I'm A Survivor

I like Reba. Always have. Maybe it's just the red hair but I've liked her music and I like her TV show. I'm particularly fond of the character Van. He is a simple-minded goon -I can relate. Anyway, the point of all this was that we survived the week without Tim.

For those who didn't know, my hubby was away on a pastor's retreat from Sunday until Thursday afternoon. It was a bit traumatic considering we've been in a new house for only a week and were all getting acquainted with the new neighborhood and new sights and sounds. But we did it and it wasn't so bad...long, very long...but not bad. Lots of people were praying for us and it was obvious. Tim came home on Thursday and we were so glad to see him. I like him. A lot.

We are still putting the finishing touches on the new house and will be for the next year or so it seems. Mamoune's room got a paint job yesterday and all that's left are the hallways/laundry room. Some of the curtains are up, some have been made (thanks Deb Paradis) but are not hung and some are yet to be made (uh, Deb? =))

The school bus drops kids off right at the corner of our house and each day around 3:30 the craziness begins. Children of all shapes and sizes converge on our yard. It's great and challenging at the same time. So far, the regulars are Jayla, Zion, Trajin, Jivan, Cameron, Rakeem, Markeif, and John. I saved the hardest name for last. ha! It's been fun but we've had to lay down some ground rules to keep the chaos down. Rule #1 -nobody plays IN the house unless I meet their parent/guardian first. I've met two moms so far.

One of the best (recurring) moments is when a newcomer arrives and gets a first look at us. Adults are so well behaved and careful but kids, they just say what they think. "That's your mama?" "That's your daddy?" My kids hear this question almost daily. They don't seem phased by it. One little boy felt it was necessary to point out to us that "you don't look nuttin' like your kids". We were taken aback. Seriously? Do you guys think that, too? Well, unfortunately we haven't gotten around to hanging mirrors in the house so we can't confirm this information. ;-)