Knowing

Brent and I finally got out for an anniversary treat. Felix was sick on Wednesday - about 3 weeks after it started originally. Poor kid has been thoroughly trounced by this flu going around, and that's on top of the terrible cold that we got.

Anyway, last night we went to see Knowing. We took Amelia with us because she has proved to be un-babysittable still. Besides the fact that she was kind of fussy, the movie experience was a good one.

Here's my take on the movie...

It's a disaster movie and an alien movie, although you don't really know either till almost the end. It's about a guy, Nicolas Cage, whose son finds a page of numbers in a time capsule that was buried 50 years previously. While looking over this page of numbers, Nic finds that the numbers predict dates, locations, and numbers of people who will die at those places/times.

Don't worry, there's a lot more to this movie that I'm not giving away. And honestly, I got all of this in the previews. Here's the thing. A lot of people think this movie is hokey. Yeah, a bit. And I don't think Nicolas Cage is any kind of great actor. But this role works for him. The movie feels like a combination of War of the Worlds, Contact, Armageddon, and maybe Day After Tomorrow.

But it's a good combination. It's a fun combination. Don't expect this to be a great movie, but know that if you don't expect too mcuh, you may just really enjoy yourself.

Three Years

Brent and I got married three years ago. It surprises me sometimes just how naturally we kind of fell into being a couple. As much as I had struggled in my dating life - 16 years - half of my life when I finally met Brent, we didn't even have a hiccup. In November of 2005 we had never heard of each other. And in March of 2006 we just, well, were. It's not like we've had things easy. We started out in our 30's, both with a great deal of debt, and both overweight. We had baggage from our pasts, but neither of us flinched to take it on. We had been perfectly prepared for each other and for each other's crap.

I know, it sounds terribly romantic. We do actually like each other, but we're also uniquely suited to deal with each other.

On the way, we've dealt with a lot of hardship. It's really not that interesting. We've had sickness and financial woes. Lots of sickness and financial woes. We're still living with family.

But on the other side of things, we've dealt with a lot of good too. Because we've lived with family, we've been able to make serious headway on our debt. We have two beautiful children that are pretty healthy. Brent works at home, which allows me quite a bit of freedom with the kids. My job survived the cutbacks, but only barely. But because of the progress we've made, we no longer need my income.

Here's what I've learned:
Marriage is tough. It really does require the constant commitment and repentance and lots of introspection. It requires sacrifice and ear plugs. It often smells bad and is very messy. But it gives good stuff in return. The sense of peace and comfort and understanding is powerful. The companionship alone balances out almost all of the bad.

And personally, I've learned that Brent really is a wonderful father. I've learned that although our communication styles are vastly different, we can grow as people by compromise. We can still make each other laugh. We're still very much on the same page in all aspects of life. We've figured out how to support each other in our various pursuits and interests. We don't need to agree on everything, but we do need to back each other up. And we make really cute babies. See?!

It was a good day for a walk...

Visible progress

And the finished product...

more complicated

Brent and I have discovered that one of the most significant changes from one child to two is that sicknesses are insanely more difficult. There is essentially no relief because both parents are now needed full-time.

Amelia started getting snorty last week. They cost very little, but those little blue booger suckers are invaluable. I would also recommend saline. It loosens everything. Yeah, I'm sure you didn't want to know that, but if you have kids, you probably already do. If you don't, look into it. It's really that good.

Felix and I got the cold full force on Saturday. Lots and lots of head congestion. By Monday morning my congestion was firmly settled into my lungs and Felix started running a fever. On Monday Felix couldn't keep anything down. He did keep stuff down for long enough that he didn't get dehydrated. And he seemed to pull out of it in the evening - at least for a little bit.

Tuesday was worse for me but better for Felix. I mean, I've felt rotten since Saturday, but Tuesday was my first down day because Felix seemed to be over the hump. Still coughing a lot, but running around and pretty cheerful.

It was not to last, however. He's running a fever again and seems miserable. Although he fell asleep about 9:15, he's been tossing and turning and crying since then. And since I can't sleep through that kind of thing, I'm up with him.

So here we are past 1 am on Wednesday. My headache has subsided, thanks to a whole lot of ibuprofen, and Felix is down for the moment. I'm afraid tomorrow is going to be tough, since Amelia didn't go down till about half an hour ago, meaning that Brent is just winding down now. I'm starting to wonder if she's got a touch of what Felix has. I hate having sick children simply for the fact that I feel so helpless to comfort them.

I spoke too soon

Felix is sicker than just a bad cold. :(
Amelia seems to be dealing with her cold just fine. And as some kind of parental reward for having a difficult first child, she has started sleeping most of the way through the night. Last night it was 11:30 till 7:30. Too bad Felix was up most of the night with stomach cramps.

A churchy analogy

Say you have a sick child. This poor thing is just miserable and no matter what you do, you can't make them feel any better because they just push you away.

Then this poor child throws up. Doesn't make it to the bathroom and just plasters himself (or herself) head to toe. The child cries, hopeless and even more miserable than before.

What do you do then? As a parent, do you push him away? Do you send him to his room because he made a mess and needs to learn his lesson?

Any loving parent would take that child in their arms. Comfort him. Hold him close and tell him it's going to be okay. Stroke his hair away from his face while he cries.

And no real parent would love his child any less.

It is in times of extreme mess that Heavenly Father wants most to comfort us. He wants us to know it will be okay. He still loves us, no matter how yucky we might think we are. No matter how much sin, no matter how much revulsion we have for ourselves, He loves us and wants us to feel better.

Repentance is just cleaning up the mess. It may smell bad, but it's always better to get rid of it completely than to just live with the mess. And He won't mind helping - if we'll let Him.

The Week of the ____ache

Not getting enough sleep has a definite negative affect on me. My back, neck, and head have been killing me all week.

Being in pretty much constant pain makes progress difficult. My house is a wreck. Felix's room is at an almost standstill (I say almost because every couple of days something small gets done or at least started).

I'd love to blame the mess on Felix. I mean, he's quite the little tornado. He seems to feel the need to displace everything. For example, I found a cutting board in the bathroom the other day. I can't blame everything on him though. Everyone who has experienced terrible headaches or migraines knows that bending over can be a problem. That means that what ends up on the floor often has to stay there for at least a little while.

I've been living week to week lately. It would be day to day, but Lost is only on once a week. I'm so in love with that show! I've decided that the winter belongs to Lost and American Idol. I have no idea what I'll do when Lost ends after next year.

Anyway, still working on the house, just very very slowly. The nice weather has been helpful in getting out of the house. Walks with Felix have been very pleasant. Too bad I can't tell if it's making my aches better or worse. Maybe they're indifferent.