Bedtime at the Lillard House

Jackson read a story to us tonight about...you guessed it!  Animals!  The title is "I Love Animals!"  Once we reached the "In the Jungle" page, we read about pythons and tigers which led to the following conversation...

Jackson: "Pythons can squeeze and take your breath away so you can't breathe."

Me:  "Yes, you're right.  We should probably stay as far away from them as we can then, huh?"

All 3 kids agree wholeheartedly and Jackson reads the next section about the tiger...

"Tiger, with stripes of orange, white, and black, this tiger's looking for a snack"

Jackson:  "Whoa!  We better look out for that tiger too.  He's hungry!"

Sadie: "Yeah, and tigers eat meat and you know what we have that's inside of us?  Meat!  (pauses for emphasis) AND blood!" (eyes conveying the seriousness of this message.  We would do well to heed her warnings. lol)

After reading time, Sadie begged and pleaded for me to tell her a story while she was lying in her bed...

Me:  "Once upon a time.."

Sadie: "No, Mommy.  You have to turn the light off first."

Me:  "Okay, let's do that."  Light is off.  I start again.

"Once there was a lady named Sadie."

Sadie, giggling: "No, Mom.  Not a real story.  It has to be about a princess."

Me:  "Oh, ok.  Once there was a princess named Sadie."

Sadie, laughing: "Noo, Mom.  You have to use a real princess, like Sofia the first."

Me:  "Ok.  Once there was a princess named Sofia the first."

Sadie, giggling uncontrollably and clearly exasperated with me: "Nooo, Mom.  Hahaha  It's just Sofia.  Her name is not 'the first'.  haha  It's just Sofia. You have to haha start over."

Who knew I was such a bad storyteller?  lol  Tough crowd tonight, I guess? ;)  Memories.  Sweet, sweet memories.

My Experiment: Ethanol-blended Fuel versus Pure Gasoline

This experiment is only 3 tanks into the making but I'm already a believer.  First, we own a 2000 Nissan Quest that we purchased used in October of 2010.  From then until just recently, we were only using the ethanol-blended fuel that most everyone else in the country has been using.  Being an older vehicle, it has not been without its problems and has been in and out of the shop too frequently for my tolerance.  Periodically, I noticed that there seemed to be a correlation between where I filled up the tank last and the "knocking" and "sputtering" our van experienced.  As a result, I began to avoid Wal-mart, Kroger, and Sam's Club fueling stations.  It seemed to help but never completely eliminated the problem.

So, I did a little research on ethanol-blended fuel versus pure gasoline and was a bit surprised at what I found so I decided to test the theories I found to see if there was any validity to them. 

The Mind of a Child

I left Justin at home this morning with Sadie while I took the boys to school.  Before walking out the door I gave her specific instructions to get dressed for preschool so she'd be ready to leave when I got back.  The following conversation occurred when I returned.

Me:  "Sadie, are you dressed?"

Sadie:  "Yes, mommy, but I can't find any shoes."  (Don't know about you, but this is a FAR too frequent occurrence at our house.)

Me:  "I see a tennis shoe right there.  Maybe we can find the other one."

Sadie:  "Well, I was looking for my pink boots but I can't find them."  (beginning to pout, whine, and otherwise tear up.)

Me:  "Oh!  I remember seeing those earlier this morning.  (looking around)  Where did I see them?  Have you checked the bathroom?"

Sadie, heading to the bathroom:  "I found them, Mommy!  Here they are!"  (relieved and overjoyed.  All is right with the world again.)

Me:  "Look at that.  I'm so smart.  How did I get to be so smart?"  (jokingly, of course.)

Sadie:  "Because you're big!  And you eat Smarties!"

Thank you, Lord, for the mind and innocence of a child in such an imperfect and fallen world.  Have a blessed day!

Election Fast 2012: Week 3 & 4

I had a seizure at the beginning of week 3 so that's partially why I didn't get around to posting last week.  The enormous headache that follows a grand mal can be debilitating to say the least.  Then there is also the disorientation and confusion to deal with.  I usually tend to get over the vast majority of that rather quickly but my mind can still be left feeling "hazy" or "foggy" even a couple of days later.  With all of that going on, I've been playing catch-up for a while.  Here is a brief rundown of our political involvement over the past 2 weeks as well as an update on how my fast is going.

Sadie and I attended a luncheon at Doc's Grill on Monday (2 weeks ago) where Tim Griffin was supposed to be speaking but due to a death in his family, he was unable to be there.  Instead, someone spoke briefly on his behalf and then Mark Biviano had the opportunity to say a few words.  Honestly, by then my ibuprofen had worn off and my headache was about the only thing I could concentrate on.  We sat with a retired couple who were very sweet and inquisitive.  I wish I remembered more of the conversation but like I said, I was mostly focused on one thing.  Headache.  Justin would have been at the luncheon had he been in town but he had a conference in Springdale so it was left to me and Sadie to show our support. :)

I Know an Old Lady Who...

You know that old children's song, "I know an old lady who swallowed a fly"?  Well, this is not that.  But to me, it is just as disturbing.  Ew, ew, ew, ew, EWW!!  You'll understand shortly...

Sadie: "Look, Mom!  I caught a fly!"

Me (not paying much attention at first): "Uh-huh."

Sadie puts her hand right up to my face.  Yep!  She caught a fly, alright!  And is holding it tightly between her thumb and first finger about 2 inches from my nose!

Me, jumping: "Ach!  What are you doing with that?!  Ew, yuck!  Get it away, please!"

Sadie gingerly puts it down.  I breathe a sigh of relief thinking we're done and the fly is dead.  Nope.  Not by a long shot.

Sadie:  "Do you want to eat it, Mommy?"

Me, dumbfounded: "What?!  NO!  I do not want to eat a fly!  Why would you even ask me that?"

Sadie:  "Daddy likes to eat flies.  He has eaten bugs before."

Me, trying my best not to completely freak out and making a mental note to have a talk with her daddy about this later:  "Well, your daddy is weird like that.  Not me.  I don't eat bugs, thank you very much.  Now, please go wash your hands."

Conversation is at an end.  I sit to share this story with you.  Sadie returns.

Sadie: "Look, Mommy!  He likes me!"

I look and that blasted fly is crawling around on her hand!

Sadie, giggling:  "Hahaha, it tickles!  He really likes me!"

Where did I get such a child????  She's like the "Bug Whisperer"!  Ew, ew, ew, ew, EWW!!!  I have to go throw up now and then immediately take a shower...

Happy Halloween from the Lillards!

We created a jibjab Halloween ecard that I'm hoping all of you can see if you go here.  Do you like it?  Maybe we'll splurge for the download, maybe not.  Either way, it was sure fun to make!  It's free so go make your own and be sure to send us a copy too (please?)!  I just love jibjab, don't you? ;)

Election Fast 2012: Week 2

This is a little late in coming, but I wanted to share some highlights of last week with you in regards to the fast.  Earlier in the week I wanted sweet tea so badly that I could hardly stand it.  Now, I still want it but I'm not crawling out of my skin to get to it and perspiring under the stress of the inward battle "to drink, or not to drink". ;)  Naturally, the most tempting times came when others around me were drinking tea.

Before this fast, I would make a pitcher of sweet tea nearly every night to serve with dinner.  I haven't done that since the start of the fast.  I guess everyone else in the family just has to suffer with me.  But we still go out to eat on occasion, even if it's just to McDonald's or something like that (and can I just say, I love McD's sweet tea!  Most people I know say that theirs is too sweet, but not to me.  Perfection!).  Those times were trying because what I really wanted to do was...well, #1-get my own cup of tea and barring that, #2-finish my kids' one-sip-less-than-full cups of tea....but I didn't!  Victory is mine! ;)

Whenever I felt the "urge", I would pray inwardly to God thanking Him for all of my many blessings, for His provision, His safety, His love.  Then, I would listen and wait for His voice.  Was there someone near me in need of Him?  Was there someone close by who needed my help in His name?  Did someone come to mind that I should call?  Who would have thought that something as insignificant as a glass of sweet tea could bring one to the throne room of the Almighty?