I STAND CORRECTED!

The Chefs, I mean the Chiefs, pulled one out today! And it was a good, enjoyable game. So I suppose I should work on not being a fair-weather fan, huh? But then again, it was snowy and cold today ... does that even make sense?

We watched part of the game at Christa's, and Callie Anne was in rare form. She is 15 months now, and her only two words are "esssssssss" (Yes) and "ehhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh" (everything else, usually at a VERY high volume). In her defense, she does sign quite a few things, and she most definitely communicates ... just not in ways that resemble speech as we know it. Anyway, her greeting to me today was the loud "EHHHHHHH", two steps backwards, and a vicious (and quite accurate) javelin-like throwing of a hard plastic toy at me. The tricky thing about her is that she is so darn cute that you assume she's SWEET, and as it turns out those two things do not necessarily go hand in hand.

Watch tomorrow for the "It's Not Me! Monday" post ... that was too much fun last week!

KU! Yay!!

KU Hall of Athletics

What a surprisingly awesome border-war game today against Missouri - it was a nail biter right down to the end but we pulled it out! Rock-chalk-Jayhawk GO KU! It got so exciting at the end I got all sweaty and had to take off my outer sweatshirt and my slippers! :)

And then there's the Chiefs ... boo hiss. I know, I know, it's a rebuilding year. Whatever.

I've been busy today. Not really intentionally, but it has turned out to be productive in a kingdom kind of a way (I hope!). I worked on fine-tuning/debriefing from the retreat last weekend - it's amazing how it is going to change every single time, I can just tell. God knows better than to let us rest on OUR ability, OUR research, OUR knowledge about these subjects, He will see to it that the curve balls keep coming.

Greg took me out to lunch - Winstead's, one of our favorite places to get "sliders." Haven't been there in a while! We talked, and talked, and talked ... you'd think with no kids at home we would do that more but it somehow doesn't work that way! Anyway, we talked a lot about what WOMEN need from marriage, I asked him a lot of questions. He has been very involved in all my research on what men need; suddenly today I was curious to know what he perceives that women need most. I have to give him props - he got it mostly right, even blindsided by the questions. He is a very perceptive man and knows me well. It was a neat conversation all the way around.

Later this afternoon I spent a long time talking (IM'ing actually) "around the block" with a new sweet friend asking me about a battleground in her life ... I kept firing questions at her, trying to get a full picture of what she was dealing with, before giving an opinion, and eventually she answered her own question! It was a cool thing to be used in such an unobtrusive (for me) way ... usually I'm just, "OK, here's what you do. Number 1: blah blah blah. Number 2: yada yada yada ..." and so forth. But because I didn't have full info I just kept asking questions, and I didn't really get very far into the "OK here's what I would do" - well maybe just a little :) but she was already there. The POINT is it was really neat to see God work through me in a completely different way than I'm used to, and in the process really start to bond deeply with this sister.

My grandkiddos are home - I haven't seen them yet but I've missed them! Apparently Callie Anne "discovered her scream" on the three-hour drive home from Lincoln - I expect that means she figured out it's fun to scream for no reason, no pain, no discomfort, hunger, poop, nothing like that, just the sound of her voice gave her pleasure. Wow. Sorry I missed that ride.

I did talk to Brandon briefly today on facebook. Even though some of his team members have posted, he hasn't yet, and when I asked him what he could tell me about where he'd been and what he'd been doing he said he didn't feel comfortable talking about it until he was "off the continent." What little he did tell me and that I've read from the other team members' blogs makes me glad I didn't know where he was or what he was doing! He's supposed to leave for Kenya tomorrow for three days of debriefing, so I'm hoping for a good blog post or a long email that I can share at that point. He also said that there is no electricity where he is going in Kenya, but he thinks there might be a small town nearby with internet access. So we may or may not hear much from him again this next month. Please keep praying for him! For those of you that have asked, there's no way to send him anything in the mail for Christmas or his birthday, because they move around so much. :( I'm sure he'd love every single thing you would have sent him though!

Time for bed. I think all the bloggers have taken the weekend off except me ... hope to see some of you back this week!

Under the Radar

I ate an incredible load of food yesterday. You know what I'm talking about, that I-can't-wait-to-get-these-jeans-off, one more bite will send me over the edge, I just KNOW I can never possibly be hungry again as long as I live type of meal. Kudos to Greg's family for making me miserable with that delicious spread!

I am proud to say I've avoided leaving the house altogether today, which was exactly my plan. "Black Friday" is my worst nightmare - I would rather be poked in the eye with a stick (or something equally horrible) than fight crowds of frantic, angry, pushy, excited people at 4 a.m. I'm not a shop-for-pleasure kind of gal anyway, so that should tell you something. No judgment toward those of you who went - hope you found some great deals, and glad I wasn't in your way. :)

Instead, I've sort of had a "snow day." Greg had to work, and Christa and family are in Lincoln visiting J's family until tomorrow. My phone has literally not rung ONE TIME today! I just realized that ... wow. I wonder if that has ever happened before!

I did some laundry, made some cookies (peanut butter, Greg's favorite), snoozed for a bit, started a new book, and spent the rest of the day listening to the recording of the marriage seminar we did a couple of week ago. We recorded it so that we can do a "promo" cd with some sound bytes, so I was listening for things that might work for that, but it was actually really really good to hear the whole thing from "outside" of my teacher's chair. First of all, DOES MY VOICE REALLY SOUND LIKE THAT?????

I was re-convinced (is that a word? Doubt it but I bet you all know what I mean) of the importance of talking to women about all the things God has to say about what kind of wives He means for us to be. As I listened I realized once again how counter scripture runs to our culture and all it's messages. God says men are to be the head of the household - only one person can be in charge and God means for it to be him. Our culture ... right down to the commercials on tv (think about it) ... portray men to be buffoons and idiots, seemingly not capable of getting themselves dressed properly let alone provide for and protect a household.

Some other stuff from the seminar really fired me up again too ... the way the enemy does everything he can to draw men and women together "inappropriately" before marriage, and then does everything he can to keep them apart after marriage. And how insidious that is, especially after marriage, and how we have to do active battle against it if we hope to prevail. I was reminded of the importance of being quiet ... dang why is that so hard for me??? But do I always need to have an opinion? Or the last word? Or ... worse ... a better idea?

Anyway, as you can tell, it seemed worth my time for sure to listen to the whole thing, although it took most of the day and I am reminded of how much I hate the way my voice sounds!! Please pray with us that God will continue to open doors to share this information in whatever format He desires!

I am fixing turkey pot pie for dinner - another Greg favorite ... guess that recording had more effect than I realized. :)

Giving Thanks

This is uncoached, unedited, and she's a little annoyed because my batteries ran out on "take one" ... but still it's worth the post. We talked a lot afterward about how important it is to know WHO we're giving thanks to, not just what we're thankful for.



Have a beautiful, joyful day!

If you give a moose a muffin ....

Does anyone else know this book series? My grandkids love them! Last night was Lexi night - we try to have a sleepover with one of the kiddos every Tuesday, although it hasn't worked out so well the last few months ... hopefully we're back in the swing. Lexi asked me why she hadn't been over in so long, and I had to swallow the lump of tears and humility in my throat to say, "You know, we've been busy, too busy doing other stuff. And that's not ok, is it? Because YOU are more important to us than all that other "stuff." She agreed, naturally ... but she needed to hear it. And I needed to say it out loud. I'm always talking about priorities ... wow is it easy to get them out of whack without even realizing it!

I digress. Lexi and I cook when we're together. Yesterday she wanted to make muffins because "my mom doesn't know how to make them." She makes these nonsense statements so solemnly and surely that if you didn't know better ... Anything we make in the "dessert" category is required to have chocolate chips in it, that's her only rule. So last night we made chocolate chocolate chip banana muffins. (Sorry Emily.)


OK they might not look like much (now that I look at this picture myself they look sorta awful) but let me tell you, they were yum-yum-yummy. The hardest part was keeping Lexi out of them until after dinner.



We had homemade pizza, which even Lexi said was the "best pizza ever" even though it didn't have cheese inside the crust, and despite the fact that she completely bailed on me and was working on art projects at the counters while I cooked. :)




Like this. While my first instinct is to scream, "Yikes, forget the "art," get that kid a calculator!" it also occurs to me that I have seen conceptually similar items in 3D on the lawns of our public buildings. So there ya go, let's not put any limits on her just yet.

This what? 40 pound child? Let rip the most outrageous burp during dinner I think I've heard since my son left for college (he had a true talent, he could burp the ABC's). This one surprised her as much as it did us - it was violent - sounded like there might be a projectile vomit coming behind it. But no, all that followed was a look of sheepish, wide-eyed wonder, and a sort of "hmmm, that was interesting ... could I do that again" look on her face ...

At bedtime I shamelessly set her clock back 20 minutes and told her she couldn't get up until it said 7:00. She thought for a minute and said, "You know, I think I'll get up at ... 7:02. Sometimes I like to sleep in."

The Kuchtas are leaving for Lincoln this afternoon for Thanksgiving - Sheila, Lexi is so excited to come to your house ... and to swim in your great big huge pool! Unless I've missed something (like covered, heated, etc.) I'm guessing that's not happening. But she talked non-stop about getting to see Grama Sheila and Grampa John and all her cousins ... hope it's a great weekend for all of you!

Will someone please ...

Sign up to follow my blog? (See top right - it's easy.) I'm feeling a little insecure today. :) (That's a joke ... for those of you that know me.) I'm FULL UP today. Happy, excited, lots of reasons, no specific reasons, just full. We went to small group last night and learned about Advent. I grew up with the lighting of the Advent wreath each of the four Sundays before Christmas, but it was just a tradition that I never understood (or cared much about if we're being honest). I was an adult before I came to know the Lord, and having been in "less formal" evangelical churches all of my new-creation life, I find myself longing to understand some of these traditions. I find myself weeping while singing familiar hymns, some SO familiar that I know all the verses, but I never heard the words. Last Sunday it was "How Great Thou Art." I read the Apostles Creed, something I've been able to recite by memory since I was a little girl, and am blown away by the truth and power in those words.

So back to Advent. What I learned last night is that it is definitely a man-made tradition that has changed often through the course of history, mostly for convenience or at the whims of "those-in-charge" of these kinds of things. But what I learned that mattered to me was that Advent is the preparation for the fulfillment and celebration of the coming of our Savior! To actually spend time in worship, and prayer, and reflection, and fasting, as we approach the celebration of this priceless and unequaled moment in history. Not in a 'legalistic' way, as some of the older rituals tend to sound to me, but in an overflow of anticipation and gratitude for a God who loves us so much that He sent His son to cover what we can never earn.

In case your interest is also captured, the Advent season starts this Sunday (11/30) and is "celebrated" for the four consecutive Sundays before Christmas day. There's lots of different ways to approach it, like a progression of the story leading up to Christ's birth, or a Sunday for each of peace, joy, love and faith, and some others I'm forgetting. I'm pondering what this celebration will look like for me, but already it has certainly changed my perspective on this holiday season.

I'm thinking ...

that I will combine the Marriage Infusions blog with this one. Frankly, I'm getting myself all confused trying to decide which post belongs where, which links should be on which blog, and honestly, this Slice of Life blog is totally random most of the time anyway, so why not throw in a few more marriage posts and call it good? Whaddya think?? (Plus this one is getting way more hits, so it only makes sense :)

Not Me Monday

This box links to a hilarious post - apparently this is a regular weekly thing, and I totally love it.

SO... this week,I definitely did not laugh when my (3 yo) grandson asked for Pretty Princesses for his bedtime story ...

I definitely did not get annoyed all 30 times that someone was late to meet me ...

I definitely did clean every inch of my house ...

My (4yo) granddaughter did not learn my phone number and call me, and call me, and call me ...

I did not laugh when same granddaughter said I couldn't talk to her younger brother because he wasn't wearing pants ..

I definitely did not cry when the song "I Danced with Cinderella" came on ... in fact I never do that ...

I surely did not knock the shower caddy off the wall (yes again) and don't have a bruise the size of Texas on my foot ...

I certainly didn't turn off the Chiefs game because I got sick to my stomach ... again ...

AND ... last but not least ... I did not take muffins that nobody ate to the women's bible study brunch, and I did not donate them to the church office after it was over!!

Oh come on, there's got to be hundreds more, better than these, but I can't think of any. I think I need to start a new journal for next week, because my life is seriously FULL of this stuff!!

On the Wall!!

Brandon called last night! The phone rang, it was a VERY weird number, caller unknown, and I ignored it the first time, as is my policy. ;) But then they called right back, and I thought (finally), hmmm ... all those numbers ... that could be an international call. So I grabbed it and heard, "MOM? MOM? I only have one minute but I'm standing on the Great Wall of China right NOW! Actually standing on it!"

Well, let me tell you, a minute doesn't last very long, but oh the good it did my heart and what a huge gift it was to me to hear his sweet voice! He said he leaves by train for Hong Kong on Wednesday (still don't know where he's been) and should be in touch by the weekend.

Hello?

My phone rings.

Me: "Hello?"
Lexi: "Hello Nini!!"
Me: "Hi Lexi! What are you doing?"

-- Faint male voice in the background at the Kuchta house says 'Lexi, who are you talking to?'

Lexi: "I'm getting ready to eat lunch!"

-- 'Lexi? Are you on the phone?'

Me: "Really! I'm eating lunch too!"

-- 'Lexi? Who did you call?'

Lexi: "It's jus' Nini, Daddy! Nini, do you want to talk to Mason?"
Me: "Sure, if he has pants on!"

-- 'Give me the phone.'

Daddy: "Hello?"
Me: "Hi J, what's up?"
Daddy: "Did Lexi just call you?"
Me: "Yep."
Daddy (a bit perplexed): "Does she do that a lot?"
Me (laughing inside): "Yep. Usually just when she's home with you though."
Daddy: "Oh. Sorry?"
Me: "Don't be ... it's my pleasure."

And it is.

I know you're probably tired of these phone stories but this little twist was too good to pass up!!

Who likes butter?

Me, for one. It was on sale at Walmart today, so I bought a LOT. For my freezer. For the holidays. For life in general. I really like butter ... have you ever noticed that the word "butt" is in butter? Can that be a mistake? The more butter, the bigger my ... well, you're following me, I'm sure.

Doing battle

Last weekend I made a heartfelt promise to pray for fifteen women for forty days.

I forgot the VERY FIRST DAY!! (Being very transparent here ... be kind to me.) God woke me up in the middle of the night with that realization, and of course I got up and prayed right then. That experience made me realize I needed to "make a plan" - I love plans :) - and I put a reminder in my cell phone to go off every day and laminated two lists of the names. I posted one on the front of my pantry (goodness knows I get in there enough during the day!) and put the other one in my wallet sticking up behind my driver's license.

That has helped. A lot. BUT I still find myself putting it off, being resistant in my spirit, not because I don't want to pray but because of ... I don't know! My sinful rebellious nature, I suppose, and I think also direct opposition from the enemy.

It's incredible to me that I meant what I said SO sincerely, and that I'm having so much trouble following through. I would appreciate your prayers for ME, that I would be faithful! (Today is day 5, by the way, so I have a long ways to go!)

Oh the joys of this boy!

We have Mason overnight tonight. It's been quite awhile since we've had any of the kiddos over here for a "sleepover" - too much going on, I guess, which is NOT ok. I'm remembering why it's not ok because even as I sit exhausted at 8:12 p.m., my sides are still aching from laughter. He never stops moving and he never stops talking - he's a living breathing definition of a "running commentary."

First we went to Walmart to pick up milk, and found frozen turkeys on sale super cheap so we picked one of those up too. And then Mason (in the back of the cart) basically bench pressed that turkey repeatedly until we were through the checkout line, growling often "I'm STRONG!" His little hands must have been completely frozen.

He was amazed in the parking lot - "Papa how did you get the car lid to go up automatically?" (He really did say "automatically".)

He raced between the toys and the bedrooms and the stairs and going in the closet with the flashlight while we fixed dinner, then chowed down as usual. I had never thought of dipping dill pickles in ranch dressing.

After dinner, hot wheels abounded. His short little legs were carrying him back and forth, back and forth, as he yelled after each car ... HERE COMES SUPER (supply any word here). For example, we had Super Tink, Super Mighty, Super Dinner, and about 100 others I couldn't understand. The cat likes hot wheels too, as it turns out, and Mr. All-Boy-Forever-Strong-and-Mighty Mason started freaking out because the cat was touching his cars and he was scared to go get them. (She's declawed, by the way.) He was a sweaty mess by the end of the session.

And last but not least, for his bedtime story he picked "Disney Princess - Royal Rooms and Pretty Places."

Wonder what the morning will bring. :)

Edit: When we went to bed at 10:00 he was still in his room talking! I told Greg maybe a "Papa talk" was in order ... Greg came out of there doubled over in laughter. Apparently, Mason was sideways in the bed, blankie stuffed in his mouth as usual, feet up on the wall, and Greg said, "Mason, you need to put your feet under the covers and go to sleep." Eyes wide, mouth full, he nodded his head, maybe mumbled something. Then Greg said, "And if you don't stop talking, I'm going to send the kitty in." Out came the blankie and he sat up and said, "WHAT DID YOU SAY??" We never heard another peep. I'm thinking Greg should write a book called "Useful alternatives to corporal punishment ... how to scare the crap out of your kid."

A ramble ...

I'm pretty sure it will be a ramble. Seeing as how it's 2:10 a.m. and my mind is awhirl. Not stressing about anything, not anxious, worried, or any of those other things that might have me up ... just thinking. About how stinkin' funny it was last night when Mason tried to leave Alex's birthday party with his pockets loaded with little bitty toys from Alex's room - and his only response was, "Well I could have fit MORE!" About the blessings of kids in general. About how sad it is that our hurry-up world has left us with scheduling problems, timing issues, general "busyness" that get our priorities all screwed up and we don't even realize it. About how I choose to spend my time. About a daughter who is a better mother than ... well she blows me away. About keeping the Sabbath day, truly as a day of rest and reflection, and how nearly impossible that is to do in America in 2008. About giving without expecting anything in return. About Lexi sucking her thumb and picking her nose at the same time. About intentionally reaching outside of our comfort zone. About the proverb I found the other night that talks about things being out of balance as an "abomination" to God. About my son in China, wondering. About other family members and friends in crises and pain. About curly Callie toddling across the room, so darn proud of herself. About a precious husband who got me a new watch battery while I was gone this weekend. About the fact that I really should be sleeping ... but I think I'll head to my knees instead.

Stoked - part two

OK here are those pictures I promised. First, the snowmen. I forgot to mention that mine also has a dent in the center of the top of his head that makes him look a little like ET ... and that Charlene was worried about getting home so she could "snip off" the places where the paint smudged? Seriously?



During our "bunko" game every time we moved tables we had to wear one of the "props" at that table - here's one each of Charlene and I. There's some others that are super funny but I decided I better not publish them without permission. Of course I don't have Charlene's permission but she'll get over it. :)

Stoked!

What an incredible weekend. God dropped Charlene and I in the middle of Missouri, among a group of women who are truly connected and their hearts are knitted together in a way that just has to make God smile. We laughed, we cried, we taught, they soaked it up, they shared, we were hugely blessed ... I don't know what could have made it any better. Unless it was a little more heat in our bedroom ... yeah, a bit chilly. But heck, I never sleep the night before I speak anyway so it probably didn't make much difference. And I wasn't having hot flashes, so that's a bonus!

I haven't uploaded my pictures yet, but I will post a couple when I do - we played a very simplified version of bunko on Friday night that was hysterical! Then we had craft time ... do you know me? Am I crafty? Well this was the cutest little stinkin' snowman we were to make, that could have been either an ornament or a pin, just darling. Except for mine. He got two eyes, a nose, a mouth, and a brown scarf ... that was all I could manage. Seriously. Charlene's, on the other hand, had a multicolored and frayed-at-the-end scarf, buttons down the front of his tummy, dual-colored earmuffs ... you get the picture. You should also be getting the picture of why we complement each other so well when we teach together! :)

Short trip, big impact?

I'm off to Warsaw to co-teach another marriage retreat. Please pray for us that God's word on the subject of being godly wives will have lasting and dynamic in the marriages of the women we will be with.

Along the same lines, I'm experimenting with a new blog called Marriage Infusions. (There's a link to it on the left.) I'm not sure where it's going, if anywhere, but would love input and feedback, and suggestions about topics that matter to you. If you get a chance check it out and let me know if it's valuable. If not, no worries ... I'll just start journaling this stuff on my own. Who knows, maybe there'll be book material there someday. :)

My prayer for the weekend: Man makes the plans (we've done that), but God directs our steps (now release it to him)!

Latest call from Lexi...

Well it seems Lexi is quite enamored with calling me! Every night when I'm cooking dinner the phone rings, and I've stopped answering it "Hey there!" (expecting it to be Christa), and just saying hello, so I can hear the sweet "Nini? It's LEXI!" on the other end. Nothing of substance happens in the phone calls ... what are you doing ... playing with Legos ... what is Callie doing ... feeding Tink (the stinky chihuahua) goldfish ... etc.

Last night's exception, however, was when she asked me if I wanted to talk to Mason. Now, normally, Mason declines politely (mostly) when asked if he wants to talk to me on the phone - he's too busy busy busy to be bothered. But for once, I heard him say "YEAH!" Lexi's reply: "Well too bad, Mason, you can't talk to Nini because YOU DON'T HAVE ANY PANTS ON!"



Busy, beautiful, delightful life they are living.

P.S. Although he definitely was sans pants as Lexi reported, he did wiggle into them and talk to me for a minute. So I might have even helped out mommy with one tiny little battle. And I know, I know he has pants on in this picture and it was taken this summer, but it's the closest to naked I could find.

Reaping what I've sown...

I taught Lexi my phone number. It was innocent enough, in fact it was a valuable exercise even ... she was learning to write her numbers so I figured she might as well learn something useful. She even learned what a hyphen was. Good stuff, huh?

My phone rings at 6:00 tonight ... "Hi Nini!" "Uh ... hi Lexi! What are you doing?" "Getting ready to eat dinner, we're having potato soup!" "Sounds good, did your mommy or daddy want you to call me?" "Nope, I just know your phone number now!!" (Giggle.)

Actually, it was very sweet, and I'm NOT sorry I taught her my phone number, at least not yet. I'll let you know if that changes. :)

7,464

No, I have NOT posted that many times, although some of you may think so. :) I found out this morning that God made 7,464 promises in the Bible. To us. For us. 7,464!!!!!!!!!!! I am still trying to digest that. And I am wondering why I go "looking for trouble," why I give in to negativity, discouragement, pessimism, the "cup half empty" mentality that I fall into so easily. I want to be a PROMISE CLAIMER! I hope and pray that this is a nugget that stays with me and sticks in my heart forever ... one I definitely don't want to lose "between the altar and the door."

Amusing ...

Christa called ... she just caught Callie playing in the toilet ... at least it was flushed ;) ... and hey, she won't have to give her a bath tonight!

Visited them today and was surprised to find both Lexi and Mason in LAST year's Halloween costumes ... princess and spiderman came back to visit ... those costumes are the best investsments! Mason's spiderman is getting a little tight around the abs, and I just about ripped Lexi's head off getting the thing over her head, but hey, they didn't complain so why would I worry.

Twick or Tweat!

We had the best fun last night. The weather was beautiful, the time hasn't changed yet, so unlike all the Halloweens I remember when MY kids were little, it was warm, dry, and light, at least for awhile. :) Lexi the fairy (can I say that?) and Mason the pirate ran their little legs off going from house to house - FINALLY Mason found an appropriate outlet for his "outside" voice, yelling 'TWICK OR TWEAT' at the top of his lungs at every house. At one point he ripped his eye patch off, handed it to his daddy and said "I'm done with this." J cracked up laughing - the thing was so sweaty it was sopping wet.



About two blocks from our stopping point, he stopped. Dead in his tracks. Lexi was bounding for the next house with a porch light on, and he just stood there. Remembering ... this is the kid that NEVER stops moving (or talking), he even runs up the stairs to bed! He said, "I'm tired. I'm done twick or tweating. I don't want any more candy." And he rode in the stroller the rest of the way! He looked a little ridiculous in it too, I might add ... he looked like a beached whale getting in and out of it!



Callie was naturally totally unimpressed with the whole thing - she wore her costume exactly long enough to take two pictures and then ripped it off over her head.

Lexi was some sort of very glittery fairy princess, although she abandoned the wings before she even left home. We were all covered in glitter by the end of the evening. Somehow I missed getting a picture of her alone ... but knowing her I'll have another million chances over the next few weeks. I might even get one of MASON wearing her costume. :) They share. By the way, Mason definitely wore his costume (sans makeup and eye patch) to the grocery store today.