It worked like a charm. So if you have a squeaky door in your house, go to your pantry and give this a whirl.
After the doctor inspected her cut, he determined he could glue it instead of stitch it. The cut was deep enough that something had to be done, but it wasn't long enough for stitches. It would only take one stitch and then she would have the two dots where the needle went in and since it was on her face, we didn't want to go that route. Thank the Lord! 
She handled it like a trooper and I took her to Old McDonald's, as she calls it, for an ice cream cone and to play on the playground. I truly am so thankful to the Lord that it wasn't any worse. That she didn't catch her eye on the fence when she fell. That it wasn't deeper and bigger that it required stitches. Thank you Lord for your hand of protection on my sweet Sydney Kate.
Brooklyn was the old pro, and told Sydney Kate and their friend Grace everything they could expect at the dance. Punch, cookies, dancing, and colorful balloons were described in detail, although I think Syd only made it to cookies before she got too excited to concentrate.
This is certainly one of those times I’ll cherish. Right now, I’m the coolest guy in their universe (with the possible exception of Alvin Seville). A month or two ago, Brooklyn told me she wanted to marry me when she grows up, so that I can have an old wife and a young wife. When I’m with the girls out in public, I’ll have 50-something guys walk by and with a knowing smile say “Enjoy it now, its not going to last forever!” You know what old dudes? The next one of you who tells me that is going to get a knee in the groin. I know time is fleeting, I know they won’t think I’m this awesome forever, and I know I can’t change that. But I am making sure I do things like this now so I’ll have those memories later. Being a dad is awesome. 
Hubby and I are celebrating Valentine's Day tonight with dinner at a steak house and a movie. I think we're going to see the King's Speech. We've heard it's an awesome movie.
I met Tsh at Blissdom when she signed my book and she was delightful. Go check out her blog at Simple Mom. It's chalked full of great ideas for the family. I highly recommend that you go buy her book. I purchased mine at Borders, it's where I buy all of my books, because I can use a coupon. It retails for $16.99, but I had a 33% coupon, plus another 10% for being a Borders Reward Plus Member which made it a great deal.
Here is why I love the book so much. It's not your average organizational book. Don't get me wrong, it does give step by step process for cleaning and decluttering every room in your house, but she goes much deeper than that. She gets to the heart of living simply. There is a quote in the book by Will Rogers that stopped me in my tracks. It reads:
"Too many people spend money that haven't earned, to buy things they don't want, to impress people they don't like".
Does that hit home for anyone else? It knocked me upside the head I tell ya. I want to share with you something she wrote that really convicted me. Tsh writes,
"When we have more stuff, we usually have less time for relationships with other people. How many times have you wanted to invite another family over for dinner and games, but didn't because of Mt. Laundry on the couch and the food scraps stuck to the kitchen counters? Or did your son recently want to invite a playmate over for an afternoon of Lego building, but instead he needed to suit up for ball practice in between piano lessons and his sister's ballet class?
"Our homes and our calendars are filled to the brim, and someone has to take care of those things. Responsible adults do their best to keep their homes sanitary and to honor their commitments. But it's a bummer when being responsible means being chained to your stuff and your schedules, instead of enjoying relationships in a slower-paced way."
I don't know how many times Brian has said to me, "Let's have so and so over. I can call them and see if they can come by for dinner". This is usually my normal response. "Are you kidding me? Look at this house. It's a disaster." I have missed out on what's really important, relationships with others, because my house is too cluttered with all of the stuff. I also don't want my schedule to "own me". I want to live simply. I want my kids to be kids. I want my family to spend quality time together and not time spent cleaning the house.
I heard a statistic yesterday that said the average woman spends 40% of her day picking up and cleaning the house. There are days where I think, for me anyway, it's more like 80%. Well enough is enough. My girls deserve better than that. They deserve me 80% of the time. So they are going to get their mommy back.
The past 3 days I have gathered almost half of what we own and sorted it into 3 piles. Goodwill, stuff to sell at consignment and another to donate to Room in the Inn (ministry for homeless men). I can't tell you how good it feels to purge. I want to love and care for others instead of loving and caring for "My Stuff".
One last note: Don't forget to pick a deserving person this week to do Operation Project Vase. Link up on Friday to share your story. I will be drawing a winner on March 1st to receive a $50 gift card to Target. Be a blessing to someone this week.
(Tsh did not ask me, nor pay me to endorse her book. She doesn't even know I am writing this review. I am just simply a fan of her book and her message and wanted to pass it along to my readers.)
On a sad note, Brian flew to Indiana to say goodbye to his grandma today. She passed away last Monday at the age of 92. She was an amazing woman. She always seemed to make us laugh. She loved to hear Brooklyn whistle. She couldn't believe a 4 year old could whistle like she did.
Nanny Yi loved to sing and play the piano and she was good at it. I remember the last time she came to our house when she was 90. She got on the baby grand piano and just started playing and singing away. We had our neighbors over, who are producers, and they played Sydney's little drum and we had a little concert going at our house. I am so glad we have that awesome memory to hang on to.
We love you Nanny Yi and you will be deeply missed. So glad you are singing with Jesus tonight.
As we got out of the car, the girls were fighting over who would hold the flowers. I was so afraid they were going to drop them. Mandy opened the door and just smiled and said, "Oh my gosh those are so pretty". She was so excited. She had read my blog and she was secretly hoping I would pick her.
Let me tell you why I picked Mandy. We've known each other for about 11 years or more. We met when she was working publicity for us (when my sisters and I were in the Christian Music) and we became instant friends. We got along great and even became roommates. Although that was short lived, because I met Brian just a few months after she and I had moved in together. Mandy moved out and Brian moved in after our wedding. I was thrilled to be married, but sad that we wouldn't be roommates any longer.
Mandy has always been one of my best friends and someone I go to when things are rough. I know she will love me through it and be a source of encouragement for me. She was by my side at the hospital when I was induced with Jonathan. She even left a meeting early to be with me. She sat and held my hand while I laid in the hospital bed waiting to deliver my son.
She was the one who helped me redecorate my dining room when I needed an outlet for my grief. We talked and emailed each other a few times a day and I can truly say that I could feel a little bit of happiness in my despair. She continues to pray for me and feed me truth when I am feeling hopeless and discouraged. I love you my sweet friend. Thank you for being there for me when I needed you the most. You are a Godsend.
Mandy and her husband are having their first child, a baby girl, due in June. I picked pink in honor of their baby girl.
So now it's your turn. I can't wait to read your stories. I'll be honest. I'm always a little worried when I do a MckLinky because I'm afraid I won't get anyone linking up. So I'll put my pride aside for a moment and turn on the MckLinky. Ready, set, go!
Have a great weekend and stay warm.
