through his words in the Bible. I discovered when I read through the Bible this year that I am a better person when I spend time each day with God. I am going to be reading through the Bible, cover to cover, beginning on January 3rd.

I would love it if you would join me! You can read more about how to sign up here.

You can read about how I felt when I finished this program for the first time this fall here.

I am so excited about reading with the people who have already signed up! I am praying for each of you already. I encourage those of you who have signed up to start thinking about how you will fit in reading time everyday. What changes will you make in your schedule? I have found for me that it helps to break the reading up as I go through the day. I often read a couple pages here and there when the kids were occupied, or even when I was waiting for something to come out of the microwave. Other readers have told me that they did best when they blocked out a large chunk of time to accomplish all 12 pages for the day. (And 12 pages is it! That's all for each day! It makes it seem so much more like a manageable task when you think of it this way.)

I am hoping many of you will join me!! It will change your life, I promise.

Wrapping Frenzy!

I am done with my Christmas shopping, but I haven't wrapped ONE.SINGLE.THING!

All the gifts are piled up in my secret hiding spot, just waiting. Have I ever told you that I don't have much patience for jobs that take a long time? I have lots of kid patience. Give me a room filled with kids, and I can wade through the worst of problems with buckets of patience. Give me a lot of vegetables to chop, cookies to bake, rooms to paint, or lots of presents to wrap, and I want to pull my hair out. I feel so overwhelmed with jobs that will take more than an hour, that I don't even want to start.

Which is why my secret hiding spot is making me anxious. The thought of all that wrapping is making my skin crawl.

I know what some of you are thinking...use a gift bag Christy.

But I just can't.

When I was little, the big magic of Christmas morning for me was presents to unwrap, all in a jumble under the tree. My Mom, God bless her, was much more practical with four kids. She used a lot of gift bags, and when we woke up on Christmas morning, each child had their own very organized pile of presents set somewhere in the room to make for easy opening.

As a Mom myself, I can understand where she was coming from, but I have this compulsion to give my kids that jumble under the tree, and the unwrapping experience. (Don't get me wrong...I know the presents aren't the most important part. But they are fun, right?!)

Tonight, after my little munchkins are tucked in their beds, I am going to make myself tackle that pile. I wish I could ask Jeff to help, but he has always wrapped his gifts in garbage bags. Unfortunately, I am not kidding. He's lucky I found him to be the nicest, smartest, most handsomest man otherwise that first Christmas we had when we were dating when he gave me a diamond necklace in a garbage bag might have been the end. Instead, I laughed and laughed. And I still laugh when he gives me his gift every year.

And so this is Christmas...

I have been missing my little blog. I didn't mean to neglect it this month, but December? It's been crazy.

I know it's crazy for everybody, and I shouldn't complain. Not all of it has been bad crazy. There have been good moments, like Evan singing in a trio at the 6-8 Christmas concert at school.

Or when Charlie and Sammy sang their preschool Christmas program, and neither were scared to perform. Sammy now loves to walk around the house singing "Up On the Housetop", which is cuter than anything.

Or when my aunts, mom, and sister and I all got together and baked our brains out, and made hundreds of Christmas goodies, all in one day.

Or when I sang with the choir at Mass for my first performance sing my Dad died. Music lifts my spirit, and singing in church makes me feel surrounded by God's love. It's been so very healing.

Or when I got to spend my very favorite three weeks of the year with my class at school. There is nothing more magical than spending time with small children in December. I love my 1st graders. They've helped me to heal too.

Or when I got to go out to dinner with a good friend, and just talk. I love girl time.

There have also been ear aches, sinus infections, bronchitis, and crazy schedules, but I guess in looking back, I notice the good makes up for the crazy.

The good also helps to make up a little bit for the grief. I miss my Dad. SO much. Of course, it is harder around the holidays, but the every day things are so much harder to me. I wanted him to see Evan sing (and I prayed like crazy that he could peek down from heaven and see Evan, so brave up on that stage...and I really think he did). I want to call him on the phone and ask him a question. I want to see him at church. I want to drink coffee with him at breakfast on Sunday. I want to tell him I love him.

I'm getting by. I'm still excited about Christmas, mostly because my kids are excited. I still feel joy and happiness in my life and my family. But December would be so much better with Dad here with me. Maybe that's selfish, because I know how much joy he must be experiencing in heaven. The glory of Christmas in heaven must be incredible! I just wish we had gotten to have a little more time together here on Earth first.

Exciting Announcement!

If you've been a regular reader around here, you might remember that this summer I completed the Bible in 90 Days online reading program along with Amy at Mom's Toolbox. It was the most incredible experience for me, and ended up being one of the things that helped me through my Dad's death the most. I can't recommend doing the Bible in 90 Days program enough!

In fact, a new session is set to begin on January 3rd, 2011. And this time, not only will I be reading the Bible in 90 Days again, I will be serving as a mentor for one of the groups reading through the Bible in 90 Days. I would be thrilled to have you join me!

To sign up, please visit here. When you complete the sign up form, you can indicate that you would like to be assigned to my reading group, if you would like for me to be your mentor. You are also able to join the program and be randomly assigned a mentor. The sign up goes live at midnight on Monday, November 29th.

I will be praying right away for every person who may be considering beginning this journey. It may seem like an overwhelming task at first, but the program does an outstanding job of dividing the daily reading assignments into very manageable chunks. If even have an inkling that God is calling you to read the entire Bible, I encourage you to pray about the Bible in 90 Days program. It is an amazing experience, and I guarantee you won't regret it!

Won't you join me?

Happy 4th Birthday Sammy!

Happy birthday to my baby, my biggest surprise, my Sammy. Today starts the special two months of every year when Charlie and Sammy are the same age.

You will always be the perfect addition to our family. I love you forever Sammy K!

Welcome Home Aspen!

This past weekend we were blessed with a new addition to our family. His name is Aspen, and he is an Alaskan Husky. He is one of the biggest dogs I've ever met, which should make me nervous, since big dogs have always intimidated me a bit. The only way to describe Aspen though is as a gentle giant. He is so calm, so friendly, and so laid back. He never barks, never has accidents in the house, and never jumps on people. He never goes for your crotch like so many dogs I know. He is a gentleman.

Most importantly, Aspen loves my kids. He has especially bonded with Evan. Aspen follows Evan all over the house, and sleeps in his room. The other night when Evan didn't feel well, he sat with his head on Evan's bed for over an hour, just looking into Evan's sleeping face. He took a break to eat dinner, and then went right back to Evan, and curled up on the floor next to the bed. You could just tell that he was worried about Evan.

He lets Charlie and Sammy love on him in their not always gentle preschool way. They both like to watch TV with their heads on his stomach, and Aspen just lays there patiently. He is one of the best dogs I've ever met.

We are blessed to have him.

Lovin' Norah Jones

As my family and I have been working on returning to "normal" life and healing from the hurts of the last 4 months, we have turned to music over and over again to help us heal. Sometimes we choose praise and worship music when we need to feel Jesus by our side. Sometimes we choose fast and upbeat dance songs, so we can help our hearts to feel happy again. Sometimes we choose silly kids songs to help us think about other things. And sometimes we choose slow and mellow, for the times when we are exhausted from just putting one foot in front of the other.

This week we added a new album to the slow and mellow category. Norah Jones' new album called "Featuring".



I have always loved Norah Jones' smooth voice. It's so relaxing to listen to. Her new album features songs that she has collaborated on with other artists, including some of my favorites: Willie Nelson, Dolly Parton, (can you tell I love classic country?) and the Foo Fighters. All of the songs are smooth, mellow, and delicious. I love how all of the songs have a slightly different feel and flavor, depending on the collaborating artist.

This album has been my companion this week as I have worked up to facing a major holiday without my Dad. When I've needed to calm and center myself, Norah has been there to help. Music has always been a central part of my life, whether through band, various choirs, or just listening to my favorites on my iPod (or Walkman back in the day!) It's what I turn to to deal with emotions. I am thankful to have found another "go to" CD.

For more information on the album, you can go to:
The Norah Jones Site
Norah Jones on You Tube

Disclaimer: I was provided a free copy of Norah Jones' "Featuring" by the One 2 One Network.