Pumping It Up

After three months of pumping iron, I was not seeing any difference at all. Oh sure, I could lift more and more weight, but I could not see visual result in my body. so my trainer took some picks of my back while I was doing pull ups. And lo and behold, there is a little bit of definition. I am so proud, I thought I'd share it with you here!

Godspell - The Good News

Caroline auditioned for a musical for the first time. The musical is Godspell Jr, and she got the part!

The musical is based on the Gospel of Matthew. It covers the last few years of Jesus' life and acts out many of the parables and teachings of Jesus in a fun, energetic way.

She was so excited to go to the read-through last night. I went to pick her up and they were just reading through the last scene, which was Jesus and the disciples at the last supper and then the crucifixion. As I sat and listened, a few of the older kids were giggling and kept asking questions about Jesus as if they just thought the whole story was some ridiculous paperback plot. They made fun of everything they could, including Jesus offering his blood for them to drink and his body for them to eat.

My heart broke for those kids who have no idea who Jesus is. It's hard to believe that a kid can grow up in this country and be that clueless about Christianity. But the worst part was how much it upset my sensitive little girl. And I have a feeling that she's not the only one in the group that loves Jesus with all her heart and was not thinking the Jesus jokes were very funny. You could feel it in the room.

I had to bite my tongue to keep from saying anything, but I kept my mouth shut for Caroline's sake.

This is a rude awakening into the real world for my precious little girl. We spent a long time discussing it last night, and we prayed about it and we prayed for those kids who don't know who Jesus is.

Caroline knows that it is okay for her to inform them that they are being disrespectful and ask them to knock it off if it gets too bad. She said she just wanted to give them a Bible and say, "Here, read this. It's all true."

Caroline and I will use this opportunity to learn the Gospel of Matthew and to understand and not judge others.

Never a Dull Moment

I got home from Artfest and hit the ground running. The pregnancy center where I work is in transition, which requires a lot of my mental energy at least 20 hours a week.

My house is always a wreck and as soon as I get it clean enough to feel like I can relax and enjoy an art project or a trashy magazine, I've run out of time to relax and enjoy anything.

My two girls think they must be entertained every waking minute of every day. If I sit down for one second, even if it's to tie my shoes, they are immediately hanging on me -- wallowing and wanting something.

I spent one weekend in Billings with a good friend at the Women of Faith conference. this last weekend was Jamie's birthday weekend. Next weekend is Caroline's theater performance and Eliza's ballet school's company performance of "Sleeping Beauty," which we can't miss.

I have made myself a promise to be more diligent about working out...warding off not only butt jiggle, but also osteoporosis and pure ol' doldrums. Fitting that in is like putting 100-pound JEB in 4-pound Rey Ray's kennel. Some part is going to get left out.

Then there's the other part of my house: downstairs, which I haven't even seen for weeks. Oh, but the kids have. They have been down there with no adult supervision. I'm so scared to see what is left for me.

Oh, and did I mention that Rey Ray is not potty trained yet? Oh yea, I woke up to a turd in my bedroom floor this morning.

The good news is that spring has finally come to Helena, Montana, and I plan to soak up every ounce of warmth and sunshine until winter comes...hopefully enough to get me through another long Montana winter. It is so easy for a woman to ignore these pressures when she can go outside and enjoy such a beautiful place. Just yesterday I went for a short run (because I haven't run since last summer and I could go any farther!) and an even shorter bike ride. Short but sweet!

Today is supposed to be in the 70's. I am a happy woman!