Is that a good or a bad sign?

I’ve been snacking my way through the summer and, unfortunately, the snacks are biting back. I’m up a good 8 or 10 pounds from several months ago. Not happy news or a pretty sight.

On Wednesday a few friends gathered to begin phase one (six weeks) of the Prism diet/plan/Bible study. My eating has been healthy, measured and recorded since then. I’ve been drinking lots of water and even managed to fit in a long walk.

Surely those extra pounds are nearly gone.

Ha! :Snort: Weep!

Okay, so I might have to go through more than one or two of the 6 week phases before I get this weight off. It will all be worth the work and mild hunger attacks.

Or so I keep telling myself.

As I pare down my eating and beef up my veggie intake (sorry, unintentional pun), recording it all as I go, I shudder to think just how many calories I was consuming over the last few months. That big bag of chips from Costco, for example, which I managed to consume nearly all by myself over the week of camp comes to mind.

Hmmm, you think there were a few calories in that “little” bag? Ever wonder why those 100 calorie snack bags seem really small? Yep, it turns out 100 calories (in potato chip counting) is pretty small.

So, I’m back to big salads, hearty vegetable dishes and careful eating. I appreciate the accountability of my Prism group and the knowledge that the woman leading the study has been successful in reaching her goal weight. The daily reading and study time (complete with wonderful, inspiring Bible verses) is encouraging me to tackle the mental as well as the physiological aspect of my food issues.

Meanwhile, I’ll go have some hot tea and skip the chips.

Kathy

Today we celebrated Kathy’s birthday, and also Sarah’s birthday. This year Sarah showed her colors as a birthday ‘player’ — aware that the day is personally special and able to anticipate it, days in advance. On the first of July, she woke up early and tip-toed around the house, turning all the wall calendars to July, giggling happily. She even snuck into the boys’ room as they slept, and turned their calendar forward from June.

Sarah received a number of delightful presents, and was overjoyed to receive each and every one. She is a very satisfying gift recipient, gasping and wide-eyed with wonder almost before she knows what it is.

Kathy has been hinting for quite a while that she would really like to have a set of patio furniture.

“I’d really like a set of patio furniture. Here’s the specific one; I clipped the ad from Fred Meyer (they’re open until 9), and here are your keys,” she hinted. She’s always been a little coy and hard to read about these kind of things.

“Hmmmm. Are you sure we really need it?” My first line of defense is usually to pretend that I didn’t hear her, but I could sense that wouldn’t work in this case. “That’s an awful lot of money … what would Dave Ramsey say?”

Kathy was unimpressed by my attempt to name-drop. “Dave who? So, anyway, wouldn’t a new set of patio furniture be a better use for that money you’ve been hoarding, than for some stupid computer?”

This was the crux of the matter. I earned about $600 recently doing some side work for a friend, and I’ve been, for lack of a better word, hoarding it to buy a new computer. Our newest computer is almost three years old, which is shameful for a person in my line of work. Besides, there are a lot of games I can’t play with my current setup.

“There is no way I’m giving up that new computer! I’ve scrimped and hoarded at least three or four times, and each time, something more important comes up. Not this time!” The children had gathered as I bellowed, admiring my example of selfless sacrifice. Undaunted, I was firm in my resolve: nothing was going to stop me from buying that new computer.

Several weeks later, I stood in the garden department of a Fred Meyer, across town. My stonewalling had produced one effect: the stores near me had all gleefully sold out of the patio furniture Kathy wanted. “Curses!” I groused. With the help of a friendly clerk, I found one remaining set of patio furniture in a store in the next city over. Using a borrowed van, I bought it and thoughtfully stored the roomful of boxes in a friend’s living room. “It’ll be great,” I enthused, ignoring the way the boxed furniture hid the couch. “You’ll hardly even notice its there, har har.” Later, I heard that my friend’s children used the boxes to make a big fort, so maybe it was OK.

This morning I quietly unloaded the seats from the van and retrieved the patio set from my friend’s house under cover of early-morning mist. I must have been rather convincing in my bluster about not buying the furniture, because Kathy seemed pretty surprised. Joshua and I spent a good bit of the day assembling it, but it seems to have been well-appreciated. We lined up the first four chairs as though they were the thrones at Cair Paravel, and there was much squabbling among the children about which seat was King Peter’s, or Lucy’s.

Kathy’s friend Michelle generously took her out for a pedicure and lunch at their favorite Thai restaurant, which rounded out the day nicely.

Later in the day a few of Kathy’s friends came over for a low-key garden party that I had secretly engineered via Evite. I served fruit and cookies, and Joshua officiated as a Viking waiter. We both agreed that his horned helmet lent a certain dignity to the proceedings.

In the evening Kathy made us a delicious steak and potato dinner, and finished decorating a cake for Sarah. A good day was had by all.

Tim
Project 366, Day 198

No, I’m not referring to a Brat Pack film about unrequited love and a forgotten birthday from the early 80’s. Instead, I’m privileged and delighted to celebrate the 16th anniversary of my wedding to the girl of my dreams.

“Daddy, I’m not sure I want to go through with this … “

As we stood in the hallway this afternoon, sneaking a quick smooch, Kathy asked me, “Doesn’t it seem like yesterday, that we were living upstairs from Nancy in our little Stamford apartment?”

It does seem only a few years ago … I remember when it was just the two of us, and we still felt like kids, just pretending to be married people until the real grownups came home and sent us off to our rooms.

Mr. and Mrs. Edgren take their first few steps together …

Time’s relentless current has swept us through the years, and here we are with five children, less energy, a very full and busy life, and just a little more wisdom, than when we started. In all this I have learned one important thing: to give thanks. We have so much to be thankful for, so (as any good parent will agree) I should write a thank-you note.

A Thank-You Note to God

Thank you, dear Jesus, for loving us and for saving us from our sin through your death on the cross. Thank you for adopting us into your family and giving us the Holy Spirit to guide us in joy and righteousness. Thank you for arranging our lives so that we could meet at a time when we were both capable of loving and being loved.

Thank you for protecting us from being too intimate (with others and with each other) before we were married. Thank you for blessing us with good communication skills, and with a good marriage. Thank you for teaching us how to fight gently, and for restraining our speech so we didn’t say things that would hurt each other deeply.

Thank you for giving me the ability to work and earn a good living, and thank you for helping us manage our money. Thank you for blessing us with the courage and desire to raise five children, and for giving us the fertility to conceive them and bring them into the world. Thank you for growing us in maturity and grace, and for helping us to build our faith and our love for you.

Thank you for giving us excellent examples in our parents, of marriages built for the long haul. Thank you for allowing some trouble in our lives, so that we could learn to hope and persevere. Thank you for sixteen great years of life together.

I have some regrets about my life. I wasted some years in high school, fighting spitefully with my parents. I spent nearly a decade getting through college, carelessly losing my scholarship and taking a lot more time to grow up than I should have needed. But I can’t say that I regret any of the years since I found my sweet Kathy — she has filled up my days with fun and joy and purpose and meaning, as we build our family and present it as our offering to our Lord.

They say that if you kiss a girl at the top of this bridge, you’ll be with her forever. Kathy and I took extra care to make sure.

Indeed, candles are a poor metaphor, burning out so quickly and dribbling inedible wax on the cake. Perhaps it would be better to speak of jewels in a crown, one for each year that we have enjoyed, loving and serving each other as unto the Lord. A few months ago we had the chance to honor a couple at our church who had been married some sixty-plus years. As the applause of the congregation washed over the white-haired pair, I quietly resolved, “unless the Lord takes us home, there’s Kathy and I in fifty years.”

These days many think that when marriage gets tough, they are free to walk. Others don’t bother with marriage at all, and some misguided folk even think same-sex relationships should be called ‘marriages’. Kathy and I place a high value on marriage in the sight of God, between a man and a woman, and we continue to honor our vow from that day, sixteen years ago: ‘Til death do us part. My heart still skips a beat when I look at her sometimes … not because she’s still a 21-year-old hottie, but because our love and trust and investment in each other has grown and grown over these years.

Happy Anniversary, Beloved.

Today is the first day of our new budget!! Weaning off credit, paying down debt, and, gasp, saving money.

April Fools Day obviously suits us perfectly as the start of something so revolutionary and life changing.

And, in keeping with His great mercy, the Lord has already blessed our efforts. I ran into a friend last week whose daughter is studying at the Redken Hair Academy.

Time to cut Rachel’s hair.

I cut all the boys’ hair in the family so we save money in that department (thankfully none of them, including Tim, are particular about their hair). The girls, however, are a different story. The expectations for us to look beautiful are higher. It’s a burden we’re willing to bear, with grace of course. Rachel and Sarah both have long hair and only need the occasional trim. I tend to splurge on the rare, but expensive, cut and color.

Have I mentioned recently how lovely it is to have daughters?

What are the beauty academy prices, you ask? Well, let me share with you:

Hair Cuts - $9
Children’s Cuts - $5
Highlights - $29

Those fees are amazing!! I immediately made an appointment for both Rachel and myself. I figured if the haircut turned out well, I could go back for highlights.

Nothing like a fresh cut to improve the day.

Rachel and I were tickled with the ambiance and setting of the hair institute. The academy was professional and tasteful in decor and atmosphere. It felt more like a busy, fashionable salon than a school. Krista did a beautiful job. She was confident and friendly, taking care to listen to our requests and talk through different hair style possibilities. At each step an instructor came by to monitor and approve the work. Rachel and I were thrilled with our extremely affordable and gorgeous new looks. Krista even gave us a tip on the styling brush she used - $7 at Sally Beauty Supplies.

Rachel’s new style is fresh and funky.

Redken Professional Academy definitely works for us! Stop by Rocks in My Dryer for other links, tips and ideas.

Kathy
Project 366 - Day 92

When the Lord works in your life to refine you, do you fight, flee or listen?

I am a cheerful, even-tempered person, for the most part, but this evening I found myself weeping.

Twice.

God is speaking to me about some issues of self-control and discipline in my life. I can feel Him pruning away the dry, shriveled branches.

It hurts. Stings. Wrenches.

Even though I know the end result is fresh growth and new blossoms, I still find myself clinging to those withered, unattractive twigs.

Rachel and I enjoyed the sunshine this afternoon.

Today a friend listened to me share my struggles in the areas of finances, homeschooling and healthy food/exercise habits. Just as I was asking for prayer to be faithful, she interrupted to point out that all of those battles lead back to a lack of self-control.

“You can’t treat the symptoms when there is an underlying, root cause that needs addressing,” she said and from there we began a quick Biblical word study on the topics of “self-discipline” and “self-control.”

It wasn’t pleasant. My heart was hurt as I looked in the face of some of my shortcomings and thought about my many failures. I was weary at the thought of all the effort involved in CHANGING a core weakness.

At the end of our visit, my friend gently touched her Bible and said she would be earnestly praying for me from Colossians 1.

“…and asking God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding. And we pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience…” Colossians 1:9-11

Through the fire, amidst the tears, never leaving me, the Lord is there by my side. When I am weak, I can lean on Him. In my ugliness and failure, His love is still true and constant.

Kathy