Memorable Days

We went to Ryan's grandparents' house at the Lake of the Ozarks for Memorial Day. Ryan's grandparents are moving to San Diego this summer, so this was probably our last chance to be at the lake. Ryan feels such a connection to that house, that dock, and that lake, and we are sad that our girls will not grow up knowing those like he did. He spent most summer weekends at the lake, skiing, fishing, swimming, and having fun with his cousins, and so many great memories from his childhood have the lake as a backdrop.

Uh, we are not actually in the water in this picture. The boat had not been summerized, so we were not able to go boating. Not that the girls really noticed.

The drive there made me regret our decision to go. HOWEVER! The mood in the Bond car can change as quickly as the Kansas weather, so by the time we arrived, we were all happy to be on a trip together. The girls were cracking each other up during the last two miles while I tried not to vomit all over the steering wheel. (This Kansas girl is NOT USED to hills and turns, I guess.)

Aside from a massive diaper blowout on the trip home, this was a very smooth getaway for us. Madeline ate pears for the first time (I thought the jar said PEAS) and lapped them up. That's a nice image for you, no?

We went to Oak Street church, too. Coralie led singing from our pew (very exaggerated hand gestures horrified me at several points) and followed people around to shake their hands. She introduced Madeline and Papa to more than a few people.

We walked the loop with Madeline in the stroller and Coralie on her tricycle. For the life of me, I cannot believe I ever ran that loop. The hill is so steep I swear you end up walking upside down at points. 

The low point of the weekend involved Grandma's "doll collection". I use that term loosely, because it is more like Grandma's Doll House of Horrors. In all seriousness, she had some of the most disturbing dolls I have ever seen in my life. The one that made me shudder the most had three faces. THREE. Two were "hidden" by a bonnet when not in use, but the disguise was poor. The other dolls had various grimaces, electrocuted hairstyles, and dislocated arms and legs. Grandma tried to send them all home with us. Coralie was happy to oblige, but at the last minute, we did the ol' fake-out! and threw them back in the house without Coralie's knowledge. (Grandma was complicit.)

We spent some good time on the dock, too. The tsunamis spun off by passing boats made me feel like I was actually in a boat. Nice effect. I would like to blame the waves for my losing my lens cap into the swells, but I can't. I am just clumsy.

We also made sure to get pictures of all the generations. It's not every day you have four sets in one house!

We are so glad we packed up our entire house and drove the six hours to spend one last weekend at the lake. Ryan is very close to his grandparents, and while we are sad they won't live so close anymore, we are glad the other cousins can live near them now. They are special people and have created a legacy that has already impacted the third generation of their offspring.

Whenever I feel bad that I'm not doing "enough", I remember that God was well-pleased with Jesus before Jesus had even started his ministry. Being with family pleases God. Ryan and I are so grateful that we can give our children the gift of time with extended family, and we pray that these shared experiences mold them into women who please God in their relationships.

For now, we enjoy the heck out of these little girls (when they don't stress the heck out of us) and are glad for the memories we made this weekend.

Ummm, welcome?

Ryan asked if he could start telling people about my blog. I finally said yes. I am not sure why I prefer to keep this blog private, for I am not really a private person.

I figure opening my blog up to non-family members is a good exercise in humility for me. I can't manage people's perceptions of me, and I should stop trying.

So! Here you go, world. The mostly random, very sporadic, often cheesy ramblings of my head. Enjoy. (And if you don't, please don't tell me so. Or do...maybe it would be good for me to hear.)

E-purposes

Hello, Twitter. I have joined you.

I am "@bond_musings" (why the "_" you ask? Great question, you. I was originally "bondmusings" when I created an account more than a year ago [side note: I started a blog around the same time I joined Twitter and then promptly abandoned both until now. What is with my timing?] and have FORGOTTEN my password, and it couldn't be emailed to me because for some reason I signed up using an email account that isn't real, and so I had to create a new account.) and would love your audience.

Since I now have an inordinately large online footprint, I would like to determine my e-purposes of each medium.

1. Email is for spam and the occasional rogue authentic e-letter.
2. Facebook is for looking at other people's pictures and posting my own. Facebook is also for a very few status updates that are supposed to be relevant and comment-instigating.
3. Twitter is for practicing being clever and interesting. And for following my Internet Idols who are, by the way, clever and interesting.
4. My blog is for when I feel like waxing poetic or writing something longer or practicing my writing skills on people who already know me and therefore won't judge failed attempts.

Please note: blogging for me is spotty at best, which I also expect will be true of tweeting. Thank goodness I do not have a large fan base to disappoint with lack of activity.

I do also have a cell phone and enjoy texting. So if you don't get enough face-time with me, you can: call me, text me, facebook me, tweet me, or read my blog.

Good thing I have 24 hours a day free to manage these e-impressions! Er, I mean, these, of course, take a back seat to playing with my kids, one of whom is most certainly NOT sitting on my bed next to me watching a movie for the second time today so I can finish writing this post. I wouldn't do that.

Because I said I would

I have been following a blog for quite some time now and finally decided to delurk. I spent all morning composing an email to the blogger in my mind, and I couldn't come up with something equal to her wit. But to prove to Ryan (I promised him I would introduce myself to the blogger) that I actually did delurk, here is the email I sent:

Dear Emily,

(insert awkard introduction)

Whew! Glad that's over.

I was struck by a thought this morning while vacuuming up the THIRD bowl of (dry) spilled Cheerios. I can no longer lurk notthatyouasked. For one, lurking is a horrible word and something I do not wish to say I do, and for two, it's not fair that you do all the work and I get to enjoy your humor from afar without offering even a name in return.

It's Kathryn, by the way.

I have followed your blog since the dismal days of a colicky baby (who is now, AHEM, three. . . and my apologies for being fine with lurking for three whole years) and have even followed your advice to read shelikespurple (thanks for that).

Annnnyway, reading your blog without declaring so to you started creeping me out all of a sudden, and in a bold statement to my husband, I declared that I would internet meet you This Month. That was April, and May is quickly coming to a close, and I am so ashamed.

I don't know how to end this introduction, so

(insert clever, charming closing).

Yours,
Kathryn

Awesome things in my life, part IV

Now on to some more "lite-awesome" things in my life.

I am starting a book club with a smart, opinionated woman. I can't wait to see how it turns out! Our first meeting will be the last week of May. We are thinking themed dinners! intelligent conversation! lounging, for heaven's sake!

Ryan and I are taking Coralie to Connecticut this summer for a family wedding. It will be so CUTE to see her in an airport and on a plane! Why cute? I don't know. I can't wait for her to experience the travel, the beach, the wedding. . . she is getting old enough to remember these kinds of things, and I can't wait to watch her experience all of it. Madeline will be staying in St Louis with my parents, and it will be bittersweet to be there with Coralie and not Madeline, but I think we made a good decision to bring Coralie by herself. Madeline will be better for having spent a week with grandparents, and Coralie will be better for having spent a week with her parents.

Ryan booked a trip for the TWO of us to Vegas in November! Nevermind that Celine won't be there. We will be away! Alone! I am sure we will miss the kids terribly, but I can't even imagine what it will be like to shower when I want, eat when I want, and go where I want. No kids? No naps? No strollers and diapers and bottles? Yes, please! (And thanks to our parents for watching the most precious treasures in my life.)

We have redecorated a little and updated our house. And our house is now awesome. My two favorite things are the picture wall in our bedroom and the girls' playroom.

I've got a cool new van. Yes, I said COOL VAN. Take that, younger version of myself who thought an SUV would do the trick and was too proud to picture myself driving a van.

*******

Actually, I can't think of too many things in my life that AREN'T awesome. I'm not a Pollyanna; I have just been handed an overflowing cup. And I do recognize that it was handed to me-- none of the awesome things in my life have been my choice (other than the van and book club, maybe!)

Thank you, God, for my life. Thank you for the PEOPLE in it, and the EXPERIENCES in it. May I always give you the credit and be content with what I have been handed, even if my life isn't always this awesome. But I hope it is. :)

Awesome things in my life, part III

God put me into the best family a baby could hope for (if babies could hope, of course).

I have two wonderful, loving parents.

My dad is funny, smart, and interesting. He has taught me that knowledge is an asset to every facet of one's life and that you won't get something if you don't ask for it. He has modeled what it looks like to have a faithful husband and involved father. He has taken our family on vacations that have cemented our bond through our shared experiences. I love when he tells stories, especially on himself. He is the best story-teller I know.

My mom has taught me that being a mother is a deliberate act, that what you put in is what you get out. She is the one who convinced my dad to take my sister and me on all those vacations. She puts thought into everything she does, from buying clothes to volunteering to cooking meals to hosting parties to RiRi-ing. She is willing to drive 12 hours to spend a week in Wichita with her daughter and granddaughters. Most importantly, perhaps, she has modeled real life. She is authentic, as a mother, a wife, a friend, a follower of Jesus. She doesn't pretend life is easier or harder than it is. She has given me courage to see reality and not fantasy. She has given me emotional health.

I have a beautiful, smart, compassionate sister. She is very different than I, but I would like to be more like her. She is a supportive wife and speaks no ill of her husband. She loves my girls and plays with them, and they adore her. She forgives me when I offend her. (I say the wrong thing too often.) And she has never made me feel bad about myself. Seriously, not once.

I also married into a good family. Ryan's parents are faithful to each other and are outstanding grandparents. They think about things they can do with the girls to create memories and show them love: Even from 400 miles away, they are involved in my girls' lives.

And Ryan's extended family is pretty awesome, too. They are very close and loving, and they all do what it takes to be together every year.

(Insert picture HERE of all of us at the lake last 4th of July. You can imagine, it, can't you?)

Yes, my family is my greatest asset. From Ryan and my girls to the Cornetts to the Bonds, I am one blessed woman. Thank you, God, for family.

Awesome things in my life, part II

When I was 14, I met my future husband. (Side note-- if my girls tell me they have met their future husbands and they are only 14, we are moving far away.) He swears he knew I would be his wife when he first saw me, and I must believe him since he has re-lent-less-ly pursued me for the past 15 years!

Ryan is a good man. He is smart, hard-working, likeable, and generous. He builds rapport with people almost instantly and is respected among his peers and superiors. He receives praise at church, at work, and among friends. He has learned some humiliating lessons lately, but he has done it with dignity and respect for the teachers of the lessons. He provides a comfortable life for his girls. He calls his grandparents almost daily! (That is one of the small things I most love about him, I just realized.)

Unlike many men, though, I think he saves his very best for his family of four. He loves me, compliments me, makes me laugh, and brings me flowers. He will do laundry or dishes without being asked, and he will run any errand I ask him to. He changes diapers and plays with his daughters. He is involved, in every sense of that word, with our family.

Somehow, he still thinks I am the most beautiful woman he has ever seen. He likes my body when I don't. He thinks I'm funny when I'm not. He tells me I am not awkward even when I have done something so very awkward in public. He asks my advice on everything, even in business, though I have no experience in business and my career spanned only 3.5 years.

He is loving, in love, and loved. I am blessed, indeed.

Signs from God

I don't really know exactly how God works. I have friends who believe he writes on the wall and tells you exactly what you need to do. I think God gives us choices, and people, and opportunities. But my friends' confidence in the clear, definitive "signs from God" makes me question my stance.

To add to my confusion, I think of when David is hiding in a cave while fleeing from Saul. Saul actually enters the cave and relieves himself. This is David's chance to go from being the hunted to the hunter! Saul is a sitting duck! But all David does is cut a corner from Saul's robe.

I think some would call this opportunity a sign. A direct sign that David should kill Saul. David, however, sees it as a test. He later tells Saul that he couldn't go against God and kill his anointed.

But again, this business of the signs and God's will. Where does that leave humans? On the one hand, we need to understand that God actively works in the world. Maybe he WILL give us definitive directions. On the other hand, we need to understand his principles as outlined in the Bible and know that God will never go against his nature or his principles. Even if we are presented with what we perceive to be a clear sign, if it contradicts who God is, it's not really a sign from God.

I don't really know how God works. I do know he works in "mysterious ways", and maybe that journey, the journey of trying to unravel the mystery, is the point.

Awesome things in my life, part I

Here begins a series of Awesome Things in my Life. I don't know if this series will have any more posts after this or not, but here I start it anyway!


Coralie is learning new things every day. She has MASTERED her little tricycle and is quite skilled at powering around the driveway. She is easily thrilled (by the sprinkler, by Victoria, by anything that we make into a big deal, by pushing the cart-for-little-people around Dillon's), which I like to believe means she is Noble and Exceptional. She willingly enters into any game you make up (like having to pay tolls on the driveway, thankyouverymuch) and sings made-up songs throughout the day, using any phrase she knows ("be our guest", "pediatrician", "Jesus died on the cross", and "ride like the wind, Bullseye!" may all be in the same verse). She is so fun to be around!

Coralie and Madeline have started playing together more. They get in a tent that I make between our living room chairs (Coralie has started DEMANDING that I make tents now. . . oy) and do heaven knows what in there. I hear Coralie giving a lot of directions and Madeline giving a lot of laughs. It's awesome. Victoria comes over most days to complete the sister trio. All three girls truly enjoy each other-- I am so proud of all of them!

When I describe Madeline to people, I am sure they think I am making things up. They assume I am talking as just another starry-eyed adoring mother (which I am). But in reality, I am not exaggerating at all!! She sleeps 12 hours at night and 5-6 hours during the day. She doesn't cry unless you walk away from her or she is exceptionally hungry. She eats, sleeps, and poops like clockwork. All you have to do to make her laugh is smile at her. She is a perfect amount of chub. I think she deserves the award of Best Baby in the World, and I may just make her a certificate of authenticity to prove it!

Yes, my life has some very awesome things in it. Two of the biggest, most important awesome things are my girls. I am blessed.

Nothing to read here

I have three posts I would like to write. Two of them would be complaints, so I will not write them. You're welcome.

(If you're interested, one would be about people not having manners, and the other would be in defense of Christian women who invest in their appearance.)

The third post, that I HAD been fired up about, is no longer as inspiring of a topic to me.

So you get this, a post about why I'm not writing anything of substance. :)

But! Here's a recent family picture for you.

Again, you're welcome.