Run Baby Run!

Our school just hosted it's annual boosterthon and raised around 30ish thousand dollars. It was truly an exciting event and was put on with class! I went to see my babies run that day and had no idea how blessed I was would be. I actually teared up a bit as the girls ran through the tunnel and out onto the field to begin their race. I was so excited that I started yelling out at KK as she ran out cause I wanted her to see that I was there for her. Well, she stopped like a dear in the headlights, a boy toppled over her, and then she did her crazy 'fake' roll on the ground. She then stood up, looked at me, waved and took off running. I about died! Then Mia's class came running by and I did the same thing, with great hesitation. She came over and hugged me and the scurried over to the field. You see it's very hard for Mia to exert a lot of exercise. It's not that she's lazy, she has an amazing work ethic. But, her body is weak and tires so easily with all these overload of allergies. By the 10th lap, she was looking pretty droopy. But I am so proud of her keeping on. She ran her laps and did an amazing job. Kennedy was like a rocket flying around the field. She even came over and shared her water with Linc. Then she took off again. She's got more energy than a rabbit on the 1st day of Spring. She was hopping and clapping and jumping all over the place. I love seeing her in these happy spirits. Just a few months ago, she would have been pouting and dragging around the field. But since we've figured out her allergies, she's a different child! What a fun day. So glad that I wasn't 'too busy' to go.

A Thoughtful Death

I was just at a celebration service the other night. The service was being held in honor of an unborn baby that was taken home early to be with Jesus. I was truly touched by the words of the parents. My tears were mixed with joy and sadness. I was sad to see them lose their baby and sad to think about all the times I've been angry at my own babies (life is short and I need to soak it up). I was in joy as I watched them handle it so gracefully and filled with joy to think of the many days I might have laid ahead with my kids. The mother keeps a journal for each child and had already started journaling to her unborn son. I was moved deeply as she read her words aloud to him. She talked about not being able to see him grow up and play sports, not hearing the pitter patter of his feet and not seeing him get married etc..........It made me think of my precious three. I also keep a journal for each of my three. I came home and wrote in each one. I had a lot to say. I have not written in them in awhile. I think I'll start reading an entry aloud to each child on his/her birthday and give them the journals as they become grown adults. I did alot of apologizing in my writing and I did some bragging. I'm so proud of them. The best part is...........I will continue to do this in person and not just write about it. I need to apologize frequently and brag aloud to them daily. They need to hear that. I also keep a journal with my mom. While in highschool the two us did not get along, a very long story! Anyway, I moved out on my 18th birthday, halfway through my senior year and took life into my own hands. Well, our relationship did not really begin to mend until I married. I then decided to write down my personal thoughts to her in a journal and give it to her so that she could respond by writing back. Well, we each have a journal now and we trade each time we see eachother. I love to read what she writes to me. Here is an entry from my wonderful mother called Impressions.

"I know I was glad to have a girl. All I heard while pregnant was that he (my birth father) wanted a boy. I was in recovery for all of the first day you were born. I remember being afraid to face him because it wasn't a boy. I didn't get to hold you for 4 days- the nurses were not very accommodating to c-section patients in Germany. You were fat, no hair, and quiet. I was terrified of not being able to take care of you. You went through 36 diapers in you first 24 hours at home. I cried because he made it very very plain that he expected a boy"

. I never knew that. Don't feel sorry for me. My real father is the man my mother is married to now and he's ecstatic about me being a girl. I'm glad I'm a girl too! hahahha LOL. But these words have been very powerful to me. I had no idea that my mom suffered so much. How terrible to feel this way. There are other entries where she commends me on my parenting and is so proud of me. I love this journal and will do the same with my girls.

Can You Really Be Allergic to the Air You Breathe?

Almost. It's been a long journey and I've held back on blogging about these dang allergies. I really wanted to get all my facts straight before I started spouting off information. Well, one thing has led to another and I here I am with a very allergic child. It seems that over the years we have deemed Mia as our "emotional child" and just left it at that. Well, I couldn't settle with symptoms I was seeing and was not pleased at all with the pish/posh excuses that professionals in white coats were giving me. After some discussions with a friend, who has already traveled this road, I began to travel it myself. I began reading, researching, asking questions and I took the plunge. I pulled my girls off of gluten, wheat, dairy, peanuts, and a few other things. My husband was thinking the same thing, "what is there to eat?". No worries, we found plenty!! I've learned to cook gluten and dairy free (also called gfdf) muffins, cupcakes, cookies, and pancakes. The girls love it! Well, Kennedy changed immediately. She went from demon child to sweet child of heaven! I mean we could actually have full conversations without feeling like we were in a courtroom on opposing teams. I though "wow, what will it be like when she is a teenager?!!" I was noticing constipation, eczema, muscle cramps, stomach aches, and headaches in Kennedy. Mia was having diarrhea, muscle aches, stomach aches, and HEAVY mood swings, lots of tears. She was like a cat on a tin roof. I"m not trying to sound demeaning but it was getting to be like the crazy farm here! I just kept thinking that I must be an awful parent. I soaked my pillow most nights, nagged my friends about solutions, argued with myself, and pretty much thought that any mother could do a better job than me. It seemed like no matter what I did, nothing worked out. The girls were upset, whiny, angry, worrisome, anxious. Kennedy's 6th birthday about did me in. We took her out to Red Robin (way overpriced burger joint) and she was crawling under the table, refused to eat the spaghetti (which is her favorite), and showed no remorse. Paul took her out to van to 'chat' and that didn't even work. I could not believe this. He came back in and told me to get the check. The nice waitress came back, ready to sing to the birthday girl but she was no longer in the building. I collected the check, paid, and off to home we went. KK went to bed with no cake, no presents, and no songs. We tried again the next day. You see, the problem was physical, not behavioral. We didn't know. Of course, we had loaded her up on all her favorites that day: oreos with frosting, carbs, syrup, pancakes.......basically lots of dairy, gluten, and yeast!! Come to find out, she is allergic to these things! Sugar feeds yeast and she has an allergy to yeast. I can look back now and go "ohhhhh" duh! Mia is another story. Her counts are supposed to be under 60 for her immunity and she is in the 700s. yeah, wow! The doctor said she is so inflamed inside! So we have become very strict on the eating plan, taking probiotics with 50billion live, fish oil, Veema, and others. Our lives have changed. Instead of saving that 200ish dollars a month for hair color etc............we are at our local health store buying vitamins that are going to bring our girls back to some normalcy (whatever that looks like). I'm thrilled to know that we can help them. I can't wait to see how Mia feels/looks in a month. Not sure if she can even remember what it feels like to feel 'good' or 'healthy'. But in light of many tragic stories out there, we feel blessed. Neither of these allergies are life threatening. So, there you have it........allergies! Who would have thought that allergies would cause such a mood change? Oh, and she's allergic to Clifford :-( so sad. We are tackling it, one day at a time! That's all we can do and thankful for good advice from a friend. We are on the road to healing early!

Vacation was Amazing!

I know, like who on earth goes to hillybilly Arkansas for vacation?!! We do! We stay at the most unbelievable cabins in the country and surrounded by majestic mountains, a river, horses, and lots of land to romp around on! We went hiking, fishing, played kickball (my team smashed Joe's team), played poker, made ornaments, ate pumpkin cake, played soccer, rode horses, had a fire going in the cabin, and slept in! Yes, that's what I'm talking about. The kids could play outside and I never had to worry about a car hitting them, a stranger sneaking up on them, or what time to come in. We just relaxed and took it one day at a time. After the kids went to bed, the adults played cards, ate dessert again, watched National Lampoons Christmas Vacation, and chatted about life. That's what friends do. They vacation together, they laugh together, and occasionally cry. I think Aime and I were crying out of tears of joy and relief at one moment. This is how you live life. You journey with people and you don't hold back. Fear escapes and you become yourself and you're vulnerable. I can completely cut loose and be me. I don't have to worry about 'funny stares' or 'weird comments'. I can just be me and Paul and just be silly Paul. Much needed break!

Family Vacation with Great Friends!!

Even Lincoln Wants To Sleep in the Girl's Room

Every night Linc. gets in bed with the girls. He wants to sleep in there!! He's so cute. I think he just likes the new tree that I recently painted on the wall! Today, I couldn't find him when it was time to lay down for a nap. I could hear him, but couldn't see him. I must have passed him twice. He was lying under the covers in Mia's bed. What a little monkey. He just loves their room. I transported the kicking and screaming monkey to his lovely room!

Mothers, Beware...........of Yourselves!

Okay, so I totally did it. I made my daughter cry and then realized I was wrong and then I started crying. You see, I'm not so musically talented. I know, most of you are so surprised by that statement. I mean, I'm the one who does the piano homework lessons with the girls and I'm totally clueless. Kennedy had to read some music, without the letters, for the first time. Well, I kept looking where the stick was on the music lines. I guess you have to look where the dot(note) is at. So, where the stick ended, either in the space (notes f,a,c and e) or on the lines (notes e,g,b,d,f)was what I was looking at and getting pretty ticked at KK for not knowing her notes. Well, I finally figured out that I was looking at it all backwards. I just started crying, hugged her, and begged her for forgiveness. I was thrilled that she smiled and did forgive me. At dinner, she told daddy about my mistakes. Daddy said "why were you crying when mommy hugged you?" Kennedy said "daddy, they were happy tears." awwweee, shall I say more? So, Moms, beware of you! If you get in the way........just apologize. I have a feeling that won't be the last time I get in the way. I'm grateful for Grace!

Johnny Apple Seed Hasn't Seen Anything Yet!

We really worked it out at the orchard this weekend! I'm just going to get something off my conscience now........I picked an apple and took a bite out of it and broke a rule! The lady said, no eating apples. Cause you're supposed to fill your bags and then no more. I had to see what they tasted like. Well, they were delicious. So glad we got the big bag! We are set on apples for about 3 weeks. The kids did great. We just had to make sure they weren't picking apples up off the ground to put in the bag. LOL. It was exciting chasing Lincoln in the orchard and figuring out where all three kids were. We went with some friends and really had a great time. I felt like a genuine hillbilly. We sat on a tractor to have our picture taken (hmm.....seems weird), rode John Deer tricycles, milked a cow, watched little piggies race around, and we were pretty excited about all those activities. It doesn't take much to make us happy!

Go Fly a Kite!

Hard to believe.....but I've never flown a kite. The girls have been begging for one for over a year. So.....I scored big and bought them each a 99$ kite at Walmart about 2 months ago. You must have wind and we finally had wind on Sunday, about a week ago. I rushed home from church and put together the kite and headed out to the backyard. I ran as fast as I could down our sloped yard and all it did was pipe up about 5 feet and simmer down to the ground. So, I did it again. I looked like the Piper with kids falling me and a long kite tail......yet no results. I called Paul and told him to hurry home. I needed help....and soon! Well, it turns out that I had it hooked up backwards and was informed by the "kite flying expert" that the backyard was a poor choice.......LOL. Needless to say, daddy came to the rescue, much to my relief!

Live Now

I came across a blog article that triggered my thinking tonight. Perry Noble published and article titled "Dangerous". He spoke of the danger and risks that the disciples took by following Jesus. It made me think of our lives now. For many reasons, I've had a difficult time sleeping in the evening. Paul and I went to a benefit last Friday night, in honor of The Atlanta Dream Center and the organization called Not For Sale. Both organizations help prostitutes come off of the streets. This is something I am incredibly interested in and can't wait to help with. The Atlanta Dream Center has something called Princess Night each Friday. I'll have the opportunity to go in a few weeks and help hand out roses and cards to the girls on the streets. There will be a member from the center in the van with us and she knows most of the girls. She will be guiding us through this night. The best part is that we will spend time in constant prayer while driving around. We don't all get out at one time. There will be another van following us, the guys, and they will remain in their vans and will be praying for us. When I mentioned it to my mom, she said "isn't that a little dangerous, Lisa?". A most thoughtful question for any concerned mom to ask. I answered "I"ll be fine, Mom." But seriously, my mind does seem to drift at times and crazy thoughts pop into it about safety. I've had numerous dreams of someone kidnapping me and Lincoln. I fell asleep last night praying that God would bring peace to me and chase out my silly anxieties. I can't wait to go. I love this article by Perry Noble. We (Disciples of Christ) do need to start stepping out more!

Alexander Gators Kick Off the Season

Well we've had a blast cheering on our favorite team with some new friends, this would include traveling to TN to see them win!

2 New Pets

Well, wouldn't you know that both our girls brought home the class pet for Labor Day weekend. I've never seen so many smiles in one house and never heard so many giggles and glees. I thought they were going to burst! Kennedy was chosen to bring home Guber, the class hamster and Mia was chosen to bring home Queen Lilly, the class Lion. So we spent all weekend playing with Lilly and Guber. I do think Guber received more attention though, since he's 'real'. We took pictures of each creature in about every scenario: in the trees, in the mailbox, in the mixer, on top of Clifford's head, in a toilet paper tube. The girls kept posing the pets for scrapbook pictures. And of course, we put together scrapbook pages for the class scrapbook. Kennedy and Mia thrived and glowed from ear to ear as they decorated their pages for school. It was a blast. Thank goodness they both have fun and creative teachers.

Snug As A Bug In a Rug

Kennedy has become quite the little snuggle bug these days. Funny thing is that she wasn't so snuggly in her younger days. Now, she's always climbing you and hugging you. Mia is that way too, but she was born a snuggler. This morning, I went in to wake the girls up for school and found KK on Mia's bed. Now these are only twin sized beds and a bit cramped. But, KK was all snuggled up by her sister. When I woke them up, KK said "I wanted to snuggle Mia." My heart melted and then Mia did a very grouchy thing. She threw KK's blanket on the floor cause she didn't want it on her bed and just gave KK a dirty look. Awww......sisters. So tonight, KK snuck out of bed and asked if she could sleep with my blanket or pillow. I have a throw blanket that I've had since High School. Paul always teases me about it but I love sleeping with it under my head. Well anyhow, the girls always take turns sleeping with it and sometimes stealing my pillow. I love it though. Sometimes I will say "it's mommy's turn to sleep with her own blanket." I guess I'm still young at heart too. I love my blanket. :-)

He's Not a Baby Anymore..........

Since when did he get so big? He decided to potty train last week. He looked up at me while I was doing a P90X video and said "poppy!" He then pointed to the bathroom and off he went. I followed him in there, just for fun. I thought it was another false alarm. Wouldn't you know, a small stream of pea tinkled out and the bathroom turned into a room full of celebration and clapping. We called daddy and told him the great news. Well, for about 6 days he walked around in his sisters' underpants cause I didn't have any boy's underpants and didn't know how serious he was about this potty business. He was serious. He actually pooped for daddy on the potty. At which, I received a phone call, while I was grocery shopping. Again, much clapping and celebration. Oh, let's not forget how excited Lincoln is about getting treats for going potty. Of course, it's just a piece of Applejacks cereal. So, we went to Target on Monday and the boy has his own underpants now! He calls them "his guys" because they have Spiderman and other super heroes on them. I love it. He's growing so fast. I heard him crying this morning and I went in and crawled in bed with my little prince. He laid there and spoke so quietly to me with his soft little voice. We were head to head on a pillow. He told me that he wanted to ride bikes with daddy and that Mia and KK were on the bus. I said yes. He then played with my hair and proceeded to get out of bed and find every stuffed animal and lay them on top of me. I was under a mountain of blankets and stuffed animals. My heart melted. One day he'll be in high school and all grown up :-( I'm just cherishing now.

Bike Rides, Bus Stops, and Banana Muffins

We are really get brave these days. Paul bought a bike from Walmart, so that we can go on bike rides as a family. Our friends gave us the trailer for Linc. and here we are. We took our first 'official" bike ride last night. Of course, the girls are still very reluctant and on training wheels. They take after their dad! LOL. I end up running with them, instead of riding my bike. There are a lot of "help, Mom, I can't make it up the big hill!". So instead of getting off my bike every 5 minutes,I just run with them. We must be a site to see! I enjoyed every minute of it. I'm hoping the girls become a little more adventurous. At one point, I was in the lead of the pack. I kept saying "come on guys, you're on wheels and should be lightyears ahead of me.". Well, Mia picked up the pace and started yelling "I love hills, I love hills". KK, on the other hand was talking to herself (out loud) and saying "Push, push, push, push". She was telling her legs what to do. She kept telling me that the headband with the bead, that she was wearing, was helping her push. I just agreed. Linc. just sat and enjoyed the show. Well, we do ride bikes, but not to school. We have finally agreed to allow the girls to ride the Yellow Banana to school. I was very reluctant, at first. But they are only on the bus for about 10 minutes, if even that. And, the kids are so nice here. The moms are great too. We all walk the kids to the busstop in our pjs! Of course, today was another story. I came out of the house and heard the bus sitting at the stop. I about spilled my coffee as I grabbed the girls and said "hurry ,let's run!". We usually don't walk through wet grass but today we ran through our wet yard and hustled down the street. Apparently, the bus came early and other moms were doing the same thing. I didn't feel too terribly bad. I thought I was gonna have to carry poor little Mia. She was in tears and trying to run as fast she could with her backpack swinging all over the place. We then rushed our good-bye kisses and off they went. Speaking of the Yellow Banana, we are now making gluten-free banana muffins. It's a long story, but I have taken the girls off of gluten, wheat, dairy, and few other things. I've seen a 100% change in my oldest and am still trying to figure out things with Mia. We are hoping and praying to have some food intolerance (IgG) tests run this month. They are not covered by insurance and very expensive. So, in the meantime we are learning to cook in a whole different world. I never knew there could be so many flours : brown rice, white rice, corn flour, coconut flour, tapioca flour etc.............. The girls are doing great with it and feeling better. Thank you Denise McDowell for guiding me in the right direction. Moms out there, keep us in your prayers!

What Does a Mom Do With Her Prince...........

Well both girls are in school and what to do with my Lincoln?? Well, we typically do P90x together each day. Next we haves some moments of dance to Alicia Keys, Lady Gaga, Maxwell, Chris Tomlin, Pearl Jam.......whatever I'm in the mood for. He runs into the living room as soon as I turn on the music and starts break dancing. I love it!! Well, besides dancing, there is cooking. He loves to grab his little chair and watch me cook. He also likes to put his cars on the counter and run them into my mixer. Changing clothes is important to him. His favorite outfit is the old speedo swim suit that someone gave us. It's so tight and goes down to his knees. Looks like biker shorts that I wear when biking. He likes to put his old hoody on to match it. Now, the hoody is a size 3months and so it only covers half of his belly. Of course, we have to pull the hood up too! So yeah, that's my prince. He will be very well rounded one day. And yes, when I'm not looking, he sneaks up to the kitchen counter and steals cookies, pulls all of my clothes out of my dresser, dumps out the silverware, puts his toothbrush in the toilet, washes his trains in the dog's water, and anything else that might seem destructive or fun!

Dreams Do Come True........My girls Like to Scrapbook!!

They have been begging me for the last 2 years to scrapbook with them. But I wanted to wait until they could write. Now they can write and they did a fabulous job on starting their very first scrapbook. I just picked up those black/white memo books that are .25 right now. We opened up one page at a time and started choosing pictures. It's not all perfect or completely acid free etc.......but it's a start and it was fun!!! I love to see what pictures they chose and what they wanted to write. They each wanted to put birthday pictures of each sibling in their books. They love their birthdays. I mean who doesn't? Birthdays are a VERY big deal in the Alexander house. We don't spend gobs of money but we do celebrate another year with our precious babies! If you do not spend time celebrating, then you should reconsider. When we make that day special, we are essentially saying "Daughter, you are important to us and we want you to know how glad we are that you were born!"

I'm No Artist.........but..............

I finally finished painting the girls' room. I painted it green the day after we arrived in Atlanta but hesitated on getting the flwoers and birds up. I was so nervous!! Well, I took the plunge and just free-handed it all. Why not? I know, it's not professional or high grade but the girls seem to like it. We call it the "Fairy Garden". I feel like the room has it's special ingredient that each kid's room needs, love. My love is painted all over those walls. It may not look great but there is love in there!! :-)