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Let it be known: There's NO relaxing at the beach when three children are in tow. But they had fun.

Funny Farm

Ten Things to Do on Spring Break

#1 -- Eat Krispy Kreme doughnuts (while wearing sunglasses)

 

 

#2 -- Go to the beach

 

 

#3 -- Visit the pier

 

 

#4 -- Eat seafood

 

 

#5 -- Swim in the pool

 

 

#6 -- Stick your head in a shark's mouth

 

 

#7 -- Play basketball at The Track (and beat the high score)

 

 

#8 -- Build a sandcastle

 

 

#9 -- Wonder at the vastness of the horizon

 

 

#10 -- Go fishing

 

For the Love of Chicken

During a phone chat with my mom yesterday, she mentioned she had seen an episode of House Hunters that was filmed in Houston. She asked if the traffic was as bad as they portrayed it. The question took my mind right back to that fateful day ...

I had seen commercials for Raising Cane's, and it looked GOOD. I guess I'm a sucker for boxed meals (surprise!). The description of the chicken fingers, fries, coleslaw, famous sauce, Texas toast and sweet tea was irresistible.

 

For whatever reason, I decided that Friday would be the day. Not knowing the area very well, I scanned the restaurant's website for a location near me, and I chose the one on the only street I was familiar with: Westheimer.

I knew traffic would get worse the later I went, so I packed the kids in the car at 4:15, hoping to beat rush hour. Yes, the restaurant was 8 miles away, but it didn't seem that far. Besides, I knew the route, AND I didn't have to get on the interstate to get there.

Apparently people leave early on Fridays because cars were already bumper to bumper. We inched our way past the Galleria - arguably the worst part of the trip - and drove and drove and drove. Whining from the backseat was nearing a crescendo, and I was beginning to regret letting my taste buds talk me into this torture.

Forty-five minutes after leaving home, we pulled into the drive-thru. The fact that we weren't going inside to eat made Abby and William even more upset. Can't say I blame them; I wanted to get out, too. I explained that we needed to get it to go so that we could meet daddy at home and eat together. Unfortunately, the rationale fell on deaf ears.

The glorious smell of the food made me dread the long drive home. I couldn't stand the thought of driving back the way we came. I pulled out the GPS and thought I'd give ol' TomTom another shot (the places this thing has taken me deserves its own blog).

The route had me getting on the highway, not before driving down a street where Spanish and Vietnamese stores dotted the landscape. Oh, and the panhandlers added to the ambiance.

I turned left, thinking I was going to be getting on the highway but was dismayed when I was only riding next to it on some sort of three-lane service road. I thought I had made a mistake, somehow missing the entrance ramp. I turned down the radio and told the kids to be quiet.

Finally, I made it onto the highway. All eight lanes of it, all full of cars in a hurry to get who knows where. I just wanted to get home. Safely. The thought of eating wasn't appealing anymore.

While not the road I drove on, this is certainly indicative of the type of road I was on.

I then managed to get in the correct lane to merge onto the interstate. Again, more speeding cars. More white-knuckled driving.

Lacking an appetite, I pulled into our garage only 20 minutes after leaving Cane's. I found I could make tears though. Tears of joy.

Wouldn't you know the food was great. Abby said, "Mama! Look how tender these are! It's wonderful!"

After detailing my trip to Chip, I was told not to go outside a 3-mile radius of our home.

Thanks, dear. That's one rule I don't mind following.

Except when it comes to chicken fingers. I've suddenly got a monster craving ...

Our Megachurch Experience

Our first Sunday in Houston we weren't sure where we should attend church. We had actually decided to visit a small church near our home, but when we couldn't find a parking spot, we headed toward Lakewood Church, home of Joel and Victoria Osteen's ministry.

Wow. The enormity of what we were embarking on hit us as we entered a huge parking garage where we were directed by parking attendants into a spot. Once out of the car, we were swallowed by a swarm of people. We thought it wise to follow the crowd, which led us up a two-story ramp, across a street that was blocked from traffic, and into a massive building. With people rushing all different directions, we weren't quite sure where to find the kids' classes.

But we found them. And I'm not kidding when I say we walked forever between the kids' wings - yes, I said wings. It was staggering to see how many staff people they had working and how many families they could accommodate.

We took the kids' ID stickers, rejoined the stream of people, and headed into the "sanctuary" where lively, upbeat [and really loud!] music greeted us.

Shock. That's all I can say. Something about the enormity of the - OK, let's just call it what it is - arena made me chuckle. In fact, I laughed until we found empty seats, which we found after climbing stairs and winding in and out of rows.

Once settled, I gathered myself and surveyed the crowd. People of all ages, races, nationalities, and incomes were worshipping together. Seeing a sea of people with their hands outstretched to heaven, praising God was pretty awesome. I could hardly enjoy singing along with them - I was in awe.

 

 

A few people, including Victoria, spoke, they "passed the plate," we sang songs, and then Joel got up to preach. Now, I certainly can't be critical of Joel, and I certainly can't claim to know him or his heart, so I'm only commenting on what I took away from the message.

 

It was a message of hope. Been through bad times? Don't worry! God isn't finished yet.

 

Great message. But it left me empty. We read one verse from the Bible. There was no life application. It all seemed like a big motivational speech. That's it.

 

I found this commentary a little while ago, and I think it succinctly explains the experience:

 

"Topping the number one spot is Joel Osteen’s Lakewood Church in Houston, Texas with 47,000 people attending ... Services are held in a former basketball stadium, and televised broadcasts of the services are beamed around the world. His website provides a good idea of what life is like at Lakewood Church. If you have ever read his books or listened to his sermons, there is an amazing commonality to all them. One sermon pretty much sounds like another sermon. One article or book pretty much seems like something you have read before. And what is that message? The gist of all that seems to come forth from this church is about how we can succeed, how we can prosper, how we can feel good about ourselves, how we can have better relationships, how we can have inner peace, how we can make it in this world. It is pretty much a me-centred, feel-good message. With all due respect, the message of Lakewood Church is really not all that much different from a lot of other popular writers and self-help movements."

- excerpt from CultureWatch, Bill Muehlenberg's commentary

 

No mention of discipleship. No mention of what being godly looks like. No mention of sin. Only feel-good stuff.

 

There was even a point when Joel told a joke, but he messed up the first part. He laughed and said, "Don't worry. I know how to edit!" The crowd laughed. And he re-started the joke, for the TV audience's sake, of course. It was a little off-putting, as it seemed a bit fake and rehearsed.

 

I don't know.

 

It just wasn't for me. 

Here's Looking at Zoo

Our zoo membership has paid for itself ... We've visited four times already!

The Ankole cattle are our favorite.

We were fortunate enough to find a tame cheetah for this great photo op.

Houston, Here We Are!

I've enjoyed our time in Houston so far. Abby is in school, Maddie is crawling, William is potty trained (!!!), and I'm enjoying being a stay-at-home mommy. The temperature is amazing - it's been 90-plus degrees every day we've been here. Seems unusual to us, but we aren't complaining. We've used the pool a few times, and we are finding our way around the city just fine. Kinda feels like an extended vacation, for me at least. We are blessed to be here.

Sweet Home Alabama

During our tight three-day move to Houston, our plan was to leave Saturday night, drive to Erie, get up, and drive to Montgomery, arriving late Sunday night.

We didn't quite make it to Montgomery on Sunday. And I'm glad we didn't. Our delay actually put us there Monday around noon, which allowed my family to visit with us before getting back on the road.

Gaga, Mema and the Kids

Aunt Amber and Maddie

William and Gaga

Grandpa and the Kids

 

 

* Not shown: We also enjoyed the company of Granny, Papa, Uncle Jay, and Aunt Lauren. We missed you, Nana!

Marineland

This beluga whale played peek-a-boo with Abby for several minutes.

It was HOT.

 

Chip and Abby enjoyed a few rides.

Ten Years to Remember

My how time has passed. Chip and I celebrated our 10th anniversary on August 2, and we thought it'd be fun to take a little trip. And why not take the kids with us, right?

Some of our favorite trips (early in our marriage) were the ones where we packed the car and headed in a particular direction, not knowing where we'd wind up. Those carefree traveling days are a little trickier with three children in tow, but we proved it can still be done.

As of that Saturday morning, we weren't sure if we would go to the Adirondacks or the Poconos. En route, we chose the Poconos.

The kids settled quickly in their seats, content with their movie selection, Chip snoozed, and I smiled at the ease in which our trip was progressing.

My premature celebration came to an end, however, about three hours into our six-hour voyage.

So we stopped in Auburn, NY.

Turns out there are quite a few things to do in Auburn. We found a hotel that had just opened - quite literally - and we were excited to be the first to christen our room.

And boy did we christen it.

Sunday morning we got up, and I ran downstairs to grab some breakfast and bring it back up. The kids were quick to spill the chocolate milk on the white duvet. When we left the room to go explore the town, Chip covered the stain with a towel.

Of course the cleaning crew was quick to see the ginormous dairy spot, and they treated us to a new duvet while we were out.

The kids were wonderful that day. They were very well behaved at the Chinese buffet. They were even pleasant on our short hike to see a waterfall. And we all had a blast at the Sciencenter.

Back at the hotel we discovered we had picked up a nail in our rear tire. We couldn't do anything about it that evening, so we focused on making the most of the rest of our time together.

The kids went swimming, and then famished, we returned to the room to order room service. After Chip hung up the phone, William started playing in the closet. Tired of the noise he was making, I told him to go sit on the bed.

He took one step and fell flat on his face. I picked him up and blood started gushing from his forehead. All I could think was, "We've got to get him to the hospital, but we have a flat tire!"

The ever-cool-under-pressure husband I was blessed with calmly announced he would go get our first aid kit from the car. I told him to leave the door ajar so that if room service came, they could come on in; I was a bit busy applying pressure to William's head.

While I waited for Chip - and while trying not to FREAK out - I couldn't help but snicker a little bit as I surveyed the room: the white duvet we were so worried about earlier in the day was now covered in blood, there were blood-stained towels on the floor near me, and I, of course, had blood on me, too.

Of course the food came while I was tending to William. I was afraid the poor girl would drop the food once she came in. Luckily she was concentrating too hard on not dropping the heavy tray to notice what she was walking in on.

Chip returned and was able to use the adhesive end of a Band-Aid to tape William's head together. I'll spare any extra details, but it's worth noting that when we made it back to Buffalo, his head needed more attention. Oh, and he wound up re-injuring it two days later. 

I've said it before: I don't know how little boys ever make it to manhood. Mercy.

As for the tire, we were able to get it replaced the next day.

Here are a few pictures we snapped along the way:

Hay, Man

Chip, the kids and I rode up to Lewiston tonight to eat at a place called The Silo. It's been featured on Man vs. Food, in particular the "Haystack" sandwich, which is steak and cheese smothered with hash browns. Chip got one (a small one) and said it was pretty good. The view was better, though, and we enjoyed our walk along the water. Good times.

Abby is SO excited ... and she really loves to pose.

Chip's Haystack

Did I mention she likes to pose?

The Silo in the background

http://www.buffalonews.com/incoming/article105946.ece