The Holy Ghost

We are a Christ following family.  We're not perfect, but we follow a Jesus who is.  We, however, speak a lot of "Christian-ese".  This sometimes kicks me in the butt.

I had driven out to my best friends house.  It was late on a Friday, maybe 9:30.  Siri (6) had fallen asleep in the car.  Gannon (10) went inside to clean his friends room and play video games.  Annika, however, wanted her mom.  I did not want to hold Annika.  I wanted to sit, quietly, and talk with my friend about life.  Annika would have none of it.  She is a threenager if there has ever been one.  She is strong willed, smart, and sassy.  This works both for and against me.  Most of the time, she can be reasoned with.  She makes smart choices most of the time, but sometimes (and ONLY sometimes) she out-logics me.
My best friend lives out in the country.  On a farm.  With animals.  They make funny sounds sometimes.  So she and I were sitting outside, and Annika was in my lap.  I was desperately trying to get her to go inside to play a game, go to the potty, get a drink....SOMETHING to give me a moments rest.  I asked her why she didn't want to go inside.  "It's dark.  I'm scared."  I "Christian mom-ed her.  "Sweetie, it's ok.  Jesus is with you.  You're safe."  The house is MAYBE 200 feet from where we were sitting.  There were lights on.  She was being obstinate.

Suddenly, she took a sharp breath in, jumped a little, and clutched her chest.

"Annika!  Are you ok?  What's the matter?"

She did it again.

"Annika, WHAT is going on?"

"Jesus keeps scarring me!"

My friend and I looked at each other.  We tried not to laugh.

My friend asked "Annika, where is Jesus?"

"In my HEART!" came the retort with a sideways look that clearly meant "DUH!"

"But why is he scarry?"

In the most precious way possible, Annika tilted her head to the side, her curls framing her sweet little face. She put both of her hands out to emphasize her explanation...

"Well.  SOMETIMES, Jesus puts a sheet over him.  That's because He's being the Holy Ghost.
Then He scares me!"

*repeat action of sharp breath, hand over heart, little jump*

Really Jesus...

Imagine

Some kids have imaginary friends.  I did.  Mine was named "Janie".  Janie and I had all sorts of fun together.  I don't remember Janie, but mom and dad are happy to remind me of her.  Gannon and Siri both had short lived imaginary friends.  I could probably look back and tell you about them, but this story is about Annika.
Annika is 3, and she has QUITE the imagination.  But Annika doesn't have an imaginary friend.  Annika has Markship.

Driving down the road a few weeks ago, we were discussing where to eat.  We don't eat out often, but when we do, the kids have a say.  Siri wanted Chick-Fil-A, and Gannon wanted Whataburger (life in the world of fast food is pretty much over when we leave Texas).  Of course they couldn't agree.  They both looked to Annika for a decision, a decisive vote.  They each plead their case: "Chick-Fil-A has a PLAYGROUND!  Don't you want to go inside and PLAY!?!?!?"  "Whataburger has COOKIES with the kids meals!  YOU LOVE COOKIES!!!!"  Annika sat stoic, not blinking, not looking at either sibling. She would not be swayed.  She knew what she wanted.  Calmly and quietly, she said, "I want to go to Markship."
Markship.  So, at three, sometimes places we go and things we see and do have names that aren't entirely accurate.  I racked my brain trying to figure out what Markship was.
"Do you mean McDonalds, Annika?"  "No, Mommy, Markship!"  "Annika, do you mean the place we ate all the lobster in Maine?"  "NO, Mommy!  MARKSHIP!"
At a loss, I did what any desperate parent would do.  I asked for clarification.
"What's Markship, Annika?"
"Mommy.  Markship is the restaurant place with the macaroni and cheese.  With bathrooms that are always open if you need to go potty.  It has pink chairs and pink tables and the food is all soooooo yummy!"

She makes this face while she's telling me about the wonders of Markship.  

"Annika, is Markship real?"  "No, mommy, but IMAGINE if it WAS!!!"

Since that day, we've learned much more about Markship.  It also serves chicken and fries and diet sprite (I don't think she's ever HAD diet sprite), has a HUGE playground with water, there are wooden ships on the floor, and the floor is made of wood.  Any time we talk about a place to eat, or what to eat, Marship is recommended.  Sometimes, Gannon and Siri ask if we can try Markship.  Gannon now has a business model to open a restaurant called Markship.  

If you drive past my house this summer, and there are three beautiful kids sitting at a lemonade stand, colored pink of course, be sure to glance at the name.  You're probably visiting the first Markship in the USA.  Tip well.

Deep thoughts with Annika and Siri

We're currently driving from Galesburg, Illinois back to our home in Texas. The weather has been... questionable for December in the mid west.  Right this very moment, I'm in the bathroom of a Kum-n-go, taking the advice of my grandmother, "if you have the chance to try to go, you should at least try.".
I walked past a conglomeration of cheap redneck souvenir options and into the overly florally deodorized particle board- paneled stall.  Siri had already locked herself in the smaller of the two stalls and I could see her feet swinging as she sat.  I pulled down Annikas pants and sat her on the stained, plastic toilet seat.  I tried not to think of what else had occupied that spot today.
Siri and Annika often have bathroom conversations, but this one was more profound than normal. 
" Annika, these bathrooms are wood, and that means they are nice. And expensive.  Do you know what wood is made of? "
Don't laugh, don't laugh, don't laugh... She was so serious with her delivery...
"Annika, this wood... It's made from TREES.  wood is made from TREES, Annika.  Remember that the wood you see in nature, it's made from TREES.".
Annikas eyes lit up.  She wiped and got off the potty using entirely too much palm-to-toilet contact for my comfort.  She touched the paneling.  " oOoooOoOooh!  Trees are made of WOOD...."

We still have 10 hours to drive...

And, Annika probably has Ebola.

A whole lot of fun and a whole lot of Jesus

Getting the car detailed before we leave

If you don't know about my camping trip, you have to check it out on my other blog, The Jolly Camper.  We're getting ready.  We're making progress on packing.  Laundry piles are starting to dwindle (as much as they can when you have 2 little girls that change outfits 34u2879572389-7 times a day.  Yes I realize there are letters in that number.)  We've been to the bank.  We've been to Target.  We've been back to Target.  We're so close to ready.

The most popular question I get asked is: HOW DO YOU DO IT?

Patience:  I am not a naturally patient person.  In fact, I'm rather impatient.  As a critical care nurse, I like excitement, and I like to see results. Right.  NOW.  Being patient with gas station clerks (I use all cash, so I see a LOT of these people), state park rangers, other campers, TRAFFIC, my very own CHILDREN....the Lord really pushes me to grow in patience over these times. Essential.

Cash: I pay for the trip in cash. We have a set budget that Gordon and I work out months in advance, then I work my TAIL off to be able to play hard.  I have people tell me all the time, "don't work so hard that you forget to live!"  Um, yah.  I'd say taking a month of work totally off to show my kids HALF the country is living.  We follow the teachings of Dave Ramsey and live like no one else, so we can live like no one else.  I drive a $900 car to and from work, we live in a home where our mortgage payment (which will be paid off early) is only a quarter of one of our incomes, we don't eat out.  But by golly, if we want to eat a lobster in Maine, we eat lobster in Maine!

Trust: My husband is a very understanding and trusting man.  He has NO problem "allowing" me to take our kids for a month because, one, he trusts me, and two, he trusts the benefit of our kids getting to travel and experience.  THANK YOU, Gordon for trusting me with our precious little people :)

Flexibility: Yes, I plan.  Yes, there is an itinerary, but wow, it is fluid.  We know the places we want to stop, but if a local tells us to do something different, we go.  If somewhere we go sucks, we leave.  If we want to spend an extra day somewhere because it is amazing, we do.  This works in with my section on "patience."  A. Lot.

Stupidity/Bravery: Honestly, I haven't' figured out where camping with 4 kids over a month falls on the stupid/brave spectrum.  It's probably right in the middle, which is about right for me.  But the pay off is so so so so so so so so so worth it!

Jesus:  We try to keep Jesus as the center of our home.  And our van.  That makes everything I listed above possible.  Without a heart of Love, the peace that surpasses all understanding, the fruit of the spirit, and finances that honor God first, this whole thing goes up in smoke.  If I have to pull off the side of the road  because Gannon just won't stop kicking the seat because he's mad that Siri got to pick the last movie and Annika can't fall asleep for her nap because Gannon is kicking and Siri is crying and I'm yelling and Kayleigh is wondering WHAT in the world is going on, we pull over.  And we pray.  And we ask for forgiveness from each other, from our Lord, and we ask Jesus to remind us that HE created all the things we have set out to see, and HE created our beautiful little family that I love SO much, and HE is the one we praise for eternity.

That's about it.  Everything else is a fly by the seat of our pants adventure which is the fun part!  Hope you enjoy following The Jolly Camper over the next month.  Read, Comment, Share, SUBSCRIBE, and Enjoy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  

TOMORROW, WE RIDE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Faces

I was looking through my camera the other day, needing to upload some of the 2000 pictures I have of our travels over the past year.  
You can view those on my blog The Jolly Camper

Here are some of the "Selfies" I found.  

For your viewing pleasure, Ladies and Gents...

Breakfast

Mornings in my house are hard.  I know I've mentioned before that Mr. Koenig has a hard time waking up, so I count on him for bedtimes.  Mornings, well, that's all me.  Between the Siri throwing fits about her outfit,

(She wanted to wear her skirt inside out.  I said no.  Then I said yes.)

Gannon needing to work on his 6-pack

(Teeth were't brushed, please note he is not wearing socks.....yet)

And Annika with her........Siri-ness

Most of the time, they don't get breakfast at home.  Sometimes, I am a stellar mom and make instant oatmeal, but cheerios in a cup are the staple.  No milk, just plain, dry cheerios.  Driving to school this morning, 2.5 days before Christmas break, I won the mom of the year award.  I TOTALLY forgot food for ANYONE.  Whoops.  Fortunately, I think we were out of the house in enough time for the kids to eat *gasp* school breakfast.  

I got a rapid response of extreme enthusiasm, which surprised me.  Siri cleared it up.

"Mommy!  You are the best mommy in the world, do you know why?  Because at school, they have my favorite kind of Cheerios!  They are my favorite because they RAINBOW Cheerios!  They are EVERY COLOR, mommy!"

I was a little confused, trying to think of the specific type she was describing when Gannon pipped in, annoyed as his sisters excitement.

"Fruit Loops, Siri.  They're Fruit Loops".

Food Poisoning

Gordon has always had a hard time waking up.  A Really.  Hard.  Time.  We went through a four alarm clock stage, we went through the "Christmas Bells Alarm" phase, we've thought about getting a taser for wake ups!  There have been some interesting "the kids woke up but he didn't" moments in our lives.  Yesterday was one of those days.  I was at work and I got the text...

Gordon:  "I fell back asleep and woke up at 8:45...  Gannon was eating and feeding Annika the spaghetti that had been left on the table overnight..."

He went on to tell me how he had educated Gannon about food poisoning, especially with meat and dairy, and that he appreciated him taking care of his sister, but to be aware of the dangers of eating left out food.  Gannon was more than concerned for his sisters safety, apologized to Gordon for feeding her possibly contaminated food, and cleaned up the mess.  But Gannon doesn't just let things go.  Not that easily.  He ruminates and obsesses.  He over thinks.  He's also a bit of a hypochondriac.

Later that same day, I got this text....

Gordon: "Gannon just told me that " well, at least I didn't catch the food poison... But I did have skinny poop this morning, and THAT is not ordinary..."

Stars and Stripes Forever.....

It has become a tradition over the past few years to spend the 4th of July either at work, or with my best friend and her family.  Its a 50/50 split, and often I feel like Work and Family share custody....not really.  So this year was our turn with the Real family.  We had prepared the kids with conversation about the freedom we enjoy in America, about the birth of our great nation, we watched parts of "1776" and "Independence Day".  We had fabulous food, beer, pie, kids running amuck with sparklers, poppers, and a sundry of other pyrotechnics.  It was a grand time!  About an hour into blowing up various fireworks, Gannon ran in his normal hyper-excited state to myself and Sharee and asked the question of the night...
"HOW LONG TILL WE COUNT DOWN TO MIDNIGHT!!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!"

180 days, Gannon.  Wrong Holiday.

The 40 Essential Items to 24 Days on the Road with Your Kids

The 40 Essential Items to 24 Days on the Road with Your Kids

ie:  The Packing List

19 days from right now, I'll be taking off with my four kids (ages 16, 8, 5, and 1) on a grand adventure of a road trip.  We'll be visiting 14 states in 24 days and camping IN THE CAR!  I'll be posting on how we're fitting an air mattress in the back of the van here soon.  So, here's the conundrum: I have to be able to fit everything from the trunk in the front two seats for sleeping.  Here, I'll show you....

This is the layout of the van.  See the trunk space?  See the front seat space?  Well, the whole list of stuff, minus the air mattress, sleeping bags and pillows need to go from the back.......................

to in between the front seat and the dash.  This includes Annika's car seat.  So I'm posting my list to make sure I didn't forget anything, or maybe even skinny it down!  Please comment below.  I appreciate you reading!

1.  Air Mattress
2. Sleeping Bags x4
3. Pillows
4. Cooler with Ice
5. Bread, Peanut butter, Jelly, and a knife
6. fruit/crackers/snacks/cheese
7. WATER
8. Cups for A
9. Binkies for A
10. Diapers/wipes for A
11. 1 pair long pants each
12. 3 pair shorts each
13. 5 pair underwear each
14. 5 t-shirts each
15. 1 sweatshirt/jacket each
16. 1 pair tennis shoes each
17. 1 pair Sandals each
18. 5 pair socks each
19. 1 swim suit each
20. 1 towel each
21. 2 pair jammies each
22. deodorant
23. shampoo
24. conditioner
25. body wash
26. toothbrushes
27. toothpaste
28. face wash
29. moisturizer
30. Sunscreen
31. Bug spray
32. Benadryl/Motrin/tylenol/valium
33. money
34. tampons/pads
35. MOVIES
36. BOOKS
37. Emergency Kit
38. Atlas
39. Tablet/charger
40. Cell phones/charger

24 days, 14 states, 5 Koenigs.....

Website Countdowns

In ^^^ period of time, I (the lone adult) am leaving with my four kiddos ages 16, 8, 5, and 1, on a serious adventure. We are leaving July 19th and going to be visiting: Houston, NOLA, Memphis,TN, Galesburg, IL, Omaha, NE, Denver, CO, Salt Lake City, UT, Redding, CA, Grand Canyon, AR, Carlsbad, NM, and various sites in between. We'll be sleeping in the car....did I forget to mention that? SO FOLLOW this blog for updates on how the kids are doing with preparation, pics of our set up, and in so many days, our 2014 vacation! I'd love to hear from you just how you think this will go.

There is Power in the Struggle

My family comes under scrutiny at times.  We aren't super conventional.  We go about things a different way.  My mother has told me "we live in our own little world", and I have to agree with her accuracy.  We live in a different world.  We live in a world of accountability.  We live in a world of responsibility.  We live in a world of failure, and failure being ok.  We do this because there is power in the struggle.

My kids don't have everything they want.  They share rooms.  This is unfair and unjust, I hear.  They "need" their space.  They are "entitled" to privacy.  I STRONGLY disagree.  I can't think of a time in their lives when they won't have to share space.  They will have room mates in college, or a lot of room mates if they choose to join the military.  Then they will have house mates while they figure life out.  Ultimately, they will probably have a spouse and kids.  There is no privacy.  there is no space.  There is coping and shifting.  There is struggle with relationship and communication.  There is power in the struggle.

Gannon doesn't have a phone.  At seven years old, he doesn't have a phone.  This is unfair and unjust, I hear.  He "needs" to be able to communicate.  "Times are changing" I hear.  Times aren't changing so much that my seven year old needs a phone.  Where in the world is he going to be, at seven years old, that an adult with a phone won't be within arms distance?  Why do I wan't to text my seven year old son at school?  I'm supposed to be at work, and he's supposed to be learning, NOT on his phone.  No phone means talking, board games, art projects, trampolines, and being different.  Different is a struggle, but there is POWER in the struggle.

My kids don't get paid for chores.  This is unfair and unjust, I hear.  I don't get paid for my chores.  No one hands me a five dollar bill and tells me what a good job I've done when the electricity stays on every month.  I don't get a pat on the back when there is breakfast food available.  When my kids don't get their chores done, they are yelled at.  What do you think happens if the electricity is disconnected, or there isn't food?  No one would say, "It's ok.  I know how busy you are.  We'll get it back on in the next few days...."  Chores are a struggle, and discipline is a struggle.  Working together to make the house run smoothly as a family is a STRUGGLE, but there is POWER in the struggle!

My parents taught me that I don't need the best of the best of the best, SIR.  My parents taught me to work for what I have, to trust God and do the right thing.  They also taught me that even then, there is struggle.  Life isn't fair.  It isn't right sometimes (and there is a difference between fair and right).  My parents taught me that money isn't everything, and that failure is inevitable and OK.  My parents taught me that it isn't the NUMBER of friends, but the QUALITY of friends that counts.  My kids don't have playdates every day.  Their biggest struggle is in our family relationship, but there is SO much POWER in that STRUGGLE!

If a butterfly doesn't struggle out of its cocoon, it will be a wet slop of an insect that can't fly on it's own.  That butterfly is the 24 year old kid that can't pay their own cell phone bill because their parents have always done that for them.  That butterfly will never be appreciated for the beauty of its color, because that butterflies wings are underdeveloped.  They probably believe that they are ENTITLED to fly, that it is their RIGHT.

I    SAY    NO!

Struggle through the hard times, and when you need to fly, you will and it will be breath taking and beautiful.  Struggle through and you will have success.  Not in everything, but you will have success.  You will have independence.  You will have an identity outside of me.

Alia, Gannon, Siri and Annika, I love you enough to let you struggle...because you need to be able to fly on your own.  My beautiful beautiful children, there is POWER in your struggle!