Old Dogs Can Get New Pics

The old folks got some new pics. You'd never know they're old as dirt, would ya??

Two Things

I sent the kids to bed the other night. Ava came down to find Eric, and I heard her corner him in the kitchen, saying in her cute little girl voice, "Dad, two things....One, hurry up and come tuck us in. Two, you HAVE  to tell us a story when you do."

Eric replied, "Oh, I HAVE to?? Or what?"

Still in her cute little girl voice, "Or I'll do something bad!"

5 minutes later he was upstairs telling them stories. He came downstairs afterwards mimicking her..."Dad, two things....two things."

The funniest part of this story is all that day I'd been getting all the people in my life to watch Homeland. I'd sent my dad, and Richard, and John and Karen Burns links and instructions on how to watch the whole season online. My dad had already watched a few episodes, Richard promised to watch them this weekend while Solomon was away, and John Burns was in the process of starting the first episode that night. I mentioned to John that my dad had already watched 4 episodes and really liked it. John said, "Good grief, do all the men in your life just do whatever you tell them to??"

I just smiled and typed..."Two things:"

(To Eric's credit, he is an expert storyteller. The kids die for his "When I was a little kid" stories. They'll do anything to get him on a roll at night...)

Ava's Fashions

Brown and pink, a combination that can't be beat. Especially cute in a family photo.

The Larger The Family, The Less Freaks

One of the greatest benefits of having a large family; relatability. The larger your family, the less chance you have of being a freak. You can't be a freak when there's someone else just like you in your family. And there's bound to be someone else with your same issue, skill, disability, whatever when you can barely count how many cousins you have.

For instance, Cole got his first migraine yesterday, and now has to deal with that. "You've got migraines? Papa and Brookey get those too, you can talk to them about how they deal with it!"

That phrase could go on and on for days. "You've got diabetes? Kyle's got diabetes, you can talk to him!" "You wet the bed? Your mom wet the bed 'til she was 13, you can talk to her!" "You want to be a wedding coordinator? Your Uncle Ed was a wedding coordinator, you can talk to him!" "You stole your mom's car and drove to Nashville? Talk to Nathan!"

And on.........and on........................and on.

It's to the point where you have to work hard to be the first anything around here. Although Zachary was the first with asthma, so he's got that going for him.

Sir, Yes SIR!

Zachary requested an "Army" party for his birthday this year, so I asked my Dad to play drill sergeant. He swallowed his Marine Corps pride for Zachary, and here are some video clips from boot camp. My camera died, so Eric has the rest of it on his phone. I'll post that when I can.

Parenting 101

Here's a little clip from an old Parenting seminar my Dad gave. He traveled the country speaking and teaching for years, and Parenting was a topic he was called upon to teach often. In this clip, he uses my brother Andrew and I as examples, as he often did:



My brother Andrew also found a great comment posted on a blog that allows people whose lives were touched by the Navigator ministry to leave their stories. Here is one that mentioned Dad:

TMS Has Been My Foundation

Stories March 17, 2010
I was raised in an alcoholic household with a father who beat me abusively, and a brother who molested me sexually. I used sports as my escape and my anger was used up in weight training, football and hockey. I played football one year in college, but my third knee surgery ended my sports career. Three of my closest friends committed suicide and I was lost. For six months, people on campus told me they were praying for me.

On the 4th of JULY, 1980, I asked Christ into my life. I lived in a boarding house where a brother from The Navigators lived. I told him the next morning I got saved, he thought I was nuts, but asked me later to pray. We prayed out loud together and he began to disciple me. He asked me to do the TMS with him, and I did the first book by the next week’s meeting. I went through the entire system in 6 or 7 weeks. I went on a Nav training program the next summer in Syracuse, and was able to lead three co-workers to Christ. Stayed with Navs for two more years, but all staff went to Australia.

Then suddenly Bob Lewis who was NE regional director took an interest in me and discipled me for several months before I got involved with Campus Crusade. I have been through many trials and tribulations, and 30 years later the TMS has been my foundation, and scripture memory has truly kept me from walking away from the Kingdom. Thank you for your ministry. I have never shared this with anyone before, and not quite sure why I do so now. God bless you in all you do.

~James

Navigator Connection: Ben Blackinston, Bob Lewis, Roger Sheppard

Posted by The Navigators @ 10:57 am

It's All Downhill From Here

I forgot to share my brother Andrew's video message to my parents, who celebrated their 53rd wedding anniversary last week.

Hurricane Stand-Up

I'm not ashamed to say that my niece Bethany was making me pee a little bit in my pants yesterday during our hurricane instant message conversation:

Beth: Parts of NYC are being evacuated now. i'm a full two blocks from the evacuation zone, so i'm set

Me: That seems close

Beth: It is. the only thing i'd worry about at my place are the window, but we have a huge basement we can hang in.

Me: Cole is obsessed with the hurricane. he watched the weather channel for 6 hours straight, updating me. telling me "we have to be on HIGH ALERT, mom".

Beth: Can he prepare my "go bag" that Bloomberg keeps mentioning?

Me: Andrew used to have plenty of go bags.

Beth: bahahahah

Beth: The bag i currently have on me has flat sandals (i'm wearing the platforms), duct tape, sealant foam, gum, and an apple. i'm set, right??

Me: LOL. add water and you're good.

Beth: Magazines! I knew I forgot something...

Me: Cole is agonizing over which of our 3 cars will have to stay outside for the duration of the storm.

Beth: Sophie's choice......(at which point I snorted my Diet Pepsi out my nose)

Me: We have a split tree in our backyard that Eric's worried about. He asked me to get Gpa to come duct tape it.

Beth: You wanna know the real tragedy in all this? I straightened my hair last night. How long is that going to last??!?!

I hope Beth doesn't die when Irene floods NYC, because I like her.

Happy Birthday To My Mr. Big

6 years ago today I drove to the Lehigh Valley Hospital to get a monster pulled out of me. The biggest of my big babies at birth, Zachary continues to be larger than life. (The following photos are not for the faint of heart!)

What having over 10 pounds of baby in you looks like. This photo would make a good birth control ad.

And here comes Mr. Big now....

10 pounds 4 ounces. At one week before his due date. My uterus offers free non-stop room service but lacks a fitness center, apparently.

Zach couldn't even wait an hour after the umbilical cord was cut before he demanded food. 2 ounces gone, and I hadn't even held him yet. My mother heard him screaming from down the hallway and thought I was in for some trouble...then we just realized he was annoyed that the room service had ended (his mama's son).

Who knew that kid would grow up to become my best buddy...

There's Living, And There's LIVING

Colson had a grand time at our family 4th of July picnic on Monday. He said his favorite part was "sitting around in the circle talking to everyone". He has just entered the pre-teen stage, very hungry, very sleepy, and very moody. So being treated as part of the adults was VERY exciting for him.

He had gotten everyone to play along with his favorite question and answer game. He was very happy when others in the circle jumped in and posed questions of their own. Someone asked the question, "If you were stranded on a desert island and only one person in your family could be there with you, who would you want it to be?"

Colson thought for a moment and said, "Papa, because he knows how to live".

Now, the uneducated might think that when Colson said "he knows how to live", he meant that his Papa walks into bars and women fall at his feet, beer flows freely into his mug, and waiters bring him free food. That his Papa throws money around like it grows on trees, rolls snake eyes every time, and drives fast cars. You may even picture Colson and his Papa having a Hangover-esque weekend in Vegas.

But no, Colson is much more enlightened. What Colson meant by that phrase was that his Papa would know how to keep him ALIVE. He'd know which bugs to eat for the most protein, how to fashion a shelter from a tree branch and banana peels, and which direction to blow the smoke signals. Colson knows his Papa is this family's Bear Grylls, and won't be caught on a desert island without him. Cole wants to take someone who knows how to LIVE.

I didn't raise no fool.

The Dad Squad

Not to be outdone, the yearbook for the men in the Lewis family has come out just in time for Father's Day! Let's see who made the grades!

IT'S ABOUT DAMN TIME DAD

No one wanted a baby as much as this dad, so the fact that he had to wait 20 years couldn't have been more agonizing. But that baby finally came, and it's safe to say he was worth waiting for! Andrew's proving to be the dad we all knew he would be; patient, innovative, and fun, making baby RFL a lucky baby indeed. As Melissa T. says, "I think a kid would give up anything to have Andrew as a father and get to sleep in a drawer!"

MOST FUN DAD

Brianne's husband Joe wins this title hands down. When the kids want to play for hours on end, Joe is always up for the challenge. His endless energy and enthusiasm makes him a shoe-in for this category. His son Landon will never be bored, and Landon's friends will always want to come over to his house. In my house, whenever the boys are trying a new trick that requires physical aptitude, you'll very often hear the phrase "I bet Joe could teach us!"

BEST LONG DISTANCE DAD

There are some things Dads never want to be, and I'd bet the number one thing is "not there". But Ed had to take on that challenge and in true Ed style he has made the best of it. He proves that the shortest distance between two points is a father's determination, and while he can't be there physically, he's learned to accept that the next best thing is better than nothing.

GEEKIEST DAD

This Dad of the unsalted peanut is no doubt gearing up to deck the nursery halls with homemade webcams made from old television sets hooked to peanut butter jars and light bulbs. Posters of Bill Gates with Sharpie moustaches and devil horns will line the baby clothes drawers. Little Unsalted Peanut will be spitting on my iPhone "accidentally" while Jeff rewards baby with treats behind my back. Lucky for him I love geeks!

MOST COMPLEX DAD

It's not a given that all dads will be easy to read. Sometimes we have to look deeper into a dad to see the truths that lie beneath. My brother Eric has more layers than a Napoleon, so you've got to work a little harder to get to the layer you want. But it's there. It just might take few pints of a stout ale to reach it. And let's be real, any dad can hug you, but there aren't many dads out there who can rewire your house, build you a computer, babysit all 14 of your children at once, analyze your personality, clean your grout, fly you to your destination, starch your shirts, and teach you Bible lessons all in one day. Way better.

MOST SUPPORTIVE DAD

While Bonnie certainly could have done a bang-up job on her own, she found a gem in Jamie. He stepped into the role of father like he'd been doing it his whole life, and filled a void in the lives of Bonnie's kids. A few special men out there have the ability to love children regardless of who their biological father is, and Jamie is certainly one of those.

JOB WELL DONE DAD

Eric Mosley couldn't be the father he is without my father in law Jerry having done something right. He's another one of those special men who can love a child completely, regardless of biology. Eric grew up knowing he was adopted, but never feeling like anything but Jerry Mosley's real son. Because that's what he was. Big Father's Day thanks go out to this dad.

MOST SATISFYING DAD

If you've got needs, Michael T.'s here to get them taken care of. Whether his kids need time, attention, discipline, instruction, distraction, motivation, encouragement, Michael is on the job. When a deficiency is identified, you can bet the farm it's going to be addressed posthaste.

MOST SEXY DEMONSTRATIVE DAD

I always knew Eric was going to be the best kind of father. Demonstrative to the extreme, supportive to the extreme, attentive to the extreme. And I was right. I've never wished he was any other kind of father than what he is, and I'm so glad for my children that they will grow up with a dad like him.

BEST DAD FOR ME DAD

Maybe some dads are more this or more that, but for my money I couldn't have gotten one more perfect for me. Not many dads in this world would have "gotten" me, but mine not only got me but thought highly of me as well. We've been part of our own Mutual Respect Society from day 1, and the value that he has brought to my life is immeasurable.

Walk Through The Bible (FOUR THOUSAND YEARS!)

When I was a young teen, my Dad took me to a Walk Thru The Bible seminar. I'm sure for most teenage girls, that experience would have been a horrible eye-rolling memory, but I was not your average teenage girl. My Dad could have taken me to a Dog Turd Carving Slash Flagellation Seminar, and I would have been chomping at the bit to go.

But as it turned out, this seminar was an INTJ's dream. An entire day of memorizing a long series of hand motions to help you remember every main event in the Bible, are you kidding me??? Sign me up every day of the week!! I believe we did the Old Testament seminar, because I remember the "Creation, Fall, Flood" portion really well. I'd go again now as an adult and take my kids. They'd get a huge kick out of it.

Here's a clip of some kids doing it:

True Grit

When I was young, my parents were missionaries. My father was with The Navigators and worked on college campuses holding bible studies. Employees of The Navs raised their own support, so we were usually on a tight budget.

My dad was and still is the King of Making Do. He could live in a hole in the side of a cave, making fire from his glasses and eating slugs. Think Tom Hanks in Castaway. So living a frugal lifestyle comes naturally to him. For many years all I knew was generic brand food, thrift store clothing and secondhand books. (Of course, I never gave any of that a second thought because, while my father was the King of Making Do, my mother was the Queen of Finding The Best Old Things And Making Them Seem New.)

While other kings brandished shining swords and gold scepters, my dad had his own weapons of choice. One of them was the S.O.S. pad. (The other two were duct tape and a caulk gun, more on those later.)

My dad could perform miracles with an S.O.S. pad. He could take a stainless steel pot that had been tarnished, burned and buried and make that sucker shine like the top of the Chrysler building. My memories are filled with visions of my dad hunched over the sink with a pan and a brillo pad, scouring that steel into submission with elbow grease that would make him a strong contender in a lumberjack competition.

He did the same with electric stove burner drip pans. My mother never covered hers in aluminum foil because my dad kept them as sparkly as a new nickel. He spent hours making sure those things never looked scorched or rusted.
Naturally, as a young girl with no knowledge of cost, I assumed these things that my dad spent so much time toiling over were valuable and expensive. I figured drip pans must be something we couldn't afford more of, so we had to work hard to keep them nice.

This assumption lasted quite a long time. So long that, in fact, when I moved into my current home 10 years ago, I spent many a day scouring my own drip pans. The stove that came with the house had old drip pans in it, and I tried my hardest to scour them to like new condition. I mean, my husband had just drained his savings to buy us this beautiful house, there was no way I was going to ask for new drip pans too!!

After a few months of trying to clean those old pans, I decided it was time to bite the bullet and put out the money for new pans. I made a trip to Walmart, hoping they'd have the cheapest price on what I was sure was a fairly costly item. I walked down the kitchen aisle and saw some hanging on the rack, the price tag reading..........

.................ONE DOLLAR AND NINETY FOUR CENTS????!?!? ONE DOLLAR AND NINETY FOUR CENTS??????!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! FOR TWO DRIP PANS???

IS SOMEONE KIDDING ME RIGHT NOW????????

All I can say is that I wanted to take those two drip pans and beat my old man about the ears with them. While my extreme, violent reaction may have been due to the fact that I was newly pregnant and very hormonal, most of it came from my naivety slapping me in the face. Duh Suzanne, it's never about the money with Dad. It's about the pride taken in doing a job right. It's about personal responsibility, cleaning up your own mess with hard work. It's about never taking the easy way out, but building character by experiencing both the pain and the pleasure of maintaining something that you value.

That's my dad...life lessons taught in suds and water.

Monday Mornings With Zachary

Untitled from Suzanne Mosley on Vimeo.

Andrew's first Christmas Eve service at Tri-County Bible in Gilbertsville.

You Must Be This _ Tall To Ride This Ride

You're never too little to ride on Grampa Lewis's head, as Baby Landon found out.

What's That On Your Head?

Cole's Thanksgiving party trick. He wanted to get everyone with the helmet on, but only got about halfway around the table before something distracted him.

Can't Get To Heaven On A Lego Robot

Colson's Lego League team had their first competition this past weekend. The competition was very involved; many rounds of presentations, interviews and robot demonstrations. At one point, Cole and his team were taken into a room to be interviewed by the judges. My Dad, who took Cole to the event, wasn't allowed to enter the judging room so he didn't witness what happened. But a very emotional woman walked up to Dad after the interview was over and shared this with him:

Apparently when it was Colson's turn to be interviewed, the judge asked him, "If you could have anything in the world, what would it be?" Colson thought for a moment and answered, very seriously,

"I would want God to come down from heaven and tell everyone about Jesus, so that no one would ever have to go to hell..."

This woman said that the judges were speechless. My dad said the woman was very moved herself when she shared the story. I wish Colson had made a Lego cross with Jesus on it to hold up during his speech...that would have taken it over the edge!

Marines Don't Feel Heat

That's my Dad. Long socks in 100 degree weather.

Monday Mornings With Zachary

Poor Zach. At Ava's birthday party yesterday he was the first one to fall, and he was NOT happy about it. Birthday parties aren't a place where he shines anyway, so falling in front of people was just the limit for him. But he looked cute as a bug in his jeans and striped shirt...



Fortunately, not long after his fall, his buddy Ed showed up. Zach took major advantage of the soon-to-be-newest member of the family and kept Ed by his side all afternoon.