Happy New Year!

It's a new year, a fresh start, a brighter future, new adventure and it still feels like any other day! There is a Twilight Zone marathon on so that makes it an even greater day! Paul and I stayed up last night watching it. Those marathons are addicting! We kept saying to ourselves... we'll go to bed after this one last episode.

Yesterday, after 7 straight days in the house, I went out. Paul came home and nursed the kids, I stopped at the office to pick up some things for Family First Sunday School to work on, then I went to Safeway to use my 10$ off coupon on a box of diapers. It was packed. Insane. I can't stores like that. Then of course, I ran into a couple of people from church so I had to stop twice to visit amongst the madness.

Here goes the blah, blah, blah of Rachel's head.... I don't know when the last time, if ever, I spent so many consecutive days in the house. I have a lot of thoughts about that. Here are just a couple. I love to be home, but 2 days is usually tops for me. My innermost fantasy is also my most often thought about "escape route" from the kind of life we live. To live out in the middle of nowhere, with just my family, and never have outside contact with the world. I know the reason for that is because my life is so much less complicated, stressful, and easier when I'm protected in my own home. After 7 days in the house it was wierd for me to go out yesterday and see that the world is just as I left it. Same old staff, same old church people, same old clients.... all with the same old issues and problems. Even with the flu, my life has been so simple the last week. I'm going to miss that but am not able to get around the many Scriptures that point me and my family to the world and not "hidden under a bowl" which, admittedly, I would prefer! The fact of the matter is that the kids and I are home way more than we're not but even a couple of hours with some of the people in our lives can feel like 50 and I have to really discipline my brain not to get sidetracked while I'm in my home! And no whining intended at all.... the other reality is that while we my put our roots down in our home for 3,4,5,or more years, there is always the knowing that we are in any given place for a short while. I try not to think about it, but each Christmas in our home brings us closer to our last one. When I pack up Christmas decorations or anything for that matter, I pack like we're moving. It's just a way of life that is just hard to explain, but God calls us and we choose it! That's why we make such an effort to build a strong marraige, a strong family and strong children. Only time will tell though how everyone turns out!! Of course, I'm almost 33 and still "turning out"!!

I'm hoping to go to Fred Meyer today. I'm thinking everyone's sleeping and/or have hangovers from New Year's Eve so it shouldn't be very crowded. The kids STILL aren't well enough to go out, although they are getting better slowly. I'm trying to get us back in a routine. We'll play some games today, for as long as they can sit up. I think Paul can start reading our Bible time again, but it is so annoying to have to stop to cough. I know I'm terrible, but his coughing drives me crazy, even though I'm sitting there doing it too! It's funny, I just hate annoying noises and his cough is one of them! I know, I'm so mean. That's why I'm definately not in the health profession.

The kids are freaking out that Hannah really outdid herself this time. I better go see the mess.