It had been two years since our last visit, and my friend Kellie (of Spain fame) came with us. She even drove almost the whole way back. That is love. I think she did it to encourage me to finally finish the travel journal I had promised I would keep about our trip. I had not gotten past day one, in fact, until she offered to drive. I was so grateful, I churned out several pages of thoughtful reflection on our time abroad. Looking back, God was so very kind to us, since we were clearly quite silly and should have been spirited away upon stepping foot on foreign soil.
Our time in Plentywood was brief, but since it had rained, Steve (my father-in-law) was able to spend far more time with us than he would normally get during harvest. Not only that, but we got to go out to the ranch and RIDE TRACTORS. BIG GREEN JOHN DEERE TRACTORS! The look on my son's face was priceless, and you'll have to be satisfied with that description because I am silly (see above paragraph) and forgot my camera in Bozeman. Steve got to be the hero of the weekend - not only does Grampa Steve own tractors, but he drives them too. And Blake got to ride in one. I even got up into a monster with lil' B that made me want to say something like "I'm king of the world!" even though I am a girl and would be queen, of course. I think the tires were taller than my head, but it's all fuzzy because I was drunk with power. 
Unfortunately, it was too muddy to visit Grampa Steve's combine out in the field, but they took care of that on Sunday, when the two buddies went to the John Deere dealer and hugged every piece of machinery they could. At least, I think that's what happened.
The folks in Pwood are the salt of the earth, and time and again I'm blown away by their generosity and kindness. Blake handled the drive exceptionally well, though he now refuses to sleep in the car, despite my promise: "If you fall asleep now, we'll still have two more hours of driving after you wake up!" At one point, he did fall asleep ever so briefly, letting the large Richard Scarry book he was reading simply slip onto his face. All we could see of him was his head (from the nose up), his fingers on either side, and his feet. This is a big book, people.
Since being back, I've redoubled my efforts to clear out my schedule. No more Growth Group with awesome folks from church. No more standing weekly meeting with a particular friend (we've revamped it to every other week), no more dragging my child around with no regard to his sleep schedule, then expecting him to be a sweet, obedient boy. I now have those expectations knowing he's getting plenty of rest and having an easier time of it. His attitude is remarkably improved. We play and laugh in the evenings far more, and he's really very funny. He now has more John Deere toys, and knows exactly how to use them, tipping the tractors (because they are sleeping - shhhh!), and keeping the horses/cows/sheep/goats on a rigorous schedule of being moved from one end of the coffee table to the other, then sleeping. Shhh!
Also, since the news that my day care rate was going up significantly (which prompted the budget examination, which prompted my realization that retail therapy was NOT helping me in any way), I got a raise. Not only did God provide within my budget for what I needed, He also gave more. Even though this is a small example, it is helpful to remember that I serve an awesome God.
I have hot peppers ripening in my living room (if anyone in Bozeman wants some, I have, uh, plenty), and expensive flowers (mentioned in a previous post) decorating my vases. Keeping Blake from playing in the tantalizing dirt with his toy backhoe, loader, or grader is tricky, but working. I'll post some photos soon of my time babysitting the Schuyler twins...forty-five minutes after getting home from Pwood. Reese hadn't wanted to impose, but I insisted - a girl needs to get her hair cut in peace! I didn't take pictures during the screaming, unhappy time, but I did get some of the cousins together, plus Blake comparing his foot to one of theirs. He was impressed with the backhoe booties, plus the fact that his toes could curl over top. I don't think the screaming twins were impressed by anything, so I gave up after a while and just unpacked around all the screaming with the extra screaminess.
Ok, they weren't that bad. I felt sorry for them, and they eventually fell asleep, but not before my neighbor came to make sure everything was ok, what with all the screaming.
Unfortunately, it was too muddy to visit Grampa Steve's combine out in the field, but they took care of that on Sunday, when the two buddies went to the John Deere dealer and hugged every piece of machinery they could. At least, I think that's what happened.The folks in Pwood are the salt of the earth, and time and again I'm blown away by their generosity and kindness. Blake handled the drive exceptionally well, though he now refuses to sleep in the car, despite my promise: "If you fall asleep now, we'll still have two more hours of driving after you wake up!" At one point, he did fall asleep ever so briefly, letting the large Richard Scarry book he was reading simply slip onto his face. All we could see of him was his head (from the nose up), his fingers on either side, and his feet. This is a big book, people.
Since being back, I've redoubled my efforts to clear out my schedule. No more Growth Group with awesome folks from church. No more standing weekly meeting with a particular friend (we've revamped it to every other week), no more dragging my child around with no regard to his sleep schedule, then expecting him to be a sweet, obedient boy. I now have those expectations knowing he's getting plenty of rest and having an easier time of it. His attitude is remarkably improved. We play and laugh in the evenings far more, and he's really very funny. He now has more John Deere toys, and knows exactly how to use them, tipping the tractors (because they are sleeping - shhhh!), and keeping the horses/cows/sheep/goats on a rigorous schedule of being moved from one end of the coffee table to the other, then sleeping. Shhh!
Also, since the news that my day care rate was going up significantly (which prompted the budget examination, which prompted my realization that retail therapy was NOT helping me in any way), I got a raise. Not only did God provide within my budget for what I needed, He also gave more. Even though this is a small example, it is helpful to remember that I serve an awesome God.
I have hot peppers ripening in my living room (if anyone in Bozeman wants some, I have, uh, plenty), and expensive flowers (mentioned in a previous post) decorating my vases. Keeping Blake from playing in the tantalizing dirt with his toy backhoe, loader, or grader is tricky, but working. I'll post some photos soon of my time babysitting the Schuyler twins...forty-five minutes after getting home from Pwood. Reese hadn't wanted to impose, but I insisted - a girl needs to get her hair cut in peace! I didn't take pictures during the screaming, unhappy time, but I did get some of the cousins together, plus Blake comparing his foot to one of theirs. He was impressed with the backhoe booties, plus the fact that his toes could curl over top. I don't think the screaming twins were impressed by anything, so I gave up after a while and just unpacked around all the screaming with the extra screaminess.
Ok, they weren't that bad. I felt sorry for them, and they eventually fell asleep, but not before my neighbor came to make sure everything was ok, what with all the screaming.
1 comment:
you make me laugh out loud
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