Christmas times 5!

Christmas is a busy 4 days for us. 

We start off with the Huckestein Christmas the Saturday before the 25th. It is full of food, family, and blessing our adopted family.

The 23rd we have our Linder/Inman Christmas with Jer's parents and sister. More food, family and presents.
When we get home Jer and I get the kids tucked into bed wait for them to fall into a slumber and load up the tree.
The 24th the kids wake up to a tree full of presents and its an early morning wake up call. My parents join us for breakfast and gifts with the kids. Boy are these kids spoiled!
 In the evening we head off to Coastline for our Christmas Eve church service.
Our friend Jody sang Joy to the World take a listen here
The 25th we get to drive up to Mount Vernon WA. to see our Inman family. This year was Jer's grandma Viv's 93 Christmas! We love her so much.

Here is our Christmas in pictures.

   Sister loving daddy.

Jameson got some cool farming books

  

  

Overnight bags from Gr. & Gr. Hucks

Jameson got a scoreboard clock

Kids are excited!

 

LEGO'S

Sis excited about a cursive book

Bella enjoying her cushy new bed

Mount Vernon bound

 We love going up to see the Inman family. The
kids have their "own room" at Aunt Shelah and Uncle Fritz's house and there is so much to do there. Unfortunately this year Mad came down with the stomach flu, so we decided it best to head home just in case one of us got the bug. It was sad to be leaving our favorite place, but for the best.

Sister not happy to be heading back home

Jamesons sock monkey co pilot

Two peas in a pod

My very favorite part of our drive to and from The Farm (Mount Vernon) was listening to Jer and Jameson talk about everything from the new tractors being hauled to how much it costs to have a horse. Jameson is really not letting up on wanting a real live horse.
Today while Madalyn rests on the sofa I will be taking all the decorations down and boxing up our tree (yes it's fake) and reflecting on the small moments of Christmas and how lucky we are. So many things to be thankful, but most of all thankful that a baby was born to be our Savior in a humble manger, so we would have everlasting life.

You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; his kingdom will never end.” Luke 1:31-33

Blessed is me..

Dear...

A few weeks ago I was helping Jameson clean out his bedroom which is FULL of "treasures". Both of our kids love office supplies and notebook and as I was cleaning I kept finding notes that Jameson had written. Some were sweet little musings about who he loved "Mom, Dad, Madalyn, God, Grandma, Leslie, Bella (our dog), Papa and Grammy, Papa Moo and Grandma Debbie" Some were about what he did at school, and some made me sad like the one that read "I need you to love me."

It made me realize that since Jameson is so sensitive to how WE feel he may never come to us with his true feelings, tough questions, or moments to celebrate. He would rather write his feelings down.

Madalyn also loves to write notes, make cards and draw us pictures. She is more obvious that she has written one tho. She will either had it to us or put it on our bed and then come tell us that it is there then bug us to go get it until we do.
She wrote a note and gave it to Jer that read "mommy and daddy are in love" and she drew a picture at school of me dressed in Beaver colors.

We love all the notes that the kids give us, but they are everywhere and we can't possibly keep all of them. I got the idea of doing a back and forth journal with them.

Both kids have a notebook that is just for us (Jer and I) and them. Jer and I have one between us also.
We told the kids that they can write anything they want in it. They can ask questions, they can let us know they are sad, mad, happy etc., they can draw pictures. Nothing is off limits and then we will write back to them. We also write them notes and they reply back to us. I personally have loved it and it has turned into way more than I had hoped. I can't share what is in the books cause we told the kids there were only for us, but I can tell you a few of my favorite things:

Madalyn's phonetic spelling

She signs her name Maddie (which I don't love and she knows it)

Jameson signs is name "bud" cause that is what Jer calls him

and he is very detailed when he is explaining something.

When I initially thought of this it was because I know that at this time Jameson isn't always going to share his feelings with us, but what I didn't realize was that Madalyn isn't always going to share. She will become the teenager who thinks that her parents have ruined her life. Since we will have this writing dialogue in place I hope that she will still write to us freely.

Our notebook project has evolved into something more than I thought it would and I love finding them on my pillow with a little note inside. These are items that I will forever treasure.

Blessed is me...

Being Jamesons momma

Jameson Rockefeller Linder
Born June, 26
8 years old

Jameson is one of the kindest most compassionate boys you will meet. When you are happy he will be happy with you. When you are sad he will cry because you are sad When you are angry he will shy away. You will never have to tell him any of your feelings he already knows. He knows all of this just by observing and feeling. When he thinks you need an lift he will leave a note on your pillow.

Jameson never says much and ponders for a long time before he will. He rubs his chin like his dad when he is thinking. When he is afraid or frustrated he cries. When he is happy he laughs from the pits of his belly. He is afraid of change. He is afraid of the unknown. He doesn't think he is good at anything. He says he doesn't have any friends. He is afraid to try anything new for fear of failing.

The first day of school was the worst yet. As soon as we pulled up to the school he grab the seat of my car and burst forward crying saying he was afraid. As we walked into the school he held onto me tighter. I tried to comfort him, but it wasn't working. It was all new. New teacher, new classroom, new school, new routine, new classmates, new principle, new playground. It was all new and he was terrified. As I bent down to comfort him again and to tell him that I had to go cause I needed to get Madalyn to school across town I could see the fear in his face. He begged me to stay, to take him with me and I wanted to so bad. All of this because of fear of the unknown. I spent the rest of the day crying and worrying only to come home and find him doing handstands in his barn boots outside. He said he had a great day and loved his new teacher.

He desperately wants to have a friend. Oh he has friends at school an all the kids really like him, but if you ask him he doesn't have any friends. He wants a best friend that will invite him places like his sister gets and that he can have over for sleep overs. He is too afraid to invite anyone over cause "what if they say no". He wants people to like him so much that he made up a story that he has two horses. This came to light at conferences when his teacher kept referring to his horses that he wrote about in his journal. When we asked about this he said "No one likes me" Heart wrenching as a parent to see that the boy your dreamed about thinks that no one likes him especially when as we see it it isn't true.

Jameson is often questioned why he doesn't play football, basketball, or baseball. He always just says "I don't really like to I like animals instead". This for some reason is hard for people to take. A solid good size boy who doesn't like sports how can that be?! He wouldn't dream of running after a ball that another kid was trying to get or fighting over a rebounded ball (unless it was Madalyn). He would rather you have a turn and he will sit out.

Jameson is good at many things. He is a great speller and has gotten 100% on every spelling test since 1st grade. He can draw wonderful pictures, he writes songs, and can build mansions from Legos. He can tap out a beat after only hearing a few beats of song. He loves animals and he has no trouble climbing over a gate into a field full of 1200 lb cows with his dad or papa moo. He is NOT afraid of animals. He loves the Lord. He is an amazing child carrying around a heavy load for an 8 year old. I find his load very heavy and I am 36 I can't imagine what is going on inside his head. We get glimpses sometimes when he writes in one of his many notebooks.

 As his mom I am struggling to find balance in letting him forge his own way and just forging it for him. I am struggling at letting him be afraid of what's not going to hurt him and rescuing him. I am struggling at not FREAKING OUT about the constant barrage of "why isn't he playing (insert sport). It breaks my heart when he tells me "I really want to win a trophy, but I am not good at anything" or "no one likes me" even if it isn't true. I wish he could just see what we see. I wish he could see how much he has to offer at only 8. I wish he could see that he is good at things an that not only does he have friends he is everybody's friend! He is so genuine, so caring, so much like Jer in many ways and like me in others. He is such an old soul.

One of my dearest clients told me "the best place you can be for your kids is on your knees". That is my plan I am going to forge a prayerful path for him while I let him forge his own way and I am going to keep it together when asked why he isn't playing basketball etc.. for the 16 trillionth time. 

It isn't likely that he will ever make the winning touchdown, or the winning basket at the buzzer, but he will make you feel better when you are sad, he will touch your heart if you can just get a glimpse of his and I will take that over a touchdown any day.

Blessed it me..

What if..

What if.. when someone was suffering we lifted them up
What if.. when someone was sad we comforted them
What if.. when someone was happy we rejoiced with them
What if.. when someone offered us a compliment we took it
What if.. when someone succeeded we celebrate with them
What if.. when someone failed we encouraged them to try again
What if.. when someone was in a valley we helped them to the mountain top
What if.. when someone didn't feel loved we loved them
What if.. when someone didn't feel worthy of anything we let them know they are
What if.. we gave from the heart until it hurt
What if.. we saw someone being bullied and we stood up for them
What if.. we really stood for what we believed in
What if.. we trusted
What if.. we surrendered
What if.. we loved
What if.. we cried
What if.. we rejoiced
What if.. we failed
What if.. we hurt
What if.. we feared
What if.. we laughed
What if.. we felt worthy
What if.. we supported
What if.. we took chances

What if.. we had faith
What if.. we believed we could move mountains
What if.. we all worked together for the greater good
What if.. we had more money
What if.. we had less money

I have had so many "what if's" the last few weeks. There are so many things that I want to do, but I know that I can't do all of them and be good at any of them.

I want to:
be a better wife
a better mom
feed people
love people
rock babies that have no one to rock them
to help people see that they don't have to be a product of their environment
to help with the drug problem in our county
sit with people at chemo that have no one to sit with them
volunteer with Hospice so no one has to die alone
to pray for everyone to see the love of Jesus
the list goes on and on and on and on.. and on..

What if.. instead of putting our need (wants) first we put someone else first? What if we all did one thing to help someone and did it really good.

What if.. we all knew our calling.
What if.. I knew mine

We could change the world

Blessed is me..

3289 days

It has been 3289 days since Jer and I got married. 9 years have just whizzed by! It was a perfect day if you ask me.

We used the cake top from Jer's grandparents wedding.  They have been married for 60 years now and love each other like newlyweds.

Us with our parents.

The whole gang! 

Phil, Michael, Bryan, Troy

Leslie, Char, Amy, Melissa

Rachel.. the flower girl

The dip kiss we had practice the night before

We are a great team.
I am smartish.. Jer is WAY smart
I get worked up easy.. Jer is cool under pressure
I have A LOT to say... Jer keeps quiet
I am an early riser... Jer is not
I am early to bed.. Jer stays up late
I like to be early.. Jer likes to be just on time
I co pilot.. Jer pilots
I love truck stops... Jer brings me to them
I have anxiety over vomit.. Jer takes over
I move my clean laundry from the bed to the top of the dresser a few time before putting it away.. Jer just puts his away.
I love when Jer chops wood... Jer chops wood
On bad days I need hugs.. Jer hugs me
When I am mad I don't talk.. Jer gives me space
I take HOT showers.. Jer never complains about not having enough hot water
I fall asleep on the couch every night.. Jer wakes me up
I fail at being a submissive wife.. Jer loves me anyways
I can be a pain to live with.. Jer perseveres 
It's all about balance.

Things Jer might not know.
I pray for him a lot.
When he is out of town I wear his jammies
He makes me have butterflies

That I would follow him anywhere.. even Idaho
and
That when I think about how much he has done for me, how much I love him it fills my throat with a lump and my eyes with tears.

In these last 3289 days we have endured some challenges, some sadness, some celebrations, 2 kids, 3 dogs, numerous cats, 2 houses, 2 remodels, and A LOT of cars, a new church family and so much more. Everyday has shaped who we are, who we are becoming, and who we will be.

Everyday I am happy to be Mrs. Jeremy Linder
 Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh Genesis 2:24

Blessed is me..

First and Third

Our little gems are tucked away in their beds ready for school to begin. When I went in to check on them Jameson was lights out, but Mad was awake "too excited to sleep." She asked if I would rub her back. As I stood rubbing her back and gently stroking her hair I can't help but feel that time is passing way faster than I thought it would. As her eyes got heavy and she rolled over I got tears in my eyes. Tomorrow she goes off to 1st grade. I feel like I was just yesterday they were learning to walk, talk, and write their names. Now Jameson can read, write, and do multiplication not to mention a great speller! Madalyn has nailed the talking part, can read with a little help, and is a great note writer. Her phonetic spelling is my favorite part of those notes.

Outfits are laid out. It is just an orientation day tomorrow, but first impressions are very important. It is interesting that Jameson tossed his clothes in a pile unfolded and Madalyn has her shirt set upon her pants with a coat nearby.

Here are the kids from Kinder to 3rd grade...

Worst mom ever.. I don't have individual pictures of this kids last year! I will try harder this year and I hope Jameson will let me take a picture of him without his hand in front of his face!

I am super excited to see what comes this year and to see how our kids are going to grow. 

My prayers are:

For Jameson to try new things even though he may fail. For him to know that it is ok to make new friends even though "nothing is wrong with the friends I have". For him to gain self confidence. For him to continue having a kind, compassionate heart. For him to know that we are proud of him. For him to know that we would go to the ends of the earth to help him succeed.

For Madalyn to continue on her self assured path. For her to help her friends when they need it. For her to not let anyone squash her unique style. For her to do all things fervently. For her to make new friends and reunite with the friends she made last year. For her to be brave as she walks into school without her brother. For her to know we are proud of her. For her to know that we would go to the end of the earth to help her succeed.

So as we say hello to Fall and goodbye to Summer I can't help but think about how much faster time is going to go as our kids get older. My mom used to tell me that the older you get the fast time goes. It never made sense to me until I was a mom myself.

Blessed is me...

Adventures with Papa.

School starts next week for our kids, so my dad took advantage of the two days the kids were with him and my mom last week.

  A little fun in the pool!

Walking around Coffenberry lake.

Cruising down the river walk with a stop at the Maritime Museum Anchor. (who doesn't have a picture like this?)

They finished out the day with a ride on the trolley.

Blessed is me...

60 years of being best friends.

Last weekend we celebrated Jer's grandparents 60th wedding anniversary. They truly are the kindest most loving people you will meet. It is obvious that when you are with them that they are madly in love with and cherish each other. They always hold hands (grandma says it is cause they are holding each other up) and their love spills over onto their kids, grand kids, and great grand kids.

I once had a new client come in and tell me that my grandma referred her to me. It was actually Jer's grandma cause both mine have passed away. Anyways the lady went on to tell me they were waiting in line at Safeway to get their flu shots and she had noticed a couple that were obviously in love and must have just gotten married that they were holding hands and being very attentive to one another. I told my new client that they had been married for 55 years! She was shocked to see that a couple could be married so long and still have love like that.

I recently asked Grandma how she thought they made it 60 years. She told me it was "faith in God." I then asked her if she would write us a letter explaining it to us. Our kids get to see them quite often, but our grand kids may not and I think it is a treasure our whole family would like to have. After some hesitation she agreed and I am so glad!

I am a little computer illiterate and can't figure out how to scan this so you can read it. Here is what it says...

Dear family,
Awhile back Kallie asked me to write a letter sharing with everyone why we thought our marriage lasted 60 years. After a lot of soul searching, I finally agreed.

Going way back to the beginning, I remember my Mother teaching me and important lesson on what I should look for in a husband. She said the more things you have in common, the better the chances your marriage would survive. There would be fewer serious issues for you to disagree on. Faith in God and having the same moral traits were very important issues. Both Dick and I grew up in home with Parents who were practicing Catholics. Church was very important in both our families. My mother would always write the first check of each month for their church support. Her reasoning being that if you ran out of money before the end of the month, you had already paid God first and he wouldn't be shortchanged. She knew that all that you give to God will come back many time over. One of her other lessons was on dating. She would only let me date Catholic boys. Her argument for this policy was simple. if you date these boys only, you will find a mate among them who shares a strong moral bond with you. Important common traits.

When Dick and I married on August 16, 1952, the times were much simpler, as was our wedding. I paid for the wedding myself, including my mom and dad's suits. Dad grew the gladiolas I used to decorate the church. People didn't go into hock to have lavish affairs. The marriage itself was the focus. No rehearsal dinner, no booze or sit down dinners. Just cake, nuts, candy, punch and coffee. We had our wedding Mass at 10:00 in the morning followed by a breakfast at the hotel for the bridal party and their parents. this was a necessity as we had to fast from midnight to receive Holy Communion in those days, and we were all hungry. then we had the simple reception at the a hall at 2:00 in the afternoon. that is how things were done then. As I said, times were simpler back then, and divorce was unheard of.

You go through lots of stages in a marriage. The first 25 years are the hardest. They first years are full of adjustments. Melding meal times, food preferences, chores and finances. Then when you have children, the marriage has more love, more joy, and more adjustments; discipline, diapers and more chores to share. Wonderful time and challenges raising kids. An enriching process which leaves great everlasting memories of time and love shared.

We were truly blessed in the children stage. As I said, times were much simpler back then. The kids grew up being able to play outside until dark without parents worrying about them. TV was in it's beginning in the 50's, and as were most families, we were mesmerized by the whole thing. This cut into cards and game times but we survived. Barely. Money was always tight when the kid were growing up, so we enjoyed simple family fun. Camping, swimming, fishing, and Sunday car rides followed by simple ice cream cones.

Then all too soon, you're at the empty nest stage. Hopefully, you've continued to nurture the love you have for each other and you can look over at your spouse and see your best friend, not some stranger. it was during this alone time that Dick and I started our evening glass of wine, which was an acquired taste for me. The first one home from work poured the wine, and then we sat together and share our day and other things going on. It was a special time of day for us.

We moved into the retirement stage on the same day, December 31, 1993. Jobs now behind us, we were excited about where our travels were going to take us and all the new friends we would be able to meet, and hoped we had planned adequately. Fortunately, we both like to travel in our RV, and found it a a wonderful rewarding experience. We have had many good memories of our trips.

The last stage is dealing with aging and health issues. The mind says "sure you can do it", but the body says "I don't think so".  We are grateful for the loving support of our family at this time. They are always there for us when we need them, just a phone call away. Many of our friend are not so lucky. We are also grateful that we've been able to take turns with our serious operations, so we could be strong for each other when the other one was having a health issue. That "in sickness and health" vow is priceless.

With all these stages to build on, besides being husband and wife, we are each others best friend. That has not changed in our sixty years together. You can't go wrong marrying your best friend.

There aren't words to explain what it is like to be part of this family with Dick and Betty at the helm. They just love that is it. It is a simple love. They love you right were you are, they love you when you are down and will extend a hand to help you up, they love you when you are up and will lift you even higher, they just love you plain and simple. I wish everyone could see and share in what we get to see all the time.

Blessed is me.

Girls day!!

Madalyn and I planned to have a girls day today since Daddy would be at work and Jameson would be at kids camp!

Since Saturday Mad has had a rash on her neck and chin. It appeared to be an allergic reaction to something cause she felt fine and didn't have a fever.

  

We planned a quick trip to the urgent care, but our quick trip turned into over 2 hours. Who knew they would be so busy? The allergic reaction turned out to be hot tub folliculitis. You can read about that here if you want to. No worries it will go away on it's own and isn't contagious! On to GIRLS DAY!

Next we headed over to Marie Antoinette's cupcakes. I knew she would LOVE it there. She had a delish vanilla cupcake and I had a chai. We traded frosting cause she didn't like the vanilla so much. She informed me of where she would put her furniture if that was her bedroom. If you haven't been there you should stop in for a treat. They are really yummy!

The we were off to Madalyn's 2nd favorite store. Staples! Macy's is her 1st favorite. This girls loves office supplies almost as much as she loves clothes.  

We really lived life on the edge today. Mad sat in the FRONT seat! Judge if you want, but I loved rocking out to Pontoon and Something bout a truck with her.

We stopped by to see Grammy and Mad was glad to see she was "back on her feet."

Came home and made some zucchini bread from Mrs. Krafts cookbook. Here is the recipe if you want to try it out.

We rounded out the day having a picnic with Daddy who was mowing our field. A yummy dinner of pork chops, roasted beets, fresh green beans, and GIANT blueberries from my dear friend Diana. 

She must have had a fun day cause I not only got a note from her she paperclipped a piece of gum to the note. If you know Mad she isn't a big sharer of her gum.

She is now crashed on the sofa snuggled under a blanket. She sleeps in a sweatshirt and sweats just like I do. I don't suggest waking either one of us up unless you like poking a bear with a stick. Just pick us up and carry us to bed. I hope she enjoyed today as much as I did.

Blessed is me..