Coffee CubBuster

Sometimes I think all my children have G-tubes and I avoid tickling them all near the mid-left side of their stomachs... Sometimes I look at Levi and remember what he looked like lying in his isolate wondering if he'd ever make it out alive... Sometimes I forget to be grateful and I assume all my children should thank me daily for taking time to feed, clothe, and bathe them daily... Sometimes I forget that my four-year old is only four because of his profound ability to communicate... Sometimes I look at my one-year old and remember how faithful God has been to give us another healthy baby... Sometimes I want to have fifty children because I can't get enough of my sweet boys... Sometimes I want to yell and ask all my children to leave me alone... Sometimes I want to tell everyone how fragile life is and to not sweat the small stuff... Sometimes I sweat the small stuff... Sometimes I want Levi to keep his G-tube so we can always have a visible reminder of God's mira...

When you become a parent, you consciously-subconsciously, pull from your subconscious and focus much of your energy recreating things you loved from your childhood, and making sure you work hard to foster the opposite styles of which you hated from your upbringing. Some people swing the pendulum a little too far and end up causing their own children to have a distaste for their opposite rearing. For example, if you were shown no physical affection as a child, you may cause your child to hate PDA due to their overexposure to it, or maybe their was zero communication in your house, so now your children have to roll their eyes at the constant TMI. Either way, we all like to focus on the good and forget the bad. While we may remember some of the "bad" a little too much from childhood, I think as we age, we only hold on to the good. At least this is my experience. I quickly forget all of my adult discomforts quite easily, until I'm reminded by someone else. I'm thankful th...

Everywhere I turn, I'm hearing people talk about mentors, accountability partners, or influential advisors. It feels like everyone is yearning for trusted, wise counsel. This poses a wonderful and difficult problem. First, it's wonderful that we are learning how we can't do life singlehandedly. But it's also difficult to bridge the gap and open our hands and hearts on both ends. Too often, people hold a badge of honor for their packed calendars. Quick texts and surface posts are serving as our relational barometers. On the other hand, those who have the time to pour into meaningful relationships don't have a true respect for those who are generationally or culturally different. I read an article recently that gave five ways to connect with other generations. It was based on the notion that our society needs to relearn the art of "relating" to one another. Since our current pastimes don't usually include "family-style" dinners, "table ga...

Since being home from our New England excursion, all the boys seem to have learned something new. Roman started waving hi and bye and also clapping along to his favorite songs (some of my favorite lessons this past week). Silas has learned that he's big enough to open and close our heavy 1970s windows to enjoy the cool fall air, and he also learned what it feels like to give blood (necessary to obtain allergy tests for him). Sadly, our sweet, little Levi has learned some normal, but unnecessary, whines, including the inevitable phrase MINE , as well as the art of crying before bedtime hoping to stay up until the sun rises again. I'm thankful that Levi continues to show glimpses of normal toddlerhood even if they aren't my favorite. Although sometimes we can't afford to let him be normal. He yelled so hard the other night before bed that he made himself throw up all the extra calories we'd just fed him. It's those moments I just have to pray and trust. Please pra...

I had heard that Atlanta was a "new Hollywood hub," but I didn't actually believe it until the key location manager knocked on our door a couple months ago regarding an upcoming film about Neil Armstrong starring Ryan Gosling and Matt Chandler. The director of the recent Oscar winning film, La La Land,  is also shooting this picture entitled First Man , just a couple doors down from our house.   It's all anyone seems to talk about in our neighborhood these days (myself included), but the most fascinating aspect of the picture is the gorgeous home that was built on a little open lot. The ranch house has picture perfect landscaping, a backyard pool, and beautiful stone accents that were all established in a matter of weeks. This is no facade, this is a real livable house! However, just as quickly as it was built, it will be burned down and destroyed all for the sake of "story-telling" because Neil Armstrong's home was a apparently burned when he was youn...