Well, there you have it...

Do you know him?

Be sure to mute the music on my blog....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=upGCMl_b0n4

The Table.

Hold on to your seats! This is a story about triumph, completing the ol' 180 degree turn, and arising out of the rubble. Imagine yourself feeling hopeless....all is lost. You need to be saved. You are beaten down and feeling like life is worthless. You are practically trash waiting to be picked up and thrown into a pile of life's sad, worn down rejections. Now...if you can even come close to imagining this dark place with no hope for light at the end of the tunnel...then you can get a mere glimpse of how it felt.

Meet.....

The Table.

Yes, friends...I, Emily Wood, went dumpster diving. Actually, it wasn't really dumpster diving per se....it was more trash tip-toeing, pile picking, or even better -- curb consigning. And you should have seen me doing it. You probably would have laughed. Here's the dramatic low-down.

I have been on the hunt for a new table/desk for my new little impromptu craft area that is nestled cozily in our guest bedroom. Up until the birth of my new table, I have had a huge, heavy, monster of a table. You know, the ones that have the fold down legs. You usually see them displaying garage sale items on someone's driveway. Well, I made it work. I covered it with fabric and dressed it up a bit. Blah blah blah. It was still ugly. But, getting a new table for that space was on our priority list...okay, my priority list...right above organizing the garage, which falls at #216. It just wasn't something that was going to happen very soon. So, one early evening, it was a Tuesday to be exact. The sun was setting into a horizon that was filled with shades of lavender and mauve, the temperature sat at a pleasant 62 degrees (I don't know, I just made that up), and the house was filled with a screaming hungry 18 month old sassy pants -- that's why I decided to take her out in her stroller for a walk. And it was the walk that changed the fate of The Table. I'm walking, walking, walking, and as I near the end of the street, there is was. It was lifeless and hidden among the rest of the trash. It was one of those moments when you see someone you think you might know and you want to stare until you can figure it out but you don't want to get caught staring. Yeah. I stared at that table and looked away. Stared, looked away. I didn't want anyone to see that I was checking out this person's pile of rubbish. So, I did a U-ey and checked it out again. It was covered in dust, stains, it was missing a leg...it was gonna to be a project. I didn't get a close look at it but I saw enough that I walked a little bit faster to get home so I could tell Keith about my life changing event.


Long story longer. I slept on it. I would wake up frequently in a panicked night sweat imagining my table out in the cold night air. It was all alone. Should I go get it now? It's 2am..hm....but please, I didn't want to seem obsessive! So I laid back down and continued to imagine what things would be like with The Table in my life.

The next morning, Ava and I went on another leisurely walk. I suddenly felt the urge to get in touch with nature, visit with the birds, soak in the early morning sun if you will. And I managed to find myself back in front of the same pile of trash. I don't know how I got there, seriously. I just followed Ava as she rode in the stroller. The table was still there. It was like it had been untouched. It had made it though the night only looked upon by the angels. But, ladies and gentlemen, I had no time to contemplate any further. Not only could I hear the faint rumble of our garbage truck friends, I saw in the distance a white pick up truck coming in my direction. I turned away pretending to enjoy the breeze on my face but it didn't help the truck disappear. He pulled up right behind me! If I were Hercules-woman, I would have thrown The Table over my shoulder and ran. But I couldn't. Somehow, I had to get back to my car and back down the the curb before my white pickup corner consigner stole my treasure. I had no time to think. I turned that stroller around and ran like my pants were on fire. I ran in my flip flops with a jogging stroller as Ava screamed out "yee-haw!" It was a sight. I threw Ava in the carseat (that is an exaggeration, people), started the car, and drove without looking back. I may have peeled out in the middle of the street, I don't know. Maybe there are tire marks. I popped the back gate up on my SUV, ran over to the table, picked it up, and slid it in. This all happened in about 45 seconds. That man in the white pickup didn't know what hit him! That was because he was also not in his truck. I think he lived next door. But that is beside the point now! He could have been telling all of his friends about this awesome table on his next door neighbor's curb.

So, as I am driving 2.7 mph down the street with a highly confused toddler, I see it....was I dreaming? In another person's trash pile, probably 6 more houses down the street was the FOURTH LEG. The FOURTH LEG TO MY TABLE. The choirs were singing, I'm telling you. So, I pull up my driveway, turn off the car, and ran like the fire in my pants was still raging. I grabbed the leg and made it back to base. I pulled the table out and put it in the garage where I could protect it from the rummaging world. And then I logged in all of my running time on our Wii Fit so I wouldn't get in trouble for missing a day to re-construct my table. Now, take a breath. And if you have a Wii Fit, you can now log in your time for reading this blog. Good work!


So...it is done. Thanks to my wonderful hubby, a few sheets of sand paper, a couple of blocks of wood, 2 coats of paint that nearly stained my hands black, and a layer of clear coat glaze, I have me a dandy craft table. You wanna know what it cost me? $3.50. The cost of my clear coat that was on clearance. Yeah. I'm psyched.

The moral of the story? Don't wear flip flops while your running with a 23lb. toddler. AND, don't ever pass up an opportunity like this one! You'll wish you hadn't!

Now...I wish I was crafty, then I could actually use this table. KIDDING! I have already hot glued egg shakers on this thing! And it didn't collapse. Now that's impressive.

Thanks for reading. Now go to your own local curb consignment sale. It may even be right next door.

I'm such a Mommy...

"You know you are a Mommy when...."

By Emily K. Wood, Inspired by Ava Claire Wood

You know you are a Mommy when...

- you put your coffee mug in the microwave at 8am. At 5pm, your husband comes home and says to the beeping microwave "Honey, your coffee is ready."

- after the dog barks you say "Baby, you're okay."

- you contemplate not putting your sweet tumbling toddler in the church nursery because you know they will call CPS when they see her little bruised legs.

- you go to the store by yourself and tell the empty shopping cart to "hold on, Mommy just needs to grab something off of the shelf."

- you get back home from the store and just realize that you enjoyed an entire episode of Elmo in the car all by yourself.

- you get up at 7:00am to leave the house to go somewhere by 9:00am only to pull down the driveway at 10:00am.

- you want to declare April 8th a national holiday because the Costco down the road finally opened.

- you take your shirt off at the end of the day and find 3 goldfish crackers in your bra.

- you open the Goldfish cracker bag and find in it a strategically placed pink bracelet, plastic sheep, and a broken crayon.

- you determine how good your day was based on the number of temper tantrums your spirited child had (or how many you had...).

You know you are a Mommy when...

- you feel like you might need to go to the ER after laughing so hard.

- you stop in the middle of the mall and cry because for no reason known to you, your sweet baby gave you a hug.

- you melt because your little lamb said her first "Amen" after a nightly prayer.

- you stare at the baby monitor about to go to sleep and wait until you see a foot twitch, a belly move, or a finger budge...when you see something...anything...then you can go to bed.

- you can't stop staring at God's amazing creation and wonder "How on earth did He do that?"

------------------------------------------

"Come on, Bubba..."

"I SAID come ON, Bubba!"

"Fine. I will take my other puppy for a walk then."

"Okaaaaay...let's go!"

So Ava has started to break dance. Yes, friends. Break dance. She will start out my doing her signature tap routine as she says "Duz, duz, duz" (that is Ava-nese for "Dance"). Then she will proceed to sit down on the floor and spin in circles. She will roll, she will flail her arms, she will belly flop. She does it all. And she thinks she is just the greatest at it, too.

Taking a break.

Thanks for reading.

Emmy K and her 5K...

So when I was in Jr. High School, I joined the track team. I have no idea why. Maybe it was because all of my friends did it. Or, maybe it was because I wanted the privilege of wearing shorts and a tank top at school. Or, maybe it was because on meet days, we got out of school early. It certainly wasn't because I enjoyed any aspect of getting the exercise. You see, I played soccer, and to me, that was enough physical exertion for one week. I remember being a nervous wreck before each meet. I would get sick to my stomach and nearly have a panic attack. It had gotten so bad once that I had to call my dad to come pick me up -- I never ran that race. I never "placed" in any of my races. And mind you, I ran the 800m. That's twice around the track, friends. Twice. 1-2-done. Then something happened to me in college. I had an epiphany. What? Exercise is good for you? Now, at times I did take it a little too far. But little by little, I actually began to enjoy getting my pulse up. I always did it on my own time though. The "Bear Trail" at Baylor became my best friend. And low and behold, Jillian from The Biggest Loser did make daily appearances on my TV in my living room after Ava was born. So although fitness began to play a bigger part in my life, as well as Keith's, I never had any interest in running a "race." Flashback again to Jr. High -- I had no interest in losing my lunch over a couple of laps.

This weekend, I overcame that. And now I want more. I rarely brag on myself (on purpose). But for the first time in a long time, I am truly proud of what I accomplished. Yes, I'm proud of running my first 5K, yes I am proud of myself for working up to the point of being able to run it at a good time, and yes I am proud that I am digging out "garage sale" clothes because I never thought I would wear them again. But I am mostly proud because I did something that always made me scared, I did it well, and I want to do it again and again and again. And instead of calling my Dad beforehand because I just couldn't bear to run it, I called him afterwards, to tell him I finished. So, stay tuned. There will be more.

Before the race: So remember when I mentioned in my last blog that I wanted to bet a bubble for Ava? Well -- here it is! No more stomach bugs! There are slots in it for food and water. J/K! Like I had to say that! Of all mornings, the Lord in Heaven above decided to make this one a cold one. I actually think the wind at times helped me out. That's what He was up too. Tryin' to help his girl OUT!

The finish line. Not gonna lie...I was not wishing I had taken the 10K route. Maybe next time.

Next time I run, I'm gonna get me a hat like my friend in the green jacket here. I would be the coolest. Did I just say "coolest?" Aye, aye, aye.

Now here's some of my sweet pumpkin pie...

Ava has started to laugh at almost everything (and she has also gotten really good at throwing temper tantrums...Momma's making a time out chair. It will then be in stand-by mode.) But even if Keith or I just laugh, Ava will laugh, too. She doesn't want to be left out! Sometimes it is literally a "HA!" and then she's done. She's pretty hysterical. I can't wait to hear all of the funny things that come out of her mouth. She does call Elmo "Elbow." Yeah...that's pretty cute.

Daddy would be so proud. Look at how she has her cars all lined up so perfectly! I know! I did that!

Sassy LOVES her "joo joo." She has completely emptied out my jewelry box. If our closet door is open, she is in there, putting on her jewelry and high heels.

I showed Ava that she could put her "Super Friends" (as we call them) on the window sill. Now she is ALWAYS in her little corner playing with them. As soon as her feet touch the ground after breakfast, she goes over there and says "Hey!" and plays and plays and plays.

"What?"

Thanks for reading.