Cambodia -- The Accomidations

I'm still in the processing stages of the whole trip and I haven't had much time to edit more pictures, so I'll share with you some of the pictures from our hotels. Nothing too terribly fancy, but I'll share them anyways. They are interesting!!

This was my hotel room in Bangkok. I loved the painting on the wall. It cost roughly $25 a night.

It had a little vanity area. There were a ton of snacks on the table, but they weren't free. They sure were tempting, though!!

Here is a shot of the bathroom. That spray thing by the toilet is a bidet -- what you're supposed to use instead of toilet paper. Luckily, I never had to use it . . . just didn't make sense to me. I did make good use of it washing my feet off at the end of the day!! The shower is to the left of the toilet. While you took a shower, the toilet got all wet. Weird engineering for sure.
This is how you turned the shower on. You set your hot water level and turned the knob. Again, interesting. I was just glad there was hot water at that point. . . wasn't quite ready for the cold showers.

This is our hotel room in Poipet, Cambodia. Nothing spectacular. Felt like a dorm room. It costs $15 USD/night. The beds were very firm, but at the end of the day, I don't think I cared very much. I crashed!! The room key had a little plastic thing on it that you had to put into this slot so that your electricity would work. I wish I had gotten a picture of that. Every time you left the hotel, you had to take your key to the front desk, so your electricity was off. The good news was that our room didn't take too long to cool off at the end of the day. The good news about the key thing was that there was only one key and if your roommate came back before you, they could have access to the room. That's the a/c up on the wall. The girls from the UK are living in this hotel for 6 months. They celebrated their 2 month anniversary of being there the day we left.

Here's the view from our 5th story "lobby" window. There was a little sitting area outside our doors with giant windows. I did a lot of people watching from this window. I fell in love with a little boy under that blue tarp thing of a "house" in the middle of the picture. He's actually outside in this picture, but you can't see him. He is the first character in my book.

Again, toilet & bidet or foot shower in my case.

Straight across from the toilet is the shower. No walls, just the shower head. There wasn't hot water here. We had it a few times for about 2 minutes, but it was so hot that you couldn't stand underneath it. The water wasn't extremely cold, though. The water tanks sat outside and I'm sure the heat warmed the water so that it wasn't freezing like it would be here in the US. You would think that red knob over there would mean something to do with the hot water, but it doesn't. I'm not really sure what it's purpose was.

A picture of some kids from our hotel room window. I was really zoomed in, but they have plastic sacks with plastic water bottles in them. Again, I loved watching the people from our hotel room. I was so glad that we were on the 5th floor so that I had a little secret "hideout" to people watch from!!

This is a video looking out our window. I think you can see a volleyball court in it (at about 10 seconds). There were always kids playing volleyball over there! There was even a rain storm that came in one afternoon and it was pouring down rain and it didn't seem to bother them at all. At the end, you can also see my little boy. He's outside sitting on that log thing. He's still far away, so you can't see him very good. My only regret? Not going down there and getting a picture of him.

I have pictures of the hotel in Siem Reap (the touristy parts of our trip), but they're on my phone. I'll have to e-mail them to myself and then put them on here. You really won't believe how amazing it was!! I'll try to get them up soon!

Cambodia -- The Food

I've been back a few days now, but it's taking some adjusting. Time wise, while we were there, it seemed like everyone woke up about 4 am. I thought when we got back, that would be fixed, but it hasn't. Same thing-- I've been waking up at 4 am and can't go back to sleep. Plus, I've been having a hard time staying asleep. . . oh well. I've been told that it will all work itself out over the next few days.

I absolutely loved it there. I wouldn't want to sell everything and live there, but I could see myself going back and staying for longer periods of time. What they are doing over there will blow your mind. More on that over the next few days.

I thought I would break up the trip into a few parts so that my blog isn't forever long and you don't need an hour to get through it. So, I thought I would talk about the food first. I'll put a few pictures at the end of just random things, but I'm not finished editing and turning all of my pictures, so I'll post some of what I have done so far.

In preparing for this trip, I was warned about all kinds of weird foods -- squid, fried fish eyes, etc. I actually was going to try the fried fish eyes if someone got some. I thought I should go all out on the whole experience. I wanted to experience Cambodia, so why not?

So, as we were standing in line to get on the plane in Minneapolis, Joel laughed and said, "Say goodbye to all normal foods, dear." I was a little nervous. ;)

Well, I didn't get a chance to eat any fried fish eyes, but here's a list of a few of my food experiences:
* Cashew Chicken (no surprises there, but it was good)
* The most amazing coffee shake on the planet (yes, better than Starbucks)
* Really refreshing watermelon shakes
* Really amazing coffee
* Fried eggs & toast (I think this became my favorite breakfast while we were there)
* Fried rice w/ chicken at a coffee shop in the middle of nowhere. This was on our drive from Bangkok to Cambodia. It was all open, as in no walls. There were chickens walking around. I'm sure the chicken I was eating was walking around there once, too.
* Squid (yes, I ate it but I wasn't fond of the texture)
* Raw tuna (again, terrible texture, but I got it down)
* The thickest and yummiest and biggest pancakes ever
* Ate an ENTIRE meal with chopsticks (I had never used any before)
* Barbecued goat (again, texture got me on this one. . . good flavor, just a little too chewy for me)
* Fried potatoes (some kind of yellow potato, not white ones)
* Fried bananas (the girls from the UK loved these)

So, there is the beginning of my Cambodia posts. I know everyone is wanting to hear all of the other amazing things, and that will come, but I was shocked at myself for even trying some of these things and it is the easiest post to start out with.

Dr. J & Steve at the CHO restaurant where we ate almost every breakfast and lunch. This restaurant fixes 3 meals a day and delivers them to the AIDS & TB hospital for the patients there. See that watermelon shake on the bottom left? YUM!! I bet it was mine!

Trish & the UK girls (L to R: Nicole, Emily, Hannah (blue shirt), & Kathryn)
They had a train of massages going at one point. We loved hanging out with these girls. (By the way, their new year is like next week or something. That sign wasn't from January 1st)

Here's that coffee shop in the middle of nowhere. I'm not kidding. We were driving down the road and there is NOTHING. Then, all of a sudden, we pass this place. So, we turned around and went back for lunch.

These boys were at the school on the mat. They aren't in school, but they followed our van down to it. They just sat and watched what was going on in the school (outside, of course) and they watched us.

These girls were at our children's outreach. You can tell that they are probably sisters. People think that they have highlights in their hair, but it's actually a sign of malnutrition.
One afternoon, I was in my hotel room and I heard a pig squealing and squealing and squealing! At first, I didn't want to look because I thought they might be butchering it somewhere, but when I finally go the nerve to look, this is what I saw:
Yes, that's a live pig on the back of a motorcycle. Interesting, huh? Wayne said he saw a cow on the back of a moto later that afternoon.

As we were driving into Siem Reap for the touristy part of our trip, we saw this:
Another interesting thing. I think these chickens are alive. We would see them move their heads every once in a while. Funny how when you see a cattle truck going down I-20 full of cows, you don't think of it as tomorrow's lunch. But in Cambodia, that's all I could think!

And, my favorite picture of the whole trip. We were invited to a village by the assistant village leader (comparable to one step up from mayor, I think) and this baby was laying on a bed under their shelter (again, no walls). The grandma was so proud of her! Every time the camera would flash, she would laugh and smile really big. I absolutely love this picture!! Makes me feel like Angelina Jolie! ;) (Thanks, Trish!)

First Leg Home

Another airplane ride . . . fun, fun, fun! At least this one is only about an hour and a half. We're flying out of Cambodia and we're heading back to Bangkok. Then, tomorrow morning at 5:45 am (5:45 pm Texas time) here, we'll fly out to Tokyo. . . then, on to Detroit. . . then on to Dallas!! We land in Dallas at 9:45 pm on Wednesday.

Today we went out to a floating village. . . just plain craziness. People living on boats/houses out in the middle of the lake. They had kids, there were stores, they had tv in some. . . it's will just blow your mind. Not to mention another sun burn . . . not bad, though.

Here's something else cool that happened.
Trish & I went and got our toenails done and she got her fingernails done . . . all for $7!!! Complete with flowers and bows!! They are beautiful! Yes, $7 USD!! Anyway, our tuk-tuk driver took us to this place and we walked in and let the girls get started. One of the other "girls"started talking and it was no girl. . . it was a "lady boy"shop!! We laughed hysterically once we figured that out!!! But, the girls that did our hands & feet were not. It was a pretty funny moment.

While we got out of the tuk-tuk, I had my money in my pocket, but when I went to pay for my nails, it was gone. It wasn't in any of my pockets. I checked two or three times and it wasn't there. I was freaking out because I thought one of these girls had pick-pocketed me or that I dropped it getting out of the tuk-tuk. So, Trish covered me and we went to get in the tuk-tuk again (I like that word! ;) ) Anyway, my money was in a different pocket!! And not in one that I would have put it in and I checked it at least 2 times sitting in that chair!! What in the world? I'm just believing that God gave my money back to me.

Then, we headed back to the market to pick up a few more gifts before heading home. That was fun!! I love the market!!

I've had a blast, but I'm ready to be back home. Well, internet time is about up. Got to run!!

P.S. By the way, I've taken 495 pictures!!! Some are just of life kind of things . . . toilets, showers, bathing pots, etc. But, lots of awesome pictures!! Wishing I had my computer so I can edit them on the way home.

Cambodia Part 2

I'm sitting in the "Joel Famous" Blue Pumpkin little restuarant here in Siem Reip (sp?) Good food and time to be tourists. We are going to Angkor Wat (again sp?) this afternoon . . . it's some old Buddist temples.

Our hotel is like we're in a tropical resort. It's AMAZING! I almost don't feel like I'm on a mission trip!! ;)

We have had an absolute blast here and I definitely want to come back. What God has done here and is doing here will blow your mind away.

The other day, the guys put up a 30 foot tall water tower at the safe haven. I'll have to post the video when I get home. Cambodians and Americans working together to raise this amazing amount of metal with some electrical wire for rope and a few poles. . . other than that, it was pure man strength.

Well, I'm going to let Trish have her computer back now. I'll try to post when I can. . . if I don't, I'll be home late Wednesday!!!

We're Here & We're Having Fun!!

We're here in CAMBODIA!!! Yes, I have a brief internet connection and I thought I would update. Tomorrow is the big children's outreach. I've actually been painting for the last 2 days, which is something I like to do!!

I can't tell you how amazing this place is. Well, some people wouldn't think it was amazing, but I'm in awe. Today we got to go around and see a school in a village, their agricultural areas, and an HIV/AIDS and TB hospital. That one almost did me in. There was a lady laying there really just a skeleton with her husband standing by her side and her 3 young children laying on the bed with her. Just rocked my world. . . not in a good way.

I'm not sure how long this internet service will last, so I'm going to try to get this uploaded before it crashes. Love you guys!! Continue to pray for us!!

Bangkok, Thailand

Greetings!!
I survived the longest plane rides EVER and I'm sitting in a hotel in Bangkok! How weird is that? I just had a great breakfast and we're about to head to the Cambodia border. From there, I'll only have internet at the safe haven, but I wanted to let everyone know that we made it and this is just amazing. I've mostly seen everything in the dark, but this morning just looking around, it's very interesting.

Right beside our table at breakfast, there was a Buddist shrine that a man was "fixing up" this morning. When people walk by it, they bow to it. You can smell the insence burning. It's interesting.

The 14 hour plane ride wasn't terrible until about 10 hours into it. My legs started hurting and my back was hurting. It was hard to sleep sitting up. But, I finished my book "Same Kind of Different As Me", which I would highly recommend and I watched 2 movies. Once we got off the plane in Tokyo, we had another 7 hour plane ride to Bangkok. I took my sleeping pill on that one and I was OUT!

Everything on the plane was smooth and we had tremendous favor going through customs in Bangkok. When we got to Bangkok, some of our luggage wasn't there -- mine, Trish's, and one of Joel's. They told us that our luggage was on the way to Phenom Phen, which we are NOT going to! But, they were able to pull our luggage off of the plane and bring it to us. That was interesting!!

Then, going through customs, they didn't want to let us bring our medicine in. But, after Wayne & Dr. J finished, they let us leave with it.

The hotel was comfortable and I had a room to myself. Interesting thing was that the toilet and shower are in the same area. . . and I don't mean in the same room. I mean, you take a shower standing right by the toilet. But, I had hot water, so it was fine.

So, our driver just got here and we're about to head to Cambodia. I'll e-mail when I can!!! Gotta run!! Beeping computer!

Heading to Cambodia

In about 15 minutes, Joel & Trish will be here to pick me up so that we can go meet Wayne and head to Dallas! Our flight leaves at 10:20 from Dallas and flies to Minneapolis. From there, we fly to Toyko, Japan. We have a 1 1/2 hour layover and then it's off to Bangkok. We will stay the night in Bangkok and drive to Poipet the next morning.

I can't seem to find the papers with the info on it about our flights and hotels. I'm sure there around here somewhere and I'm sure Wayne has all that info with him.

Thank you guys!! You are awesome!! I have the best friends in the world!!!! I'll try to update when I can!!

The official countdown has begun

I've started packing, delivered my crate full of supplies, got Payton a library card, been rescued by Donna H., found a dress, & the kids are back!! Things are right on schedule! ;)

Now I need to go eat lunch with the boys, go to Wal-Mart for lunches and a few other things, go back by FountainGate and drop off my receipts and the cups. Go to the church and see if the Easter signs have decided to cooperate, get children's church stuff to Krissy, go home, settle the boys back in, make all of the beds, deliver Kathy's scrapbooks, heat up dinner (Thanks, Brandi!).

Then, I want to sit on the couch and enjoy the boys. . . or play a few Wii games with them. I'll try to post before I leave, but if I don't, LOVE YOU GUYS!!!!

Great Honor

At the beginning of the year, Aaron had a prophetic word for me. He said that this year, I would be offered a job and he felt like it was in the backpack area. He said God wanted me to know that I would know what to do.

A few weeks after Aaron told me that, I told the entire word to Brandi because when it happened, I wanted someone to verify that Aaron had told me that before it happened. Not just one of those, "Oh, I knew that was going to happen" kind of thing.

Anyway, a few weeks later, I was at coffee at Brandi's house and I got an e-mail from the backpack lady at the food bank saying that she was leaving and she wanted me to take her job. I was floored!! No, I was honored. I kept saying that all day -- I was so honored. Honored that I've done a good job in Clyde and they want me -- they came after me.

Anyway, I went and talked to her and I'm not going to lie -- I really did want to take it. I absolutely love the backpack program and I do believe that this is the first step in my dream to see no child hungry -- not only in Clyde, but I'm going as big as to say the world. In less than one year, I would have gone from overseeing just 23 backpacks to overseeing over 500.

The hours were all day every day. . . the pay wasn't all that great for all of those hours. . . plus, I would have to put my kids in daycare . . . plus, what would I do during the summers? Then, there was children's ministry. . . I don't think I could have done both. They're both full-time jobs. I would have had to choose.

I chose not to take the job.

Then, today I get another e-mail stating that they are making the job part-time -- 20 hours a week and is flexible. She said the ball is in my court.

Gosh! I would love to do this. I love this program and I believe in it with everything in me -- they said that's why they want me. But, I have children to raise and I'm slowly learning that everything is about timing.

But, tonight I go to bed again, completely honored.

Things & Baseball season . . .

. . . has begun! Tonight, Payton has his first baseball practice of the season. He's pretty excited about it all! He had try-outs last week and did awesome! On Sunday night, he found out that he is on Ethan's team, which will make things so much easier!

We've also decided to let Evan play this year. I'm not sure how that will go exactly, but I'm sure he'll have fun. He has to play pee-wee, which will be coach pitching and then hitting off of a tee, I think. I'm sure he will do fine. . . it will be interesting having 2 practices and 2 games. Hopefully they'll be on different nights or at the same time and same place!

Today also marks just 11 days left until I leave for Cambodia -- yes, only 12 days. It's just plain crazy! I have a lot to do, but I know that I will get it all done -- always do.

I've also finished the most massive scrapbook that I've ever seen!! Actually, I think Hannah's first year scrapbook was the largest I've ever seen for 1 year (ha ha, Becky! ;) ) But, Luke's scrapbook is finished. I just need to deliver it and get paid for it. I think I have close to 80 hours in that thing! GOLLY!! But, all of the newspapers are sprayed with acid-free spray so that they won't yellow or become brittle over time. There isn't a lot of fluff on those pages, but there were a lot of newspaper articles to cut out!!

The boys are going to their grandparents' houses this weekend. That will be nice to be able to get everything done for a few days. They will come back a few days before I leave. But, I should have everything done so we can just hang out.

Well, it's 5 o'clock and time to get some stuff done. I'm going to try to do better about having dinner ready before practices/games this year. That's frustrating to get home at 8 pm and have to find something to fix for everyone to eat.

Are we coming or going?

Last week, I went to pick up Evan from school. There are only 2 floors, but we ride the elevator because Jaxon loves it! He thinks he's so grown up by riding it! He knows what to push and when. Anyway, we go up the elevator. Go pick up Evan and go back to the elevator. We get in and there is a man and his daughter, a woman and her daughter, and us. Here's how things went after we all get on:

Man: (to his daughter) Here, push this button. (points to #2)

Me: (wondering what he is doing)

Lady: (to me) Your kids are so cute! You can definitely tell they are brothers!

Man: (Still trying to push #2 and get it to light up.)

Me: Thanks.

(Elevator doors close, but we aren't going anywhere. I'm wondering why in the world this guy is pushing #2!! Evan's also beginning to wonder, but he doesn't say a word.)

Man: Well, I keep pushing this button and it's not lighting up. Wonder what's wrong.

Lady: Well, maybe it's broken. But, I just rode it up here two minutes ago. But, you know how elevators are.

(Doors open on the elevator and we're still on the 2nd floor. So, man pushes the close door button and the door closes again)

Man: (to his daughter) Here, honey. Let's try this one more time. Push this button (points to #2)

By this point, I'm wondering how in the world to tell this guy what is wrong without making him feel really stupid. But, I'm also thinking that if I don't tell him, we'll be on this elevator FOREVER!

Me: (acting like I just realized what the problem is) Push #1.

Man: Well, don't I feel stupid! I guess I just don't know if I'm coming or going!

Woman: Well, so do I! I'm sitting here telling you that it's probably broken! I didn't notice either!!

Elevator starts to go down and the doors open -- this time, on the first floor!! On the inside, I was laughing hysterically!!

Randomness

More randomness. . . .

Evan spray painted his fort. Before he went outside, I explained that the wind was blowing and that he wanted to wind to blow in his back so the spray paint wouldn't blow back and cover him. He didn't listen very well. He came in and one side of his face had so many red "specks" from the spray paint, that it looked like he had a terrible sunburn!! The right side of his face looks a little bruised in this picture, but it's the spray paint.

Jaxon eating waffles. I love that he likes to use a fork. . .
actually, he HAS to use a fork. He doesn't really like to eat with his hands.

The boys' valentines for their classes. Baseball was for Payton.
Hearts was for Evan. They are sour cream containers filled with candy.
I found the idea last year, but didn't have a paper crimper. Went to the scrapbook
store last weekend and found one for $1. I knew exactly what I was going to do with it!!

More randomness posts to come . . . and an update on Cambodia.

Cambodia

I am now also able to blog from my iPhone, so bear with me if there are typos!

Just came back from a Cambodia planning meeting. We leave in less than 5 weeks!! I found out tonight that we will be doing a children's crusade after all! Just loving on kids and having fun with them! Over the next few weeks, I will also be brushing up on my Cotton-Eye-Joe dance moves for the trip. I guess Cambodian people think that's pretty cool! I learned how to do that in the 2nd grade & my teacher told me that I would use it someday... Guess I learned it for Cambodia! ;)

Anyway, it's late & I need to get to bed, but please continue to pray for those that are going on this trip! ;)

Project 365 . . . or 358 or 300 . . or however many pictures there are at the end of the year!

Thought I would just post an update and some pictures. . . of random things. There was a scrapbook kit at the beginning of the year that was called 365 scrapbook. You were supposed to take a picture of something every day. I thought it was a great idea, but forgot to take a picture on days 3-8, so I kind of quit. But, when I think about it, I take random pictures of things around our house -- everyday things. So, here are a few random things from around our house.

First off, Evan and his CARS collection. Every time we go in a store that MIGHT have them, we have to look and see if we can find ones that he doesn't already have. We are always on the look out for them. To tell you the truth, I'm not sure who is more obsessed with them -- him or me.

Here's another picture of Evan. He goes to Trish's house on Fridays while I do backpacks and she lets him bake things. It's kind of their thing. This is a cake that Evan baked and frosted all by himself. . . well, he said Trish only did one thing and turning on the oven doesn't count. ;)
Here's a picture of the boys on the day that it was so icy. They thought it was fun to run and slide on the patio.

This is one of my favorite things I got for Christmas -- my hair straightner. I've had more compliments on my hair since Christmas than ever before!! This thing is amazing!! It takes my morning wild hair and makes it smooth and straight!!

These are Jaxon's new shoes that he got today. He puts them on and he loves them, but once he stands up, he hates them! I paid just as much for these little shoes as I do my own!!


My biggest pet peeve lately: Leaving the lights on!! Seems like at any given point in time, I can walk through the house and EVERY SINGLE LIGHT IS ON!! So, I go through and turn them off. Within a few minutes, there are at least most of them back on!! Not sure how to fix this problem!!

So, there you have it. My "randomest" post ever. . . the most random things in the Laughlin house.

Are U Ready 4 This?

I'M GOING TO CAMBODIA!!!

(Now's where you can picture me squealing like a little girl jumping up and down!)

I was talking to Trish about the trip the other night and I felt the anointing fall and I just knew I was supposed to go. I still asked people's opinions, but I was about 90% sure I was going. I talked to Aaron and he said I could go -- 95% sure now. I asked Brandon and he didn't have any objections -- 100% sure I'm going!! ;)

Last night we had our first meeting to talk about what we're going to do. Looks like we'll be building a fence -- not like our American fences either. This guy has 7 acres (I think) of land and he wants a security fence all the way around it. Now, we won't be responsible for building the whole thing, but that's what it looks like we'll be working on right now. This fence is a brick fence -- masonry work! But, that's ok with me. I'm not afraid to get dirty and I can surely learn how to do that.

There are some cultural things that I have to learn -- like you don't touch them on the head. How many kids do I touch on the head every week?! (If you've seen Grand Torino, that's in the movie.) It's just a habit! They did say that I'll probably lose 10 pounds while I'm over there -- BONUS! We are going to get to do some "touristy" things so it's not all work and no play. Right now, it's Wayne (from Fountaingate), Dr. J, Joel, Trish, & me. There's one more guy that might go. . . still waiting on the final word.

You can check out the website at Cambodian Hope Organization. Now it's time to sit back and let go of control of the details and let God work it all out.

I am so excited!!!

To Go or Not To Go?

I was invited this week to go on a mission trip to Cambodia in March. It would be March 15th through the 25th. I've been excited about this trip since I first heard about it, although I wasn't going to be allowed to go at first. They are building a fence for an orphanage and I wasn't "fence-building-worthy" or something.

Anyway last week, Joel called and invited me to go. I have never been out of the country. I have never been on a mission trip -- well, I went to St. Louis once to help build a church, but I don't necessarily consider that a "mission trip".

I can hardly sleep because I'm excited at the thought of going. I think about all of the things I could learn. I think about being able to get off of a plane in a different place -- a foreign place. I think about knowing that I made a difference to orphan boys and girls by the simple act of building a fence.

On the other hand, there's the $3000 it's going to take to go. Not a lot, really. . . I mean, in the grand scheme of things. I don't have $3000, but I'm learning that money is no object. The trip is 10 days, so there are kid issues -- who will take care of them? I'll miss Payton's birthday and our anniversary. . . again, in the grand scheme of things, not a big deal. I'm the only girl going at this point, which doesn't really bother me, but you know how that is. I'm just hoping that Trish gets to go, too.

So, now I'm just trying to decide if I'm supposed to go or not. . . that I'm not sure yet.

Friday was a bad day . . . not going in to it on here, but just a bad day. Until Aaron came home from work. I was repairing a dresser in Payton's room getting it ready for Craigslist. He came in and asked me what I was doing. I was a little frustrated by this point.

Then, I hear Aaron's phone ring and ring. He didn't answer. I couldn't figure out why. It rang again and again. Aaron came back in Payton's room in a hurry and he left again. This time, it rang twice before I looked up wondering why in the world Aaron would leave his phone in Payton's room. Then, I saw it:

AN IPHONE WITH A PINK COVER!!

Now, I'm usually not a tech-junkie. Got an ipod for Christmas last year and wasn't sure I would use it. (I do, by the way). But, I've been wanting one of these phones probably since soon after Aaron got his.

This thing has been so handy! My kids are mad because I don't want to put any games on it and I hate when they touch it. But, tonight I had to go to the store and buy green beans for a meal tomorrow and I'm supposed to bring 1 gallon of green beans. I get to the store and they are in 28 oz cans. So, how many ounces are in a gallon? I pulled out my handy iphone and was able to look it up online!! There are 128 ounces in a gallon (just in case you ever need to know).

Other good news is that I now have unlimited texting. Now you can send me all the "Merry Christmas" messages that you want! They're free!!

Don't I have the most amazing husband in the world?

No More Plan B

I've been reading the book "Always Enough" for the last month or so. I really can't put it down once I start reading, so I'm having to schedule reading time! ;) Anyway, it's about Heidi & Rolland Baker who are missionaries in Mozambique. Bethany N. recommended the book to me because she said it sounded like we had the same spirit. I think she was right.

I told God that I wanted to go over there and help. Then, I prayed that God would send me after my kids get older so that they don't have to experience the hunger and see those things. Then, I laughed. I told God that I wanted to meet her. I felt in worship one Sunday that God told me that I don't have to go to Mozambique to reach hungry kids. I'm already doing that right here where I am and I'm loving every minute of it.

So, I was talking to Joel & Trish the other day. Joel is going to Cambodia in March for a mission trip and he said, "You know, Rachel. Those guys over there have to hear God and be obedient. They don't have a Plan B." That statement has rang through my head over and over and over this week.

So many times, I hear God, but I always have a Plan B. . . if God doesn't come through, here's what I'm going to do. For example, if I'm believing God for a financial thing. I say I'm believing God, but in the back of my mind, I know people who have money. . . just in case He doesn't come through -- plan B.

Katianne bought me another Heidi Baker book for Christmas titled Compelled by Love: How to Change the World Through the Simple Power of LOVE IN ACTION. I just tuned the book over and on the back, there is this quote:

"If God is not with us, we do not want to continue. If the Sermon on the Mount is simply impractical, our mission work is hopeless. We have no backup plan. We have nothing but Him."

--- Heidi Baker

So, this year I've resolved to do away with Plan Bs. . . the "what-if" plans.

Bye Bye Bottle & Sleepless Nights!!

This week, I just decided to take the plunge. Since Katianne moved out, everything in our house is different -- different rooms, different places for things, etc. So, I decided it was time for Jaxon's bottle to go bye-bye.

Monday (1/5/09 for scrapbooking purposes), I told Katianne to just offer him his cup and see what he does. He went all day without it!! YAY!! He's been without it ever since!! He hasn't cried for his bottle one time! Now, if he sees it, he wants it until you give him the cup. I'm so glad!! Now, he is actually interested in eating food instead of relying on that bottle!! YAY!

Tuesday night, Jaxon got up in the middle of the night and I rocked him back to sleep. But, once I laid him down, he woke up.

We decided that now was the time for him to learn how to go back to sleep on his own at night. He goes to sleep on his own during his naps and when it's time for bed without a fuss, but in the middle of the night, he was waking up 2 sometimes 3 times a night! That's too many times for a 14 month old -- and for this mommy!

So, Wednesday night, we put him to bed and I just told him that I would see him in the morning. He got up just as he always has -- 1 am -- but I just let him cry it out. It probably only took about 15 minutes of him crying off and on, then he was OUT! Again, 4 am -- as always -- I heard him cry, but this time it was only for a few minutes and he was back asleep. He slept until 8 am!!

Last night, I put him to bed and told him that I would see him in the morning. HE SLEPT ALL NIGHT LONG!!! I would have heard him if he had gotten up, but I didn't hear a peep!!

So, today I had to decided on whether I should go buy one more can of formula to switch him to milk. I decided that since it was such a big can, we would just use what we had left and then do the switch. I've tried before and it really upset his stomach. He's had straight milk this evening, so we'll see what happens!!

I do have to admit that I'm a little sad. . . no more bottles? No more getting up in the middle of the night (when he's well, that is) to just rock him? Gosh. . . my baby's just growing up! I do like the sleeping all night, though! ;)

And. . . thanks to my awesome friend, Francesca, I got a Wii Fit last night!! Oh my gosh! I think I could work out on that thing for 8 hours straight!! Gosh! I love it. . . all except the weighing in and the wii fit age thing. . . but I'm killer at Hula Hooping!! ;)

The start of a new year . . .

January 1st Katianne moved out. She found a cute little duplex in Abilene. It isn't ideal, but it gets her on her own. I learned a lot while she was living with us. I learned how giving we are. I learned how selfish I can be. I learned that my house will fit 6 people, even though it's really cramped. Fitting 6 people in my house isn't ideal. I learned how to relate to a twenty-something girl. I learned that it takes a lot to let a 20-something girl move into my house. I learned that Katianne is human. I learned that you can give advice, but it's up to the other person to take it. Sometimes it's hard when they don't. I learned a little bit of what it will be like to parent a 20-something year old. I can wait for that day to get here. I learned what it would be like to have another girl in the house.

Since Katianne moved out, I feel like my house has doubled in size. She just took up one room, but I guess that is one room out of 3. We have been playing musical rooms this weekend. Payton got the new bed and is finally in his own room. He absolutely loves it -- and it's all clean!! He has a ton of space in his closet!!

Jaxon has moved in with Evan. Evan is actually excited about that. Evan finally gets to be the boss of someone -- those were his words. Even Evan & Jaxon have a ton of space in their closet! We threw away all of the toys except the cars, a few cowboy guns, the blocks, the train set, and the footballs. Gosh! They have so much room and surprisingly, their room is still clean!

My room now looks bare since Jaxon is out of it. But, I don't care. I would rather it look bare than him be in our room! ;) We have been cleaning and organizing and throwing stuff away all weekend!! It feels so nice!! I even found Monica's baby shower invitation!! My goodness!!

Now I'm getting ready to paint my living room, hallway, and kitchen. I scrapbooked all day on Luke's scrapbook so I can get it finished so I can have time to paint my house and really pull it together. It seems so bare -- like we just moved in! So, those are my plans for this year -- or this month at least! ;)