Sometimes I Write

I love this line from “The Pirates Who Don’t Do Anything”. I especially like the Relient K version on the JONAH album. Gotta love Veggie Tales! Seriously now, I’ve been thinking about all the things I haven’t done in my life that I either want to do or need to do.

Watching the Winter Olympics these past two weeks has been incredible. How I would love to be there in Torino cheering on my favorite athletes, and soaking in the sights of beautiful Italy. It’s now on my list of things to do before I die. The thing is, Benny would rather attend the Summer Olympics because you can do more touristy stuff. As much as I like warmer weather, it’s the sports in the winter games that hold my attention the best. I’ve loved having the DVR so I don’t miss my favorite events. We’ve even let Max stay up and watch some with us – a special treat that only comes a few times a year otherwise (birthday, New Years Eve, and a few others). I love the Olympics! Here’s my favorite skater. She’s been my favorite for a few years. Congratulations Irena on winning the bronze! You’re already golden in my book!

Travel the 50 states. It’s something we may do when we retire, or if we have an especially fruitful year in ministry ;). It would be a great homeschooling fieldtrip! My friend Adam’s (he’s the one on the right) brother Luke (on the left) is doing just that right now…staying with a different family in the 50 United States of America. He’s an adventurous soul! He’s blogging about his trek across the country and the people he meets along the way. Check out this guy that is living one of my dreams! Speaking of Boston…

What are your dreams? What is it that you’ve never done, but want to? My list is long and I’m sure I’ll share more in the future.

I am now a Colorado resident. O.K., so I’ve lived here for 10 months…who’s counting? Do you know what my penalty for waiting so long to change my drivers license was? Waiting in line at the DMV for 4 hours this morning! I was planning on returning home after my chiropractor appointment and skipping BSF so I could rest (I’m STILL sick)…but NO…I decided to run by the DMV (I know – stop laughing!) to get my CO license. The waiting line number was 484 when I arrived, and they start over at 1 after 500. 45 minutes after I arrived, the kid sitting next to me decided to leave and he gave me his number – 22. I was holding number 33, so this was a blessing! A HUGE blessing. They finally called my number almost 3 1/2 hours later! If I had kept #33, I’d probably still be there. When I left, the guy sitting behind me was #103…I’m thinking about bringing him lunch tomorrow – I’m sure he’ll still be there. I was REALLY glad that I keep a book in my purse. The irony is that they gave me the same DL# I had before I had moved away. They also MAIL your new license instead of handing the dumb thing to you before you leave. Surely there is a more efficient way to handle these things.

On a positive note, I e-filed our federal taxes today. Yeah Turbo Tax! IF the IRS accepts our return, we should have our refund back in 2 weeks. Yeah Direct Deposit! Filed CO too, but will be doing Kansas manually. If you’re in Kansas and reading this, could you please send me a part-year resident form? Thanks. So I have a question for you. If you get a refund, do you tithe a part of it? Just curious. I don’t think we ever thought about it before taking our money classes. Now we always find someone who needs a little extra help financially and we anonymously bless them with a portion of our refund. God has blessed us, so we bless others.

Totally unrelated to the above topics…I have a secret. It’s a big juicy one and I’m dying to tell everyone I talk to, but I can’t…AAAAAGH! (It doesn’t involve any pregnancies, just in case that’s where your mind went) I told Angi that I wasn’t even going to mention it because it would drive you all crazy waiting to hear what it is…but I can’t help myself. I want to tease certain readers…it’s also blogging security. You’ll want to know what it is, so you’ll keep coming back here until I divulge the goods. I can’t just yet, but I will sometime soon. Only a few people know and they have sworn their undying loyalty and secrecy to me! As sick as I feel today, I am giddy with excitement! It’s going to be worth the surprise for a few of you, and yet some of you may not care at all. Only time will tell…

I just spent a week with my brother Lennie. He had taken a week off work, then his plans were cancelled, so I talked him into coming to Colorado instead of working anyway. Helpful aren’t I? 😉 He flew in Monday morning and flew back out Friday morning. That’s 5 days of inside family jokes, much teasing, and wrestling (not with me, but with Max). I enjoyed cooking for him even though he insists I can burn water (that was when I was 13). That didn’t stop him from having a second helping. I even baked his favorite cookies an hour before he left so he’d have something to torture the other passengers with.

We kept him busy with a trip to the Children’s Museum, eating at Casa Bonita, and the old-school McDonald’s (our family name for it). We watched movies and t.v., dragged him to the gym and Dr. Zack’s, and contemplated a trip to the tattoo shop (didn’t happen). If you’re planning a trip to see the Nowell’s this year, don’t worry – trips to the tattoo shop with our guests is NOT the norm around here. (Unless your name is Angi!) LOL

He went to work with Benny a few days, including going to the pool hall Thursday night where he got his butt kicked by one of our homeless friends – a girl. I’ll be using that against him at a later date. He can probably beat me at pool, but I’ll never tell him that! We had a good time and he got to relax a little for a few days. I love every minute I get to spend with my brother – even when he’s teasing me…and he can be relentless! He so good with my kids, and Petey cried when Lennie left. Not just cried, but threw himself on the floor crying. He woke up this morning asking, “Where’s Uncle Wennie?”

His adventures didn’t end when I dropped him off at the airport. Nope…little did he know what was in store for him just a short time later. As he was going through security, the lady asked him if she could search his carry-on bags. He said, “Sure, search anything you want”. SHE FOUND A KNIFE IN HIS CAMCORDER BAG!!! It has been there so long he had forgotten about it…which means it somehow got through security undetected on his way to Colorado. He said he was way more shocked than she was. After measuring it, she let him mail it home since it was shorter than 3″. He said he could have been in a lot of trouble – it wasn’t a pocket knife, but a tactical knife – he’s a martial arts junkie. Here he is, 6′ something, a BIG guy wearing a black Dry Bones hoodie (with the white skull and crossbones logo on the front) and she finds a tactical knife. I was relieved that it ended so well, but I laughed sooooo hard I almost cried. Is that mean? Not for an older sister who just came through a week of sibling teasery. (I think I made that word up). I can’t wait to see him again! Until then, we’ll chat on the phone several times a week like we always do! Special thanks to Mom for watching Scrappy (his dog) so Lennie could come to CO!

I wish I was as close to my other siblings as Lennie and I are. I’ll have to work on that.

I am a richly blessed woman. Ofcourse you already knew that if you read my last post! 😉 Today I am counting my blessings and there are SOOOO many!

Let me start again with Benny. This week’s BSF lesson was on Genesis 24. You may have read the story yourself. One of the great love stories of the Old Testament. It has probably been the easiest lesson for me yet since I know the story of Isaac and Rebekah so well. You see, Benny proposed to me 14 years ago with this story. He showed up at choir rehearsal one day with a rose. Not too unusual, but he had a look in his eyes that told me something was up. After class, our director moved the piano and left the bench, then called me down to sit on it. Benny got up and began telling the story of Gen. 24, how Abraham’s servant traveled to find Isaac a wife. He talked about the sign the servant asked for and how God answered his prayers when Rebekah came on the scene. (Nice paraphrase, huh?) Long story short, Benny shared a little bit about our relationship, then produced a ring. He got down on one knee and said, “There comes a time in every man’s life when he needs to ask the little question…Niki, Will you water my camels?” Everyone laughed, I cried, along with several of my girlfriends. He is creative and funny, and can always keep me guessing. He is my biggest blessing in life!

Petey went back to Dr. Brian on Tuesday. Many of you have prayed with me and cried with me over this poor little guy’s allergies and what they have done to his body. After a year of chiropractic care and only 3 months of seeing Dr. Brian for allergy desensitization, Pete is free and clear of his food allergies. He tested fine for ALL of them! His 2 year old body is no longer itchy and blotched up with welts. He does have some scarring on his neck that we hope will heal over time, but I am so THRILLED to report that he looks great, and his whole disposition has changed. He’s a happy, goofy little boy and there just aren’t enough words to convey the thankfulness I’m feeling for everyone who has helped us through this valley! Now we have to retrain Max and Zoe to stop policing everyone (including me) when they try to give Petey snacks and food. (What’s in that? Is he allergic? I don’t think he can have that…are you sure he can have that mommy?)

I have had a relationship in my life that has been difficult and pretty toxic to me since I was a child. There have been new struggles thrown in over the past year and I think I even blogged about it once. Anyway, I am finally finding peace about cutting this relationship out of my life. I have always felt an obligation to keep this person in my life – just barely by a thread, but there none the less. I have tried to pursue a positive relationship with this person and gotten no response. It has been a burden and heartache to me not knowing what to do even when everyone else was telling me what they thought I should do. I think I felt obligated (with the help of other family members who played the Christian card on me) because I am a believer and the other person is not. The whole, ” I need to set the example” bit. The more I have sought wise counsel and prayed about this struggle, the more it has been revealed to me that there is no reason at all to keep this person in my life. So I am taking steps to get a little closure on this matter. It is what is best for me, my husband, and my children. I hope everyone else involved will be understanding, but even if they aren’t…I’m o.k. with that. Satan has used this person against me long enough, and I believe God wants more than that for me, and for the other person. I am so thankful for the resolution of this stress in my life, and I pray that God takes a hold of this person and draws them in. I pray He transforms them into something wonderful. I have cried out to God on behalf of this person, and even more for myself and my role in this relationship. What better blessing is there than knowing God hears you and takes the time to stretch and grow you as He answers your prayers?

“GOD, my shepherd! I don’t need a thing. You have bedded me down in lush meadows, you find me quiet pools to drink from. True to your word, you let me catch my breath and send me in the right direction….you revive my drooping head; my cup brims with blessing. Your beauty and love chase after me every day of my life…”

From Psalm 23, The Message

I lean towards protesting Valentine’s Day only because I am married to a romantic man who is insulted that the media and women everywhere feel the need to “help” men out when it comes to gift giving and being romantic – one day a year. It is staged, commercialized, and expected. I get flowers when I least expect it, so I feel sorry for those who get them only on February 14th or their anniversary. Every once in awhile Benny brings home a few Lindor truffles – milk chocolate, my favorite. It’s not something he’s planned for weeks, or rushed out to get me so he won’t be in trouble for not keeping up with the Jones’s. It’s his way of letting me know he loves me and he appreciates all that I do for him and our children. People gave him grief when he gave me a vacuum cleaner one holiday. Evidently some would take that as an insult. However, that’s what I wanted…a new vacuum cleaner….and he delivered! What a guy! He’s been known to bring me a chai freeze on a hot summer day, nuzzle my neck while I’m doing dishes, and watch a chick flick with me without too much complaining. He knows what I like, and he doesn’t wait until the “expected days” of the year to lavish his gifts on me. So, though pink is my favorite color, I look forward to the day I’m not blinded by the red and pink sea of teddy bears as I walk into WalMart and every other store I shop at. Wait, that will be Wednesday, the 15th, when the stores will be transformed into everything green for a few weeks, then it’s pastels and peeps time to shine.

Before you dub me the Valentine scrooge, let me tell you that the kids and I mailed chocolate to the grandparents, and Krispy Kreme valentines to the Aunts, Uncles, and cousins. We’re spreading the love too…I’m a walking contradiction!