flighty

you know those couples that have been married 30 years and say,

   "we learn something new about each other every day!"

well, I think that's just weird...do you guys not talk or something...

or am I the weird one?

because I feel like I know my husband even though we've only been together 16 years (married 14)...

there are those times, like twice a year that I learn something new,
     like get brand new information
         either about his likes or dislikes
         maybe his family
         his childhood
         his personality...

but I know him...
we talk...
we like each other
and interact with each other
and I KNOW him...

I don't want to learn new things about him everyday...
    I would feel like I didn't know him...
          that we don't communicate with each other...

photo by Betsey Walton Photography

I get what they're saying...

I think...

that being married, even for decades...

     you don't know EVERYTHING about the other person...

but really,
learning something new about a person everyday for 30 years?

I did the math...that's 10,950 new things 

     (and that's not adding extra days for those leap years!

...that's a lot of stuff to NOT know about your spouse...

I guess you have to factor in things like a person changing...

I have watched my husband change and his likes, dislikes, interests, & hobbies have evolved over the past 16 years, but is that learning something new or is that growing with someone?...

anyways...

it happened this past weekend...

I learned something BRAND-SPANKIN'-NEW about my husband...

     and also a little something about myself...

you know the ol' Flight or Fight thing...

in a crisis/emergency situation your brain does one of two things...

it either Flights (gets the heck out of dodge) 

or Fights...

I am a Flight...drop everything, nothing needs to be saved except my family...and run, drive, whatever mode of transportation available...flight, flight, flight!!!!

Beau is a Fight...drop everything, and fight!  fight for my family, fight for strangers, fight for right!

This can make for a very uncomfortable marriage 'conversations' during said crisis....

oh, and I also learned that I am non-rational, highly emotional, pretty much a nut-case, in crisis situations...like our neighborhood being on fire!...not the best thing for a mom to be...

I would like to say that in the moment I appreciated my husband's fight ...

   I did not...
it pretty much added to my nut-case state of mind.
I needed to flight.
I had my baby (my other baby was with a friend) and I NEEDED my baby's daddy to get in the flight mode and get the heck out of dodge...

I now know that my husband chose the right option,
stay and fight...
protect his family, 
help neighbors, 
help strangers,
take pictures...(yes, take pictures during crisis to remember later)

I also know without a shadow of a doubt that if he thought for one second that the crisis was too dangerous he would chose flight, because he is rational, calm, able to use his reasoning skills in crisis situations...unlike his flighty wife...

As I watched our neighbors all figure out their flight or fight I saw something interesting...
The a majority of those choosing flight were women...
wives & mothers...
and those choosing fight were men...
husbands, fathers, a teenage son that saved his house and potentially many others including ours!

I wonder if this has something to do with being the provider or the nester
(yes I know that's not a word!)...
Beau was protecting...
I was needing to get all my chicks into a safer nest than our current one!

So, I guess that I might not have learned something new about Beau everyday of our 14 year marriage, but I did learn something new this year!...
I learned that I am so glad he is a fighter and not flighty.
I am glad that during a crisis I can look at him and he will make all rational, sane decisions that need to be made for our family....
because I sure as heck can't!

do you know your reaction...are you flight or fight?

and/or have you learned something new about your spouse after years of marriage?

wake up God, our neighborhood is ON fire!

so, our neighborhood caught on fire this past Saturday.
actually it was the 'green belt'/canyon behind our neighborhood that burned...
it was one of the craziest experiences of my life....

It was Saturday afternoon and I was on the computer in our home 'office',
Beau and Wilson were also in the office, Wilson watching a movie and Beau sleeping soundly on the futon.
Madison was not home...she was swimming with a friend....

I heard a loud airplane overhead...
it sounded loud, big, and really low...
we have a small airport not too far from our house,
so we hear plans overhead... but small plans
so I began thinking...that was big and really low for the airport....
seconds latter I smell smoke...
why do I smell smoke?
I get up, look out front to the street...
it is smoky and eerily quiet...
I went to the back and our yard was filled with smoke, I couldn't see our back fence...

I yelled for Beau and Wilson...told them we were leaving, the neighborhood was on fire!

we jumped in the van (both Beau and Wilson with no shoes)...

Beau wakes up fully at this point and decides we need to know what is actually happening...

he runs out back, sees trees on fire and decides we're going to stay and fight the fire.

By this time the eerily quiet scene of our street, from moments before, has turned into chaos...

people running down the street carrying belongings, 

dogs running, 

kids crying, 

fire trucks, 

firemen, 

reporters, 

neighbors and strangers...

after some 'discuss-ments' Beau and I decide to stay and try to fight the fire...
We get Wilson out of the car and have him help us with hoses and stuff in the back yard...

we open up our gates...
now our backyard is like the street...
firemen...
reporter/cameraman...
strangers...
neighbors...

and then Beau tells me to call Steve..

Steve is our boss...

he's our Senior Pastor...

& most importantly he's a great friend...

so, I call & not-so-rationally tell him our neighborhood is burning down and to pray!

he does...and he sends out the request on our church email prayer chain ...

up to this point...the trees in our neighbors back yard were engulfed in flames...
the fire was feet away from our other neighbors fence...
the wind is blowing up the canyon towards all the houses...

the fire stopped moving forward...

against all reason...

against wind and dry grasses...

the fire stopped moving forward... 

the neighbors teenage son was fighting the fires with all the neighbors hoses...

the firemen have shown up...

but really...

the fire should have burned more...
houses REALLY should be burning...
...the prayer went out...and the fire stopped moving towards all the homes...
the bombers where dropping flame retardant
and helicopters were dropping water

the firemen were everywhere...
they saved many homes that day...

but God had a huge hand in the direction that the fire didn't take...

seriously...the fire came up to the neighbors stacked firewood...but did not burn it!

below is a bird's eye view of our neighborhood and the 'green belt' behind us...

(our house is the red X in the middle)...

the black is the approximate path of the fire...

it's my lovely paintshop job...so, it's not an actual picture of the fire damage...but you get the idea...

do you see ALL of the houses that the fire didn't burn...

did NOT touch...

60+ homes were threatened by this fire...

and NOT one was burned!...not one house was burned... 

don't worry...I didn't take this during the chaos...

when things had calmed down...these two firemen were just casually walking down the block back to their truck..I asked for a picture with Wilson...

two of the many many blistered oak leaves that litter our lawns now (both front and back)...

we are keeping these as a reminder of Saturday...

a reminder that in chaos we need to stop and seek God first...

ironically...or maybe not so much

Steve preached about "Kingdom Challenges" on Sunday...

Mark 4:35-41

where Jesus & His disciples are in the boat at night and a storm comes up...

Jesus is sleeping and the disciples are freaking out...

only to wake up Jesus...not to ask for help...

but to tell Him the boat is going down...that they are all going to drown...

Jesus stopped the storm with his words...

He then looked at the disciples and said, 

    “Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?”

...

hmmm...I was in that boat on Saturday...

I was in a sinking boat and Jesus was sleeping in the back...and rather than wake Him up and ask for his help...

I FREAKED OUT...

and even when I did 'wake Him up'...rather than say, 

"God, you can stop this fire"...

I said..."wake up God, our neighborhood is ON fire!"

God knew there was a fire...and...

God stopped that fire!

it's the little things :: quite time & my kids

it's the little things...

this is my week and the little things {clockwise}

{my garden...I spend quite time almost every morning weeding and watering my little plots of dirt..

{quite time with God... "He is my Rock; his work is perfect.
                                         Everything he does is just and fair.
                                   He is a faithful God who does no wrong;
                                          how just and upright He is!"
                                                 Deuteronomy 32:4   

{my kids...
        *they shared a room for almost 6 years and still want to be together...they get to sleep together one night a week during the summer...I cherish this because I'm pretty sure this won't last much longer!

       *7-11 day and free 7.11 oz slurpees...talk about little things

       *my posers...I heart these two!

beating the heat

Redding, California is HOT...

it's sort, kinda known for being HOT....

(although it's a dry heat...if Redding had humidity it would be inhospitable and would have a population of 2!)

I really don't mind the heat...

it's just a fact that you need to be willing to live with if you choose to live in Redding...

which we do!

This is the thing...everything in Redding has AC. 

blog note:  I say that, knowing that we lived almost 6 years in our fixer-upper sans AC...

we had a swap-cooler...

or an evaporative coolers, as those in denial call it...

which takes our lovely dry heat and in turns makes it humid...classy!

anyways...

most normal sane humans that live in Redding have AC...

no cars are sold in Redding without AC...

it's not an extra...

it just IS...cars have AC...

side note 2:  we bought a brand new car back in 2000 and while looking at the extra packages we said, 

"Oh, yeah make sure it has AC!" 

the sales guy looked at us and said, 

"Um, we can't sell cars in Redding without AC!  it's not considered an extra but a must have!"

okay...back to our regularly schedule blog...

about it being HOT and getting the HECK out of Hades!

the forecast for Monday was HOTx10...108+

which is pretty normal for July in Redding 

(as previously stated...

that is why/how Redding is known for being HOT)

so, to beat the heat, the kids, some friends and I packed up and headed for the snow!

yep...we went and played in the snow in July!

something that I've done a few times...but not nearly enough..

pack up the car...

pack lunch and plenty of water... 

and drive (usually...always...without the husband!)

have a minor goal in mind, but be flexible...

our goals...

1.  get out of the heat

2.  hopefully, possibly see/play in snow...

then go...

be spontaneous...

this is the fun part...

drive...see something pretty..

neat...

weird..

interesting...

stop the car...enjoy...

....look kids, it a Sound-of-Music mountain meadow....

trying to get a Sound of Music picture
look really really hard and see the teeny tiny pink spot to the right...
yeah, that's one of our kids!

our closest Sound of Music shot!

we spent about 30-40 minutes
(20 of that crossing the colder than ice creek to get to said Sound-of-Music mountain meadow)
enjoying the beautiful meadow

hey, kids...
look a patch of snow across the street from our meadow...
enjoy!

love the contrast of green field below the snow!

this snow is fun and all...but it's sort-of-kind-of a snow cliff...if the kids take a step or two back they will plunge to their deaths...or at least break a bone or two!

girl getting tagged by a snowball

seriously...
how many times have you had a snowball fight in July!

it's snowing in July...or maybe we just threw snow up in the air

okay, so this is great snow and all...but it's not fun/easy to play in...it's a snow cliff...so lets pack up and find what we set out to find...enough, safe, snow to play in!

hey, look it's a snow tunnel...so what if it's in a parking lot...
it's a SNOW TUNNEL...in JULY....
stop the car...get out and enjoy!

blog note #3...
try not to look too closely at the snow...it's snow in July...
so, this is not pristine white snow...
it's actually old dirty snow...
but, just don't think about it...
and make it VERY clear that there will be absolutely zero eating of any snow! 

okay, so this is fun and all...
but it's a parking lot...
so, lets pack up and find a better place to play!
eventually...
we reach our ultimate goal...
an area with enough snow...
that's not on the edge of a cliff...
or in a parking lot...
and let the kids play...

 midget July snowman!

Get some posed pictures at the ice cold Lake Helen....

Pack up and head home!

*special note...

when heading to the snow...even if it's July...

it would be wise to pack snow/rain boots...

your kids may or may not suggest this to you before you leave for said snow trip, and you may or may not think, "it's JULY and we don't need that"...

it would also be wise to bring mittens...

possibly also something that your kids may or may not have suggested that you bring...

and you may or may not think it's necessary because it's JULY...

trust me, bring the mittens!

so, your kids may or may not have the chance to say, "Told you so, mom!"

also good things to pack for a snow trip in July:
*flip flops 

*towel

*bug spray...snow and mosquitoes don't compute in my head, but swampy muddy areas around melting snow drifts and 75 degrees is the perfect environment for mosquitoes...and since there are little to no humans in these areas you will be eaten alive by them!

Go out and embrace the spontaneous trips!  Pack up the kids, invite some friends...and pack all the things that your kids may think you'll need!

and take pictures!

These are memories that you and your kids will cherish...

so don't NOT go because your husband/wife might not want to go or have to work

don't NOT go because friends can't come

don't NOT go because you have laundry to fold

this was an amazing day...it was in the high 70...when back in Redding it was 108+
the kids, our friends and I all had a great time!

just go...and embrace the spontaneous trip...

don't have any mountain snow anywhere nearby (we drove an hour and half to reach snow), drive to the lake, a waterfall, the beach, a local pick-your-own produce farm...etc...

what are some spontaneous trips that you've taken...or wanted to take?

Public Service Announcement

your July PSA...brought to you by music...

yep, this "DUH-moment' PSA is brought to you by music....

blog side note...
I'm NOT a music person.  It's not that I don't like music...
or don't appreciate music...
or don't enjoy music...I do enjoy my share of music...
I even have a favorite band or 2...
it's just...I'm not a music person.

I know weird...

random fact...I owned zero (0) cd's (that's the way we listened to music in the 90's) when Beau and I started dating...still had zero when we got married...and today...I have zero cd's....

in 21st century vocab...it's like not having an itunes account...which...I do not have!
.....

okay...
end blog side note!

This PSA is about music!
I feel it's my duty to inform you all that working out with music is WAY better...
but guess what...you already knew that!

99% of the time I run without music...
1.  I just don't think about it
2.  running is my quiet time...just have silence...nothing...and I love it....
3.  I just don't think about it...because as noted earlier...I'm not a music person....


well...I'm also not a great runner...
I'm a fair-weather runner...
what does that mean...
well, I don't like to run in the cold and really not in the wet & cold (so Nov-March is out) 
and I don't like to run in the heat (so June-Sep is out)...
and I don't like to run on a treadmill...
so I get my running in from April-May...and October....


anyways...today I decided to run while the kids were at swim team
(I'm at the Y...I should be doing something RIGHT!)...
I have been trying to do something while I'm there...
but I do hate the treadmill...
and not so in love with the stationary bike...
and yes, I know...I'm a whiner!

anyways...I borrowed the girl child's pink headphones...
and asked Beau how am supposed to get music to come out of my smart phone...
and then...this crazy thing happened...
I ran better...the treadmill wasn't so stupid today...
I ran my first 11 min mile in over a year!... 
     (told you I was a not-so-great runner)
all because I was listening to some tunes while I was running...
crazy...

look how happy she is...it's because of the music!

music makes running easier....
and I'm the last one to figure this out...
because while I was running and thinking,
     "wow, this is like magic or something, I feel great!"
...I looked around the room...and everyone...
I MEAN EVERYONE had head phones on!...
even the 70+ lady reading her Kindle had headphones on!

I think I may have been the ONLY one in the world not running with music...
but just in case there is one other person out there...
and they happen to be reading my blog...
FYI music makes it better!!!!