'Dan'erism of the week...

Only this time,
it came out of Eyli's mouth.

"We're off, like a dirty dishwasher"


It was only so long before her dad started rubbing off on her.

One day I fell asleep...

One day I fell asleep….right after I –
Rested in the green grass
On a fruitport soccer field
Running my fingers through
The long golden hair
Of a 17 year-old boy
Who stole my heart

One day I woke up….right before I –
Stood behind a fence
On the side of a fruitport soccer field
And caught the eye
Of that same boy
While he coached the high-school team
Of our grown daughter

And my heart melted all over again.

One day I fell asleep….right after I –
Hadn’t turned 20
As my baby peeked out
From behind the sheet
That separated her crib from our bed
Where we saw a home filled with love
Where others saw a garage

One day I woke up….right before I –
Hadn’t turned 35
As my baby peeked out
From behind her bathroom door
With a pink stripe in her hair
Where she asked me if I thought
Dad would let her go to the boys house
Even if the parents weren’t going to be home

And my heart laughed all over again.

One day I fell asleep….right after I –
Loaded his tiny body
Into the car-seat of a noisy Ford
With his little blue blankie in tow
To drive around-and-around
A dimly lit Trailer Park
To get him to fall asleep

One day I woke up….right before I –
Walked into his bedroom
To pull down the covers
With his hairy best friend in tow
To repeatedly say his name
And have Dudley lick his face
To get him to wake up

And my heart swelled all over again.

One day I fell asleep….right after I –
Placed a puffy blanket and pillow
On the floor of our room
Right next to my side of the bed
So, when she came crying
In the middle of the night
She had a safe place to sleep

One day I woke up….right before I –
Let her turn on the lamp
To wake up her Daddy
As she snuggled in closely
On my side of the bed
To read her favorite book
While she felt comfort

And my heart was thankful all over again.

Thank you, God

I missed my friends!

I am thankful that we got to spend time with friends tonight!

Texting, again....

Tyler: "Mom, Aunt Jamie got a new cell number"

Me: "What?? I didn't know that - how do you know?"

Tyler: "She texted me like 3 days ago"

(Me: thinking....hmmm, she didn't text me?)

Tyler: "Wait, I just got to thinking, what if it was a different Jamie"

Me: "What do you mean? How many Jamie's do you know?"

Tyler: "I don't know, I have a TON of contacts"

Me: "Well, read the text to me, then I can tell you if it sounds like it was from Aunt Jamie, or some other Jamie"

Tyler: "MMOOMM! It's probably erased by now - My phone only holds 100 text messages at a time"

Me: "Good Grief! You got 100 text messages in 3 days?"

Tyler: "MOM! I get like 100 a night"

Me: "Are you kidding me? I have not gotten 100 yet - and I've had my phone for 2 years - what in the world do you have to text 100 messages about EACH NIGHT?"

Tyler: "Want me to read them to you?"

Me: "Can I blog about them?"

Tyler: "I guess."

TYLER'S LAST 100 SENT TEXT MESSAGES:

(I'm not really gonna type all 100, but here's 28)

1. yoyoyo u k
2. hay coach this is tyler
3. my sis just sed s dog just crapet in your driv way
4. K
5. No it is gunu be like condishining like runing in jim
6. No to day but i have soccer praktic at 6:00
7. lol
8. ok u do that
9. ok cool
10. ok u do that
11. it was not that sen and hahahaha
12. ooo
13. kt who
14. is this mickalus phone
15. sup
16. where
17. i ternd my self green
18. i ternd my self green
19. i am green
20. :)
21. bibibibibibibibibi
22. no
23. lol
24. ok idc
25. cailey proble
26. what
27. lol
28. well

Me: "Ok, I don't get it - What does it mean when you simply text - 'WELL' ??

Tyler: "OOhhh, it's what you say when you don't have anything to say to each other"

Dilemma of the Day

I went to STARBUCKS for lunch
(no surprise there)
and bought a bagel

What do you do when
you forget to ask for extra cream cheese
and therefore
you have 2 halves
with only enough cream cheese
to adequately spread
on 1 half

Do you:

A - split the cream cheese equally, and have 2 halves with an inadequate amount on each half?

OR

B - spread the entire amount on 1 half, and therefore eat at least one of them with the "right amount" of cream cheese (very enjoyable) - and then proceed to eat the other half plain, to get full?

This morning I read Psalms 30-32

Seems like King David and I might be in the same boat.

How can feelings be so contradictive about the same topic?

One minute we feel this:
30:1 I will exalt you, O LORD,
for you lifted me out of the depths
and did not let my enemies gloat over me.
30:2 O LORD my God, I called to you for help
and you healed me.
31:7 I will be glad and rejoice in your love,
for you saw my affliction
and knew the anguish of my soul.
31:8 You have not handed me over to the enemy
but have set my feet in a spacious place.

Yet, the next minute we feel this:
31:15 My times are in your hands;
deliver me from my enemies
and from those who pursue me.
31:17 Let me not be put to shame, O LORD,
for I have cried out to you;
but let the wicked be put to shame
and lie silent in the grave.
31:18 Let their lying lips be silenced,
for with pride and contempt
they speak arrogantly against the righteous.

Does it mean we’re wishy-washy, and can’t decide how we feel?

Or in my case, does it mean that I’m trying to RUSH to the END when God says it’s not over?

Philippians 1:6 - being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.

Cause she's the baby ...

Eyliana is …

• The spittin’ image of her mother – sometimes her duties may not quite get finished on time (as she has spent valuable time making sure others are finishing their duties)
• An innocent soul – when someone (ANYONE) tells her something (ANYTHING) it becomes non-negotiable FACT. (Why would anyone tell her something that wasn’t true?)
• Musically gifted – a music buff, she spends all CAR-RIDES singing at the top of her lungs to JQ99, Praise and Worship music. (My favorite SOUND right now is Eyli singing to “Free to be me” by Francesca Battistelli)
• The ‘I don’t do anything naughty’ child – [for those of you that have multiple children, you know the one] if she gets crabby at all, it’s because it’s 9 pm, and she’s begging to go to bed. (She never even fights with the other two - maybe it’s because the other two are too busy fighting with each other?)
• The true COOK – She watches The Cooking Channel more than Nickelodeon, and spends all her free time baking with Grandma Robin. (This morning, on the way to school, I listened to her 15-minute explanation of “Ways to use Fondant” – apparently it’s like frosting?)

Happy St. Patty's Day

Another Surprise!

Wow! We have been very blessed by surprise visits lately!
Dan's mom came home for a visit from Florida this week!

The kids are so happy to have Grandma Nancy in town!!

Im too busy to even blog....

But, the greatest thing happened today!
We were at the school watching Eyliana perform on stage -



- and CLEAR OUT OF NO-WHERE comes my baby nephews!! They came for a visit with their mom, from Wisconsin! It was a WONDERFUL surprise!

My week needed that!!!

Thank you, Karrie!

Helium Fun

I miss my ....

... baby Nephews. They live in Wisconsin now !

I got to see them this weekend for their Birthday parties - they are ONE and TWO years old (with another sibling on the way)

Here are some pics -

What do we call 'FUN'??

You already know how weird we are - but, in case you haven't been paying attention - here is the typical ~ LIFE in a DAY of the COOKS!

You may remember my Centerpiece on the Dining Room Table ~


Today, the boys decided to do this with them ~

And then this ~

And then - check out the floor at the end of this clip ~

Here is my Centerpiece now ~

(It's OK - Now I can get a NEW one - and Dan will have to pay for it)

Teach the Children

You know you're old...

You know you're old when at some point in your lifetime you have told ALL THREE of your children - "Stop sending FORWARD EMAILS to your grandparents" !!!!

It's been a while since I posted one of these...

Although I don't always post them, we still have 'Dan'erism's of the week - EVERY WEEK.

Here is today's -

Dan: "Shut your never-living pie hole"

Katie

Katie will start her first season of highschool soccer this Spring. To get her ready for the BIG TIME, she's been playing indoor soccer. This session, Dan has been coaching the girls - and he would probably want you to know that they won their last game 15 to 3.

The entire time Katie is on the field, the other parents laugh at her.

Not because she is a bad player - she actually scored 5 goals in the last game.

You see, Katie is a "yelper", as I call her. EVERY single time the ball comes in her direction, she screams/squeals/yelps/hollars, etc, etc. - "Ooohh" - "Uuuuu" - "Yip" - "OhhhMyy" - "AAhhh" - "Ouch" .

I can't even put it into words.....

I can tell you this- At the last game, a mother that I did not know said this to me:

Her: "Are you Katie's mom?"

Me: "Yes, Hi"

Her: "Hi, your daughter is so funny! At the last game when they let her play goalie, I have never had that much fun at a soccer game in my life. And I have been to ALOT. I was laughing so hard by the time I left here!! She is just a crack-up! Does she always squeal like that?"

Me: "Well I guess I never thought about it, but ya, she has always been a very 'vocal' child........ (to put it lightly)

This is the "We are the PROFESSIONAL coaches" shot.

Tyler

My son...

Daddy / Daughter Dance

Dan and Eyli went to their first Daddy/Daughter Dance on Valentine's Day. They had a BLAST at the dance - here are a few pics!

Only in Michigan....

... can you go ice-fishing and take a ride on the HARLEY on the same day in February.

Facebook Nonsense

If you don't have a facebook page, this probably won't make sense to you - but, it seemed like a fun thing to post - on facebook the "in thing" to do right now is post 25 random things about you...

I finally got my list done, and decided you all may like a good laugh.

1. I count steps – I live in a house with 2 sets of steps - I already know there are 7 in each set, yet I count them every time I go up or down.
2. My entire family snowboards – but, I am too afraid of riding up the chairlift to even try it (no comment from you, Adam).
3. If I won the lottery, the first thing I would buy are enough SMART WOOL socks so Dan and I could wear a BRAND NEW pair every day – forever.
4. If I won the lottery, the second thing I would buy is an ARTS PERFORMANCE SPACE for the school I work at - and it would be named whatever Carolyn thought it should be named.
5. Do I really have to think of 25 things?? I’m never going to make it ….
6. My dream job: Sing on stage as a background vocalist to Aaron Shust – and get paid for it.
7. I always put my socks on before my pants.
8. I LOVE using hyphens ------ I wish I could use them all the time!! (I’m not sure – but, I think I do).
9. It is IMPOSSIBLE for me to drink my STARBUCKS without a sleeve on my cup. In fact, I actually carry an extra sleeve around in my car just so I can have a spare, for emergencies.
10. I’m a sucker for hot-headed, tattooed, bad-boys that ride Harleys, and carry guns. I never would have guessed that woulda happened...
11. I’m in love with a man that would defend me till death – even if I were dead wrong.
12. I’m hoping there is at least one type of food in heaven - Grandma’s TACOS.
13. One thing I learned in 2008 – it’s amazing what can happen when you have a competent boss.
14. I was afraid of DOGS my entire life – in elementary school, I once stayed on top of the slide in the playground for 3 hours – because I saw a dog across the street (don’t ask me why the teacher never noticed I was gone).
15. Now, one of my VERY best friends is a DOG.
16. I make a living for my family as a “secretary” – yet, I can’t type at all - unless I look at the keyboard.
17. I’m not sure my NEW boss knows about #16 (Let’s keep it that way).
18. For real, who made up this stupid “you need 25 things”??? Probably someone that had nothing to do except think about all the “cool” things about them self.
19. I secretly hate the kinda people mentioned in #18.
20. I cannot finish the chips without the dip – or finish the dip without the chips. (which means I keep getting up to get more chips or dip to make the RATIO even – and therefore, eat too much).
21. There are only about 3 people in my group of “friends” that will actually read this entire list – most of them stopped reading before they got to #21 – therefore, I’d like to take this opportunity to thank my REAL friend KIMI for reading the whole list – love ya, girl.
22. I would rather have 5 HAMPERS full of dirty laundry in my house, than 1 load of CLEAN laundry-unfolded-on my couch.
23. When I was 5 years old, I cut off part of my finger. They attempted to sew it back on, yet it turned black and fell off again. I am still missing part of my finger – but, NO ONE ever notices (yes, I’m totally serious).
24. Nobody TRULY understands my AMAZING ability to multi-task. I literally can have a conversation with you and sing to a song on the radio at the same time. I also can EAVES DROP on an entire conversation next to me, as I have a conversation with someone else.
25. The craziest thing I have ever done is let Dan convince me to go PARA-SAILING in Hawaii. I spent the entire time up in the air SWEARING at Dan – I have never used that language again, in my life.

Because Im really shy....

For those of you DEDICATED readers - so sorry! I need to start blogging more......

Conversation of the week
Characters: Dan and Kristie

Kristie: "I hope that Tyler doesn't get his heart broken by some snotty little girl - he's so nice to people! When he's in high school I may have to shoot someone"

Dan: "That won't happen, he'll be JUST LIKE ME - and he'll have 4 girls ask him out, and he'll say NO, and stay home"

Kristie: "Daniel - why did you stay home?"

Dan: "Because I was really shy around girls"

Kristie: "No, Daniel - why did you stay home?"

Dan: "Because I was really shy around girls - they scared me!"

Kristie: "No, Daniel - you stayed home because you are a homebody and would rather watch Discovery Channel on your couch, then 'go out' - YOU ARE NOT SHY AROUND 'GIRLS' "

Dan: "Yes, I was! I still am - Put me in a room with 5 women - by myself - and I CLAM UP and don't know what to say"

Kristie: laughing so hard there is no response

Dan: "WHAT? - I am SHY!"

Kristie: still continuous laughing

Dan: "I AM...."

Kristie: Still laughing.......(In fact haven't stopped laughing)

For those of you that don't know Dan, this will not be funny to you.
For those of you that have spent ANY TIME in a room with 5 women and DAN - you will still be laughing.

Sleepover

Katie is a highschooler now. I still can't believe how old I am. Last night, she had all of her "old friends" from middle school over for a sleepover.

It was so cool to see and hear them talking to each other (all at the same time) about high school adventures [like, 'my first day in a highschool LUNCHROOM']; between them, they all go to 5 different high schools!

How ironic, they all just got together and never skipped a beat....just like they saw each other last week..... That's the cool thing about technology - myspace, facebook, blogs, and texting - they talk to each other every day!!

Superbowl Fun!

We had a great time watching the superbowl with friends and family!

In the words of Jeff - "I've never been to a superbowl party where everyone leaves the room during the football game AND then runs into the room & gets quiet during the commercials"

(Yes, we carried our family room furniture up into the living room, so we could have 4 couches!!)