Mixed Nuts: March 2016

Quotes

"There is no better way to thank God for your sight than by giving a helping hand to someone in the dark." - Helen Keller
When I stand before God at the end of my life, I would hope that I would not have a single bit of talent left, and could say, "I used everything you gave me." ~Erma Bombeck
You may never know how strong you are, until being strong is your only choice.- Unknown
Keep your face to the sunshine and you cannot see a shadow' ~Helen Keller
Promise me you'll always remember: You're braver than you believe, and stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think.
Don't cry because it's over, smile because it happened."- Dr. Seuss
"Life is 10% what happens to you, and 90% how you react to it."
"God doesn't give children with disabilities to strong people: He gives them to ordinary, everyday people, then He helps the parents to grow stronger through the journey. Raising a child with special needs doesn't TAKE a special family, it MAKES a special family."Author Unknown
I have been driven many times to my knees by the overwhelming conviction that I had nowhere else to go – Abraham Lincoln
Be always at war with your vices, at peace with your neighbors, and let each new year find you a better man. ~ Benjamin Franklin
There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as if everything is a miracle - Albert Einstein
The journey of a 1000 miles starts with a single step
Sometimes in the middle of an ordinary life, love gives you a fairy tale
Where there is great love, there are always miracles - Willa Cather
The Difficult we can do immediately, the impossible takes a little longer
Doing what you like is freedom. Liking what you do is happiness
There are two lasting bequests we can give our children. One is roots. The other is wings.
Be the change you want to see in the world
Don't tell God how big the storm is, tell the storm how big Your God is..........
Everything has beauty, but not everyone sees it
Fall down seven times - get up eight - unknown
Despite our differences, we sink or swim together
Life may not be the party we expected, but while we are here, we might as well dance
"The man who moves a mountain begins by carrying away small stones." -Confucius

Monday, March 7, 2016

Arlington

This girl!

So - she has broken a bone along her right thumb. From falling at school. CPS would probably be at our door if every broken bone she has ever had didn't occur at school.

So - she is in a soft cast (after much begging) for the next few weeks. It is her writing hand, so that should make things interesting. At least she will be out of the cast before softball season starts.

Sunday, March 6, 2016

Out with the Old and In with the New

Today, we finally replaced our mini van. It has been a long time coming. We bought our minivan in 2004 - when Arlington was 1 1 /2 years old. We were living in California, and decided we needed a bigger car. We knew we were going to be expanding our family, and we were getting ready to drive across the country to move to Florida, so a nice big comfy van was going to come in handy.

Today - at 12 years old, 218,700 miles, and many (many) dents later - our time with that van came to an end. This is the only van the kids remember - and they have spent quite a bit of time in there. Finley came home from the hospital in this van. I picked up Mat and Cainan up from the airport when he came home from China in this van. We have taken countless trips in it - especially back and forth to Pennsylvania to visit family.

It is a Toyota and has been a great car. It has never had a major problem - just minor quips along the way. It is a beast and has taken a beating with three kids and two dogs. It has hauled more wood from Home Depot than you can imagine. It worked hard.

So this weekend - now that the winter seems to be behind us - Mat and I decided it was time to retire her. I knew what I wanted - either another Toyota or a Honda. The top two brands in minivans for many years running. We need something big, and something safe - we still have many years of hauling kids around.

I did find a Toyota Sienna I really liked. It was red, and had enough things that we needed. It drove beautifully. And then Mat and I test drove a Honda Odyssey and liked it just as well. It made the decision very hard. We left the Honda dealership, went to dinner with the kids, and made our final decision.

And the Honda won. Mostly because we got a little more for our money, and it was a 2016 instead of a 2015. Small minor things which in the end - don't make much of a difference.

Besides - it was blue.

So this morning, we cleaned out the old Toyota (that was gross), and went and picked up our new van. Here is to another 12 years of minivan driving!

Our old van - she was well loved