2.27.2018

I'll love you forever...

There is a famous children's book that everyone gets as a gift at their first baby shower - the story of a mom that rocks her baby back and forth and back and forth and back and forth and says...

I'll love you forever
I'll like you for always
As long as I'm living 
My baby you'll be

And then the baby grows up and the mom straight up breaks into the GROWN MAN's house and PICKS HIM UP in his SLEEP and rocks him back and forth and back and forth and back and forth repeating the lines above. (HOW does he not wake up? HOW does his wife not wake up? WHY would this ever be a thing?)

It's supposed to be a tear jerker and I get the sentiment because the son ends up coming back home and rocking the mom back and forth and back and forth and back and forth, but y'all.

The story is creepy.

But I have to admit, I kind of like the idea of sneaking into my children's' homes. I've recently decided that I am going to be that creeper mom with a little spin on my breaking and entering. I'm going to climb into my kids windows and...

lose their remote controls
open granola bars and leave the wrappers wedged in the couch
take all of their kids' socks apart and lose one of each pair
brush my teeth and leave dried toothpaste spit in the sink
blow my nose in tissues and just leave them on the ground
use the restroom and forget to flush
use the good scissors to cut pipe cleaners
get out every craft supply and forget how to put them away
leave sticky residue on the back of the dining room chairs
unfold every blanket and rearrange every pillow on their couch

And before I sneak back out the window, I'll make sure to leave a note...

I'll love you forever
I'll like you for always
As long as I'm living
You're crazy momma I'll be

Now THAT is a story.

2.26.2018

Kirstyn...

A few months ago Jeremy surprised us with some exciting news - a baby was on the way! I don't know if any of us believed him at first - ha! 


We of course did what we only know how to do and decided to host a shower to start spoiling that baby as rotten as we could. 


We kept the gathering intimate but the room was definitely filled with lots of love!


A mix of practical and pretty was the perfect combination of helping them prep for baby's arrival!


In a few short weeks we'll be adding one more girl to this mix - those boys sure are outnumbered! 


We've lived together, laughed together, loved together and grown up together. Kirstyn is already so loved by this crew of friends. Can't wait to hold her, welcome her in and let her know about the crazy she was born into! 


Let's eat some cake...

Emersyn has been prepping for her First Reconciliation for the past several weeks. Ryan and I have alternated attending classes as she learns all about the next phase of her journey in our faith. Sadly, she missed her big retreat because the flu had other plans. but we were able to set aside time each night and help her get ready for the big day. The night before she wrote down all the sins that she wanted to ask forgiveness for - she was so nervous that it wasn't enough.


And while I will let those sins remain between her and God, I will say that her innocent words and deep convictions to try harder served as a beautiful reminder about what it means to be enough. 

Because the truth is we are all enough. And if we seek forgiveness the two words "I'm sorry" are more than enough for Him. 


She was one of the first kiddos to see the priest and as her time got nearer, you could feel her get nervous. She grabbed her notes and walked to meet the priest with bravery.  


A few minutes passed, she walked out with a smile and said, "Now let's go get cake!" Y'all - can you imagine if we ALWAYS celebrated His mercy with such enthusiasm?   His mercy to us is WORTH the celebration. Our seemingly trivial "I'm sorrys" are met with such goodness that isn't cake the only logical next step?


As the father greets the prodigal son that returns home from his years away, our Father greets us with the same love and excitement. Each and every time we ask Him. 

“But the father said to his servants, ‘Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let’s have a feast and celebrate. For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found." So they began to celebrate.


I bet there was cake. 

2.23.2018

InstaKings...

We have been a literal hot mess around here. Bed ridden with fevers and snotty noses but we have managed to have some fun in between. So here is a glimpse of us through my phone... 


Emmy may look more like Ryan than me, but there is no denying she's mine as evidenced by her love for a good to do list... 



or should I say a "what do list". And she managed to check each and every item off. 


The kids earned tickets to an Aggie basketball game by reaching a reading goal so the girls and I made our way to Reed Arena to watch the Lady Aggies play.


We ate some popcorn, sucked down some soda, distracted the away team and had the best time ever!


Sometimes the day just calls for a soft serve from McDonalds... sadly the day also called for a different recipe and I'm not a fan. 


Landry wore vintage Katy to school... I have a similar picture of Emmy, I'm just too lazy to go look for it. I'm pretty sure my mom and our neighbor ironed this on for me eons ago and it's still just the cutest. 


I’m so glad that younger, more creative, me thought to make these mailboxes with the kids years ago. They do a great job holding the stuff that Gigi sends for Valentines and the last minute H-E-B purchases we get like chips and micro kites. (Yes, they are a thing and they cost $2 and will last 2 minutes).


Poor Emersyn missed out on the Valentine festivities but did earn herself a trip to the doctor for the second time in three days with a fever that just wouldn't go away.


We happened to run into Hope who was suffering from the same ailment - who could believe these two precious smiling kiddos tested positive for flu?

BOO.


I was leaving for a work trip the next day but not before Holly and Shelly delivered some love in my mailbox. Shelly told me I didn't have to share the tart, but I was nice and let Ryan have the strawberries. ;)  


I was leaving for a work trip on Thursday morning and Johnny decided he was just going to miss me too much to let me go. 


I get to do some pretty amazing things with my job but one of my absolute favorites is working with our graduate students as they enter this crazy field of student affairs. They always end up teaching me way more than I teach them but I have the best memories with these up and coming professionals. 


Teresa lead our team of students in the planning of an awesome conference in Dallas that allowed us to visit awesome companies and hear from thoughtful speakers and it made being away from home a little bit easier.


That and knowing that this sweet girl was being well taken care of by her Daddy. 


Three days with this crew wasn't enough - I tried to talk them into throwing together another conference or staying to plan it again next year but something about graduation, internships, study abroad and jobs keeps getting in the way. 


By Sunday morning, Emersyn was FINALLY fever free - that was SIX full days of a fever and I was so glad to see that smile back on her face and that sparkle back in her eye.


And then... 


MOM DOWN! I capped out a 103 on Monday evening and I have been home in my bed acting like a total adult ever since. You know, whining, shivering, coughing and making Ryan bring me soup. 


That just so happened to be hand delivered by the most thoughtful person in the entire world. 


I'm on the mend, praise the Lord, so let's just pray that next week We5Kings stay fever free!!!

2.16.2018

Friday Favorites: Internet Friends

I can remember being at the ripe old age of 28 and thinking "I am perfectly good never making another friend. I have all the friends I need and they are fabulous." And while I agree with my past self that my friends are super duper fabulous (basically the best friends any one single person can have) I am so glad that God decided I wasn't finished making friends.

At 28 I hadn't yet started this dive into the world of internet friends. Blogging was still new, smart phones didn't exist and Facebook had just started to take over our lives. A few years later I decided to jump on the blog train and while I'm still waiting for my 15 minutes of blog fame, I am so grateful for the gift of friendship that this world has given me.

I'm reminded time and time again that God brings you people when you need them. Jenn and I met at my dear friend's wedding. Niki had known her right after college and made a point to introduce us at her wedding.

:: Katy - Jenn... Jenn - Katy... y'all are going to be best friends. ::

We exchanged awkward, "Ok, sure" glances... chatted for 12 seconds and went on our way. But then I started to read her blog and she started to read mine. We commented... exchanged cell phone numbers... and the rest is history. I have since met her kiddos, stayed at her home (twice) and spent an entire day in Waco doing nothing but eating, laughing and crying through the ups and arounds of life with her. We pray for each other and we just have the most awesome connection all because of words we typed on a screen.



Shelly and Holly were women behind a screen that, turns out, lived right here. Holly lives less than a mile away from my house. In a crazy twist of fate, we met in real life, exchanged phone numbers and they have become women that I turn to for advice, for laughs, for help, for inappropriate jokes... for whatever life throws at me. They are truth tellers and yay-sayers. They accepted me into their sacred circle of friendship and I am better for it.  These women show up in big and small ways. They reminded me that friendship is worth taking the time for. They don't just say, "let's grab a drink" they make sure it happens. And - they bring me wine, and chocolate and strawberry tarts, which is clearly the signs of a true friendship. They welcome all parts of me in - the good, the bad, the cray cray... and they love me for it. 


I really do have amazing friends. Supportive. Strong. Trustworthy. Loyal. Feisty. Sacred. To think of all the threads of the quilt that makes up my entire story of friendship? Oh my gosh - I can't even begin... 

Yes, friendship is my favorite. So thankful for these in-real-life friends of mine! 

2.13.2018

Baller, shot caller...

Emersyn has been asking me since this summer to coach her basketball team. I'm not sure when or why or how she got it in her head to play basketball but she did, and while I was excited that she was so excited to play a game that I LOVE (because let's be honest, it's the best sport ever) I had zero desire or skill to be her coach. 


I mean, don't get me wrong. I'm clearly a baller, but that doesn't mean that I have the patience skill set to be a coach. Specifically a coach to tiny humans... I work with college students for a reason two of which are sarcasm and cuss words. Apparently you can't really use those with 6-7 year olds. 


And here I am, months later with that five letter word emblazoned on the back of my shirt. I channeled all of my coaches through the years, googled all the practice drills I could, coerced talked a friend into coaching with me... and we went to work. 


And by work, I mean we practiced layups, passing, and counted less than 5 steps without dribbling as a win. Oh... and we clearly went over defense.  

#handsup


Things we say during games:

"If we score three times, we'll call it a victory..."


"It doesn't matter what color wristband you are wearing... we can't all have red."


"REBOUND!"


Y'all - coaching is HARD! We get way more into this game than I thought we would... the ref may have to repeatedly tell us to get off the court but in our defense, it's hard to teach them anything when we are STUCK ON THE SIDELINES AS IF WE AREN'T PART OF THIS TEAM! 


This is U6/7 ball and these kids literally run half the court without dribbling. You'd think we'd be more chill. But no.. there is zero chill about us.


The kids, however, have ALL the chill. 


I'm so glad Emmy wanted to play this game. I'm so glad she was persistent and kept asking me to coach.  


And I'm so glad I said yes. Because I wouldn't want to miss any moment of her loving this game. I want a front row seat as long as she invites me in. I want to be the one that teaches her about attitude and effort. I want her to hear from me that sportsmanship outranks skill. I want her to know that she has every ounce of me behind every bit of her. 

No matter what's on the back of my shirt. 


We all show up for each other... in whatever way we can. Coach, parent, sibling, friend... win or lose... these front row seats are the best in the house!



2.09.2018

Tuesdays...

Tuesday has become everyone's favorite day in the King household. We don't have any major plans or commitments except for Emersyn's art lessons with Anna right after school, which means that Tuesday's are spent with the besties. 

Emmy and Anna come home either hiding their latest work for a future surprise reveal or telling us all about the new technique they learned. This week they came home with butterfly tattoos hand crafted by their gifted and creative teacher. Tuesdays are their favorite by far. 


Radley and Caroline are often attached to a screen sitting next to each other either creating videos or forming clans (I think).


Landry and Millicent are usually playing school, being mommys, or jamming out to their anthem


And the actual mommys get to spend time solving all of the world's problems. 

Sometimes we even manage to feed them a home cooked meal. 


All of this on a Tuesday. 


2.08.2018

Tiny Tales Thursday...

Emersyn gently leaned over in church and whispered, "Mom... Jesus' name was King just like ours? Are we RELATED? Like for real?"


A whole new meaning to celebrity status.

2.05.2018

Taking notes...

A couple of years ago I got in the habit of taking notes in church. If we're honest, it was a last ditch effort for me to actually pay attention instead of zoning out and thinking all the thoughts I had that were completely unrelated to the word of God.

You know...

Holy cow, why is that kid screaming?
Does she know her shirt is untucked in the back?
How is she so skinny - she has seven kids?!?!

How much longer is he going to talk?
Where should we eat for lunch?
Do the kids have Sunday school today?
What do we need from Target?

Clearly, Jesus things.

So, I made a commitment to taking notes and once again, I have discovered that when I make a commitment to Him, He outdoes Himself with his commitment to ME. It's like in college - the more I paid attention in class (or even just attended) the better my grades were - and while we don't get graded in life, the more I take notes, the more I understand, the better I live out the word. I invest in Him and not surprisingly, He invests right back in me.


As Emersyn has gotten older she, too, has requested a "journal" for church once again reminding me that she is watching. She pays attention to what I write down and sometimes she copies me word for word and then sometimes she writes her own interpretation of mass. She asks me questions and wants to know what I wrote down. She draws pictures and tries to get Landry to do the same. 

She is taking notes. 

Her relationship with Christ is lead by relationship with Christ. Just as mine was impacted by my parents. My faith has guided me through grief, forgiveness, pain and sadness -  because of my faith I try to turn the question of "why me" into "why not me" during those moments of hard that jump in-between the moments of mundane. My prayer is that her faith (along with her siblings) will do the same - jump up in the mundane and guide through the moments of hard.

Because she is taking notes. 

When I listen.
When I ignore.
When I write down the word.
When I pray out loud. 
When I praise Him.
When I trust Him.

And all the times I don't.

I decided to take notes to help me pay attention in church without realizing that she would be paying attention to me. 

She is taking notes, so I better make sure that my actions are noteworthy.