Keri's 10 Year College Reunion

We had such a fun weekend spent with good friends whom we don't get to see often enough. We met up with Sally and her family; Heather and her new son, Brennan; Jodi, who just announced that she is 12 weeks pregnant with their first baby; and Ericka and her family. It was so good seeing all of them and meeting some of their kids for the first time. Friday night we went out to dinner with Sally's family and then let the kids swim in the hotel pool before bed. That night us girls met up for dessert and some girl talk. The highlight of my evening was a comment made by Heather. She ran into her volleyball coach and when asked how things were going excitedly said "Yeah, things are going good. I just had a #2." Can I tell you how hard I laughed!!! Heather is always good for laugh or two!!!! Trevor got left in a dark hotel room with 3 kids who were supposed to be sleeping by the time I left. Unfortunately the girls were still wide awake and not wanting to be quiet so their little brother could fall asleep. Needless-to-say, the evening was not quite as fun for Trevor, but his sacrifice was much appreciated!

Saturday morning was the actual reunion breakfast where I had fun catching up with some old friends and hearing their testimonies. I was asked to share what God has been doing in my life over the past 10 years. I had such a fun time reflecting that I thought it was worth posting:

“The Top 5 Things I’ve Learned Since Becoming a Mother”:

1. Screaming at my kids to “Quit screaming” probably is not the most effective way to get my point across.
2. Never underestimate the power of a good hug and a band-aid in solving a crisis.
3. God loves our kids more than we ever could. God taught me this after the birth of our oldest daughter, Kaylee. I was becoming a bit OCD; obsessively checking on her while she was asleep in her crib. I would leave my daughter’s room and sometimes immediately go back in to make sure she was still breathing. I did this just in case the previous times, I hadn’t paid close enough attention. This process was getting me really stressed out. Then God gently reminded me that he loves my daughter more than I EVER could. So I needed to trust HIM to protect her little life. I did and the peace he filled me with was just what I needed.
4. My kids move the slowest when I need them to move the fastest. For example, I tell my kids “go get your shoes and coats on”. Sounds simple enough? Several minutes later, I enter the room and find them hiding in a closet without their shoes OR coats on. Need I tell you how irritated that makes me? I am constantly reminding myself that 1 Corinthians 13:4-8 says, and I’m paraphrasing, “Love is patient, love is kind…It is not easily angered”. With 3 young kids, I frequently find myself impatient, unkind, and easily angered. I am thankful that God continues to challenge me to love more perfectly. I am definitely a work in progress.
5. The moments I cherish the most out of each day are the ones spent interacting with my husband and kids. I tend to keep myself busy whether it be: doing the laundry, picking up toys, cooking dinner, volunteering, or sitting at the computer. However, God is teaching me that I need to be more like Mary in Luke 10. She was praised for taking the time to sit at Jesus’ feet, INSTEAD of helping her sister, Martha, with all the preparations. I need to pay LESS attention to all the things that keep me busy and MORE attention to the things that really matter, like my kids. I need to take more moments out of each day to read a book with them, color a picture with them, do a puzzle with them, or just be silly with them. Those are the memories I want them to have, NOT of a mommy who was too busy to play.

After the reunion, we got the kids some fast food and let them have a picnic at the park. The weather was amazing and actually reached 70 degrees I believe. The park was filled with leaves and our kids had a blast burying themselves in them. It was great having our kids all play together and get to know each other better.

We planned on spending Saturday night in the hotel. However, since Friday night didn't go so well, after a quick dip in the pool to cool off, we decided to head back to Sally's house to spend the night. She made a nice dinner for us. After the kids were in bed, the adults had fun playing a game of Acquire together. Trevor was thankful not to have spent another night tucked away in a dark hotel room with noisy kids and I was thankful to have more time to spend with my dear friends.