Missing

Stuff goes missing around here all the time. All kinds of stuff. Cheap stuff, expensive stuff, food stuff. The most recent missing items are a necklace, eyeliner, and some money.

The funny thing is that the adamant deniers are, of course, the ones who get busted (or blamed) for stealing all the time. They steal from each other and also very willingly throw each other under the bus when something comes up missing.

Lucky has been accusing Squeaker of stealing a necklace for weeks. Why she feels the need to keep confronting her about it with no evidence knowing that Squeaker can be meaner than a rattlesnake on a griddle is completely beyond me.

Lately, circumstantial evidence pointed to Squeaker as the snitcher of some money from someone's purse. She cries and denies but her history does not help her. She says, "But it's just that---HISTORY!" to which I can only answer that it is by no means ancient history; it is all too recent.

Last night, Squeaker stood in Lucky's doorway and loudly accused her (how else to tattle?) of taking her eyeliner. When I asked Lucky about it after sending Squeaker away she said, "She always accuses me of taking her stuff." Yes, just the same way you always accuse her of taking your stuff. Nice relationship.

When I followed up with Squeaker I told her that she had no evidence that Lucky took it just like it cannot be proven that she took the money. That's the end of it. Don't bring it up again.

Sometimes we recover stuff, sometimes we don't. And that's how it goes around here. If you want to keep it you better hide it, lock it up, or don't bother bringing it into the house at all.

Party Like the Angels

The Boss and Lucky have been attending AWANA Club at the church where their favorite VBS of the summer was held.

Lucky basically uses it as a time to chase her friends around the parking lot but it has been a cool experience for The Boss as he is very goal driven and loves cranking through the book to win badges and awards. Pretty darn cute. He is in the "Sparks" group and has thus far memorized John 3:16, 1 John 4:14, Psalm 147:5, 1 Corinthians 15:3, and 1 Corinthians 15:4.

I'm amazed at his ability to memorize a verse each week along with the concepts that go along with it, at least on a kindergartener's level (i.e. sin is the bad things we say, do, and think; perish means to be separated from God forever, etc.) He is at this very moment hounding me to iron-on the new hang glider badge he earned last week onto his vest for tonight.

Best of all, he has been given more advanced language to talk about the things of God and I had the happy privilege of praying with him a few weeks ago as he trusted Jesus as his Savior.

Party on all of Heaven!

Thanks for the Heads Up

It's weird to find out MAJOR news about one of your kids from their status on My Space. I'm not really supposed to know it but I do tend to use whatever little ways I can to keep informed although I know my place is only on the fringe of a secret life.

When I actually am allowed to be let in on the secret directly, I'll bet you ten bucks it'll be delivered in a text message.

Where Am I? Oh, Here I Am...**

It's semi-official with some precincts still pending...we have had one of the wackiest summers on record and that's saying something for us. The wackiness promises to continue for some time. We'll cope and adjust as always, of course, but who knew situations and people would go so crazily askew from what they were just six short months ago? Naturally, we're catching the blame.

I think our blogging hiatus is over as there is so much going on it's hard not to spill it out somewhere. This blog is public again so feel free to refer former readers back if they would be interested.

We've been taking advantage of all the free activities a small town has to offer: harvest kick-off, community theatre, free museum days, vacation bible school, movies and activities at various churches around town. Yesterday we went to the annual open house at our main fire station. The Boss sprayed a firehose, we got grit in our eyes and snowcone when the Mercy Air helicopter took off and we watched hunky firefighters crunch open a car. Everywhere you go in a smallish town you bump into people you know and yesterday was no exception, as the open house was kind of the "thing to do" for the day.

Afterwards we attended a free piano concert at the library next door and then walked around downtown until we found a new mexican restaurant to try. With only Lucky, Squeaker, and the Boss around most of the time now, our outings have been mostly pleasant. Squeaker always has some drama or attitude to take care of but for the most part it's all good. Ana even took us out to her driving route to work so we could catch some air over the huge rollercoaster dip in the road out beyond the dairy farms. No kidding, like fifteen dairies on her way to work. We count green tractors and sing the "Big Green Tractor" song. Rural hicks all the way by now.

Many more updates from the summer but I'll spread them out so you can catch up a bit at a time if you so desire. Meantime, your continued prayers are much appreciated for the older crew of teens as many life choices face them which, unfortunately, they often seem ill-equipped to make.

**Peter Lorre in "Arsenic and Old Lace", 1944.