I am doing some things right...

Yesterday in my Mommy melt-down post, I pretty much bashed myself as a parent.  It was just that kind of day.  I felt "unglued" from the time my feet hit the floor. But today I want to take a different approach.  I'm a good mom.  I believe that.  I do think that "good moms" always think there are things that we should be doing better.  That's what makes us good moms.  Bad moms don't care how they're doing things.  Right?
Well, here are some things I think we are doing well (or things that show we are doing well).  First of all, I'm pretty "hard" on our children.  Hard is in quotations because I don't think it's that bad, but I do require some sort of responsibility and accountability on their part.  They are little bitty people.... that grow up (very quickly) into grown up people.  And those grown up people will be expected to live in society and interact with people and take care of themselves.  Therefore, I want to raise little ladies that are prepared for that.  I want my children to have good manners and to be thoughtful. Which they are (with the exception of the gas that Julianne passed in church last night... please excuse her... if you were close to us, she did say it wasn't funny... but it was).  My children are thoughtful.  I wish I could record their prayers at night.  They remember to pray for people that I don't even think about again.  We pray for their teachers and their friends, anyone that wasn't at school and some that were there but were acting mean, we pray for friends that are sick and for Mr. Chuck (our minister), we pray for our Great Grandmothers and all of our extended family.  We are doing a good job.  Our children know the most important skill they will ever learn.  To talk to God.
Tuesday while we were meeting a friend for lunch, we heard a fire truck.  Lucy's first reaction was, "Mommy, are we going to pray?"  We did.  And we do every time we hear a fire truck or ambulance. And I'm thankful they want to.  They are learning to be thoughtful and to understand (as much as they can) the feelings of others and how scared they must be if they needed to call 911.
I think we are doing a good job because most people enjoy being around our children.  We've all been around the kid(s) that drive us nuts.  I don't want my children to be that way.  Let me be clear.  My children are normal children.  They can be clingy and annoying.... but overall, they are great kids.  And most people enjoy spending (limited amounts of) time with them.  :)
I don't like for my children to run around in restaurants or stare over the booth at people.  I've been known to say, "They don't think you're as cute as I do."  Is that mean?  I don't think so... it's true.  I think my children are beautiful and hilarious and the best kids on the planet.  But I do realize that other people don't think they're as cute as I do.  You know how I know that???  Because I don't think other people's kids are all that cute.  I just don't.  I enjoy (a tiny bit) a cute story every now and then, but 99.999% of the time, I don't really think the story is anywhere near as cute as anything my kids do.  And that's normal, I think.
We demand respect.  I expect to hear yes ma'am and no ma'am, yes sir and no sir from my children.  We live in the south.  That's what we do.  They are learning (through trial and error, sometimes) the things they can and can't say to us.  Sometimes the line between friend/parent is crossed and we have to remind them that they need to watch their tone.  But they're learning.  And we make it clear when the line has been crossed.
I'm very thankful for my children.  And their daddy that holds the same standard of discipline that I do. I don't know what I would do if Jason and I didn't agree on parenting.  I can't imagine how difficult that would be to have a very strict parent and one that just lets everything go.  We are on the same page most of the time.... at least when he can keep a straight face... hehe.
Well, it's almost time for the troops to get up for school, but I just had to give myself a little pat on the back...  I think I'm a pretty good mama... and I have bad days... just like all the other good mamas.  But I'm trying.  I'm doing my best to raise good kids into great adults.  I pray every day I don't mess them up too badly. :)
Have a great day!

Flashback Friday- Our engagment

I have totally forgotten about flashback friday for the last couple of weeks.  But today I remembered it's Friday!  :)  So, here's the story of our engagement... you got the scoop a few weeks ago about how we met, so this the rest of the story.  In may of 2002, after dating for a couple of years (with one small break because Jason didn't know what he was doing... ha!), Jason invited me on a trip to Washington (like the state... not the city).  We had a wonderful trip, drinking coffee, riding ferries, seeing flowers and such.  We took a day trip to Oregon where we went hiking.  I had wondered throughout the trip if this was going to be when he proposed.  We had, like any other serious couple, talked about marriage and I knew that was coming, so I kept thinking this was it!!  On our hike, we saw a boat-load of waterfalls.  They were just lined right up one after another in the Columbia River Gorge.  It was beautiful, but  I wasn't really enjoying it, because I was trying to make everything perfect in my head for the big moment.
Well, we got to a waterfall called "Bridal Veils."  This is it!!!  I just knew it!  I straightened out my hair... I sucked in my tummy and pushed my shoulders back.  Surely there was a camera or something somewhere, right??  We stood there for a few minutes, admiring God's handiwork (Jason, not me, I was reading my left hand to be weighed down by a new rock).  And then Jason said, "alright, you ready to go?"  I was SO mad.  I mean, really?  It's not going to happen.  He's not proposing on this trip... this would have been the place.  I'm done.

So, if you know me at all, once I'm mad it's all over.  There's not much reasoning with me... I'm totally irrational.  And this is exactly what I was feeling then.  We came to the next waterfall.  It was called  

Multnomah Falls and it's the tallest waterfall in the United States.  Well, Jason decided we were hiking to the top.  Can I just mention it was cold and rainy and I was ill as a hornet because I hadn't gotten my way?  I didn't want to climb with my arthritic self to the top of this mountain.  At all.  Well, he insisted. I acted like a complete brat all the way up.  I didn't want to go and you can't make me enjoy it.  Well, after what seemed like 124 miles of hiking and a lot of twists and turns where some fellow hikers said they gave up and started back down, we finally arrived at the top.  I was still fuming.  And tired.  And my joints ached.  And I was still not engaged.... which was the worst part.  I stood there, looking at the view that I couldn't even admit was the most gorgeous view I had ever seen.... because I was still being a brat.  And Jason, standing behind me, says, "This is the farthest we've ever been together."  I, angrily say, "uh huh."  Jason, ever the patient one, said, "You know what I want to know now?"  Me, still bratty, "How the heck we're going to get down from here!?"  I turn around, just about ready to slug him... and he's holding a tiny box with a beautiful ring in it.  "How far will you go with me now?"  

I was in a puddle.  Put that ring on my finger before you drop it through the slats in a rickety deck on the tallest waterfall in the country!  We hugged and a couple, Jason, do you remember their names?  I know her name was Susie and I want to say his was Bob, came on the scene and took pictures of us.  They also annoyingly followed us around the rest of the day.... but that's another story.  It's funny, the hike down the waterfall didn't seem nearly as bad as the hike up.  So, that was May 6, 2002 and it was truly beautiful!  I hope one day we can take our children there and stand on the little deck and talk about how far we've gone as a couple... he's my favorite person in the whole world, and I have no doubt that God hand picked him for me.  I'm glad I said yes!!!!!

Our 10th anniversary will be in January and I asked Jason if we could make the trip back to Washington, so we may be standing at the very top of this beauty in several months.  Brrr....

Introducing.... my better half

See how Adelaide is looking at him??  I lurve it!

A lot of my readers are close friends of our's and family, but recently, I've had some people pop over that I don't know and I want to introduce everyone to my better half.
I wrote about my love story on Friday, so a lot of you already know a little bit about Jason, but I just want to take a minute to tell you how truly awesome I think he is.  And no, I'm not in trouble, nor am I about to ask him for anything monumental.... I just really love him and I want the world to know.
Jason is thoughtful, caring, compassionate, romantic, patient (holy moly, is he patient), selfless, hilarious, quiet, fit, dedicated, hard working, tender, a wonderful listener (maybe the best listener I've ever known).... I could go on forever, but it's naptime and my hair is wet... so I'll stop there.  You get the idea.  Seriously, he's amazing.  I am so very thankful for the strong father and devoted husband that he is. He doesn't do anything for himself.  Nothing... except run.... if you enjoy that kind of thing.  He doesn't play golf or hunt... he doesn't hang out after work with the guys.  He goes to work and then spends his "free time" at home with us.  And he likes it that way.  I think. :)
When he comes in, he picks right up as Daddy.  He doesn't expect to sit in the recliner for an hour (we don't have a recliner, but he wouldn't sit it in if we did).  He comes in and helps with the kids. Or pushes Julianne in the swing.  Or he'll load up their bikes and take them to the park.  He loves his kids.  And they love him right back.  And you know what?  He loves me too.  I can tell.  And that in itself is pretty awesome.

And he makes some mean homemade ice cream!

And he builds the best Repunzel town you've ever laid eyes on!

He works so hard for us.  My mom always told me not to marry a doctor because they're never home.  And that can be true sometimes.  He works a lot... but he leaves it at work.  When he comes home, he's totally devoted to us.  For those of you that don't know, Jason practices Pain Medicine and Anesthesia at UAB hospital.  He's recently taken another board exam (that's 3) for Palliative and Hospice Medicine.  He's a nerd. (just kidding, kinda)  He's so loving and tender, though, that I know he's making a difference for his patients.   He just posted a blog about the death of a good friend of ours and the impact it had on him, not only personally but also in his career.  I hope you'll check it out here.

Our love story- "Flashback Friday"

HI!  I'm Tiffany and I just started "really" blogging.  I started this blog a couple of years ago, but I wasn't really very dedicated to writing then.  Since March or so of this year, I've found it a lot of fun to write about what's going on in our lives and sort of keep a record of things for my kiddos.
I was born in Memphis, TN and moved to Central Alabama about 9.5 years ago when Jason and I got married.  He had already moved here for work and after a long distance relationship, we were so thankful to be in the same place again.  We have 3 little girls that are such a blessing, and a lot of work.  My girls and our activities are my main topic on this blog... along with a tip or so throughout.  I'm linking up with Kelly's Korner blog today on trying to find other bloggers in my area.
I was already planning a "Flashback Friday" today to talk about our love story.  If you are easily nauseated, turn away now. :)
Jason and  I met before 2000... I'm not exactly when.  Our families attended the same church, so we knew of each other, but we didn't socialize.  For various reasons. :)
Jason and my brother were actually friends before we were.  They had a mutual friend and ran around together getting into all kinds of trouble (relative trouble for a couple of goody two-shoes).  Jason was in Tim's wedding in June of 2000 and we never dreamed then that we would one day be in another wedding together (our own)... that's 3 weddings we've been in together now!
I guess the way we got together was pretty random.  Jason was in a jet ski accident and broke his pelvis pretty badly.  While he was recovering, my dad loaned him a book (I think it was my grandfather's book).  Jason dropped in one day to return the book and I had just gotten out of the shower.  My hair was in a towel and there wasn't a lick of makeup on my face.  My dad was home (thankfully) but while Jason was there (this older guy that I didn't know well at all), he said he had to leave for the post office.  *Thanks a lot dad*  Jason asked me to go out to lunch with him.  I was thinking, okay, that's fine.... this is a friend of my brother's, he's quite a bit older than me... he's taking me to lunch to be nice.... poor teenaged girl home by herself and hungry.  ha!!
When we got into his car, the music fired up and it was Jimmy Buffet.  I love Jimmy Buffet!! I couldn't believe he was playing something I liked... I thought he'd be listening to the River or something old.  (Memphis peeps will get that!)
We went to a Chinese restaurant (I had never eaten chinese food before).  We just talked and ate and then he took me home.  I don't remember at all what we talked about.  I can't imagine it could have been anything but awkward.  When he took me home, my Papa and Granny were sitting outside (they lived across the street from us).  Granny called me over and told me I was going to marry that boy.  I thought she was nuts.  Seriously.  I was seeing someone else and he was quite a bit older than me and in a totally different stage of life.  Granny somehow had a very keen sense for stuff like that... and she was very often right.
Fast forward several months to November 2000.  Jason's roommate (also named Jason) visited church with Jason... that's confusing.... and my roommate, Casey, thought he was cute (he was).  So... Jason and I were going to try to set them up.  As I said before, I was seeing someone, so I didn't think anything about this setup.  The guy I was seeing also went to church with us and was aware and invited to the things we were doing.  He just didn't come.  And over time, Jason and  I would sit together while the other Jason and Casey would sit together.... because we were trying to get them set up.  Anyway, they ended up not hitting it off... but Jason and I did.  I broke it off with the other guy and started seeing Jason.  He was such a romantic.  He was very thoughtful and loving.  But, like I said, he was in a totally different stage of life.  He was an intern and had just graduated medical school the year I graduated high school.  Would this really work??

It did.  For awhile.  In the summer of 2001, Jason was getting ready to move to Birmingham, AL for residency at UAB.  I was struggling with this, but I didn't have a choice in the matter.  Until he broke up with me.  I was devastated.  It only lasted a couple of months and we were back together again.  Sort of... we were in a relationship again, but still miles apart.  We traveled to see each other every couple of weekends and around his call schedule.  In May 2002, we took a trip to Washington and Oregon where he proposed (I'll write a post on the proposal soon).  And we were married in January 2003. 

I can't imagine life without him and I look back now and I don't fully understand how all of this came to be.  But I'm thankful.  So very thankful.   Stay tuned... I'm going to try to scan some pictures from our wedding.