My Recycled House - in pictures

This is just a tidbit of some of the things we have done. Just enough to get some of you off my back. :)

First, we are recycling a manufactured home. Nothing is standard in these things. They have their own "standard." For instance, the cabinets do not accommodate anything wider than a dinner plate. Thank you, IKEA, for a $14 pot rack. It's perfect.



Also, my pizza pans love their new spot on the wall. The fact that they couldn't fit into the "normal" kitchen storage areas was really crushing their self-esteem. Nothing a few screws and wall anchors can't fix.



Told you I have color! Most of the walls you are seeing were covered in flower patterns of hunter green and mauve. Did you notice my big, giant clock? When we left Shiloh Terrace Baptist Church to move to Oklahoma, this was their gift to us. So, to all my Shiloh peeps - LOVE my big, giant clock!

I have a refrigerator now ... right there ... just sitting in the kitchen. CRAZY! So, we are eating much, much better again, because ... well, like I said - it's just RIGHT THERE!



Made up the weekly menu all cutsie. It will never happen again, but was a good way to christen the new cooling unit. (note the picture of Fat Christine - she has been hiding while we were in the trailers - I did not miss her, or any of her chins)



I have been inundated with green. I'm pretty sure even the air in this house is green. So, I had all of these green flowers all. over. the. mirrors. in my bathroom and the kitchen. Here is what the bathroom looked like (note the delightful hunter green and mauve vertical stripes peeking through the first layer of primer - they think they have a chance, but they are going DOWN!).




And here is what I did to the overgrowth of flowers on the bathroom mirrors.




The kitchen looked the same as the bathroom mirrors, but I took the time to actually paint brown OVER the green. Turned out super cute. Yet, took me approximately two hours per panel. Needless to say, by the time I got to the bathroom ... yeah, I was thinking solid was the way to go (and the pattern is raised, so it looks a little cool behind the thick brown border).




This was the color of the front living area when we moved in.



And here it is now.



Also, I noticed everyone has been posting lots of pics of leaves as their colors turn. So beautiful. Yet, I knew it was Fall just a few days ago, and I didn't even have to look outside. You see, in my house, the changing of this season happens when "Dave Campbell's Football" shows up next to the toilet.



Have a great weekend.

New meaning for the phrase "Hook 'Em, Horns!"

Last night was a good night ... mostly.

Michael took the kids in for activities in town. Two of them were sidelined with him because of behavior. The biggest point here is that they. were. not. with. me.

Mom needed a big, phat break.

So, I was watching the Colbert Report, working on a Griddler, drinking a green smoothie for dinner, and listening to the herd of cows outside my window as they were walking and grazing ever so slowly.

It was just what I needed.

A few minutes in, I heard some very loud mooing. That is not unusual. I mean, we're surrounded by livestock! Yet, this was ... umm ... very enthusiastic.

Me, in my impeccable timing, moved closer to the window where I could see not only the herd of black cows in one field, but the edge of the other land at the other side of our trailer. That's when I saw it.



In this other field are some Longhorns. They are beautiful. I LOVE having them right beside us. One of them, in particular, is huge.

Let me repeat that: HUGE!!

So, again, in my impeccable timing, I near the window to see the HUGE Longhorn just carrying on like crazy, trotting in a dead sprint down the fence line ... with the HUGEST erection I have ever seen in my life - just a flipping and a flopping. He made it to the fence (which is electric - but he's been known to lean on it and bend it over anyway). He stands there, with his junk almost to the ground, pacing back and forth and just wailing in desperation. Hoping upon hope that one of those cows will make their way over to him. How he didn't trip over his, er, fifth "leg," I'll never know.

What did I do? Called my husband (cause, ya' know, it made me think of him - and for his sake, go ahead and assume it's the extra "leg" part).

What did he do? Laughed and then told me to get my butt off the phone and blog about it.

(photo by Randa Clay)

Making a house a ... house

No, I don't have pictures for you. I have been buried.

Lots of peeing on bedding to stink up the house.

Mmmmmm. You know how I love the pee. Apparently ... SO DOES ONE OF MY KIDS!

Another child has had many days of tighter boundaries. This has been our routine lately. Their heart and head are starting to associate negative feelings with a sense of entitlement, instead of what it normally is - a wonderful high! We have had some genuine tears. There has been regret and some good attempts at change. Still, it won't change quickly. Just what we're focusing on right now. Keeping them within earshot and eye shot.

I have color on my walls. Lots and lots of COLOR! It makes me smile. Granted, I still have lots and lots and LOTS of walls which are still waiting their turn. Others are awaiting their second coat.

The refrigerator and stove arrived today. Tomorrow we will have the wiring done so we can actually plug in and utilize the stove. There are no words for how excited I am to have refrigeration in my actual kitchen. By tomorrow night I can steam vegetables without having to wait 35 minutes for the water to boil. Pretty cool.

We have had a lot of rain, and our "yard" is still a giant mud pit. So, it is entertaining to get to our doors. It will be quite a while before we can do a driveway or decking. So, for now, we are high class, baby. A few boards and old siding make for high end sidewalks.

I found something behind the drawers in the master bath. Will post a picture. It's not as shocking as what I found in the guest bath, but still ... kinda' "Huh?"

(photo by iamwahid)

Magical Milk Pic-o-the-Week

This was the first delivery at the Heartline Women's Program in Haiti. You can join with them to personally make a big difference in the lives of more women. Click here to find out how.

(photo compliments of Beth McHoul)


Remember, you can always submit your own Magical Milk Pic! Just shoot it to me via email: christinemoers [at] hotmail [dot] com

Summer does not like Christians

I could not have found a more appropriate post to link to on a Sunday.

My favorite Summer in the whole wide world does not like Christians.

Read it. Chew on it. Digest it.

If you heave, then lick it back up off the ground and wash it down with a glass of reality.

RAD Quote of the Week

From Diana, who I love very much. We are so very different, but so very the same (which is my favorite kind of person!). She is an encouragement to me. You will not find a mother who advocates or fights harder for her kids ... even when it means getting snarky.

Today's quote is just a little reminder for all of us. We have all found ourselves being judgmental in some way at some time. My high point was before I had kids and I knew EVERYTHING about parenting. Anyone else? Come on ... I see that hand, sister!

I will say that one of the most painful things I've had said to me in the last year and a half was, "Ah heck, MY kids do that!" You could probably isolate some of these behaviors and identify them as "developmentally appropriate." However, in our homes, they are multiplied by a million and then laced with speed.

Oh, how I wish I were exaggerating. Seriously. No exaggeration.

And on that note ... ladies and gentlement ... Diana:

"What? You don’t get it? You can’t imagine an adorable precious 5 year old child creating this much terror and driving their mother to such lunacy? You want to try to minimize the situation or one-up me by telling me this is just “normal” kid stuff and your “normal” kid does this, too? Perhaps you’re finding yourself wanting to dole out all sorts of benevolent parenting advice…or maybe you’re tempted to judge me because of my honesty and blame me for causing all the problems – maybe he’s the way he is because I’m too strict in some areas or too permissive in others or because I have anger issues of my own? Well, let me tell you. If you fall into any of those categories above, spare me the lecture (I’ve heard them all anyway) and get down on your knees right now and thank God that you don’t get it. Seriously. Rather than trying to play the hero armchair quarterback, get down and thank God that you don’t know what it’s like to live with a traumatized child…a child who is the way he is because of the STUPID, SELFISH choices of other people…and then pray that His grace and mercy and strength will be with those of us who do live with these kids and that He will carry us through the rough times like this. And when you’re done, hug your own kids a little tighter; catch them doing something right; express a little more gratitude for them; take a few minutes to play with them and don’t forget to tell them just how much you love them and how glad you are to be their parent."

We love our children. We do not regret our children. We accept and embrace this crazy, RADical life we live. We are committed to their health and well being. And we absolutely, positively cannot do it alone. If you are called to be in our lives, to be our support, we will kiss you on the mouth and let you know what we need from you (always, ALWAYS, start with something sweet and fattening). If you just don't get it, don't feel bad. It even took all of US a long time to get it. Just journal it. Keep it to yourself unless you are asking questions to learn and understand more. Our children are scared, yes, but it does result in us getting emotionally beat to a pulp each and every day.

As my Mom and Dad used to say (usually to a Deacon - ba-dum-bum-CHING!), "Hey! I can get this kind of abuse at home. I don't need it from you!"




"It takes a village to keep a special needs parent from jumping off the roof."
-Christine Moers

Does trauma define a child?

For years I have heard people say things like, "My disease/disorder/illness does not define me!" I'd pump my fists in the air and think to myself, "YEAH!"

When Twitchy Mac hit full-blown Tourettes, life was hard. Yet, she still had her friends and her interests and her sense of humor. She was so much more than Tourettes or the compulsions or the acid reflux, even when it altered her life.

So, I've always agreed with that thinking ... until about a year and a half ago. I still believe a diagnosis does not define a person. But I must admit that it can be very difficult to feel that way when you have a very hurting child.

I realize this could initially make me sound like I don't have hope, or I can't see my kids for who they really are. That is so not true. But I had to learn how to do that. Let me explain.

For about nine months, we did not see, hear or experience who one of our kids really is - the person they were born to be. Their true self emerged very slowly. They had obsessions over certain objects, but in unhealthy ways. If we asked, "What would you like to do today?" the answer was either "I don't know" or "What is so-and-so doing?" Everyday. For a very, very, very long time.

Maybe not every kid - but for many of us, we have watched trauma define our children. It defines every word from their mouth, every action they make, every ounce of sleep, every thing which goes in their mouths, everything which comes out of their body (and how it is deposited ... many times NOT in an appropriate place), every thought and belief they have about themselves.

I'm also here to say: our children - OUR REAL CHILDREN - are in there. Both of mine are emerging. They now have favorite foods and things they would rather decline. They have interests that they enjoy and choose to do regularly. They have things that make them smile and bring them joy. They are funny. They have empathy for people in their path.

My healing kids have "things." They have "favorites." They have "interests." It's wonderful to see and experience. I still have days when the history and the patterns and the disorder make me shake my fist at the sky and think it will never, ever, ever, ever, ever, EVER end. Yet, so much of it has been left behind. I'm just a mom. I want them to be free from all of it.

Do what I do. Sit down with all your kids and play, "Stuff You Don't Do Anymore." Make a list of behaviors, obsessions, etc., they have left behind. Add to it every few months. It helps me to keep the big picture ... ya' know ... on those bad days when they are still working through their "stuff." They are in there! It's just that the trauma is smothering the "real child" underneath.


(photo by Nikolya Magukov)

Magical Milk Pic-o-the-Week

Korean mother breastfeeding her baby as she transports all her belongings in a washbasin balanced on her head while retreating southward from Seoul. Korea (North), 1951.

(photo by Carl Mydans)

Sometimes you just have to wait it out

If I've learned only one thing in my life it is that things can change on a dime.

I hate to wait. I can, and I do. Yet, I despise the process.

Remember how the dude who owns the land across from the park refused to let us run an electric pole over there? And remember how we had to write a very painful check for thousands of dollars to run electricity down the easement? Remember all that?

Well, the wonderful guy with the county cooperative electric company continued to do all he could to help us. He let us know ahead of time that we could get some of that money back if we made sure the house had the wheels removed and was anchored. This makes it a "permanent residence" and it costs less to run the line. All we had to do was ask the county to come back out and inspect it. If it qualified, we would get a check back and save some money.

These were the words we kept hearing: "some money." Geez, even a few hundred dollars back would be GREAT! We were praying for $200-$300.

Today, though, we got the check.

And ... we got a few THOUSAND back.

Hold on .....

Had to go look at the check again to still make sure I'm reading it right.

The total cost to us is now just barely over what it would have cost if little-land-owning guy had let us run the pole on his property.

We're just OUT a few hundred.

What I haven't been able to keep you abreast on is the general expectations of a repo. Do you think a house gets repossessed and someone DOESN'T sneak out and swipe all of the copper pipes for the AC? There's an expectation that much will be broken and anything worth value has been stripped, stolen or pried. So, over the past two days, some of our costs were going up as we get things hooked up. We expected it, yet it's still no fun to watch your funds drain more quickly than you would like.

And then you get the check from the county cooperative ... ya' know ... "some money."

My Jesus, I love thee ... like crazy cakes. Sorry about the whole sucking at patience thing.



(photo by Katia Gelman)

My life is never ordinary

* Michael is substituting at a high school today ... the COSMETOLOGY class! Those who know him, get your butts on Facebook and let the harassment begin. I think he should sit down before bed tonight with plenty pot shots and bald jokes. Ya' know, cause i luv him.

* I am currently reading "Stolen Innocence: My Story of Growing Up in a Polygamous Sect, Becoming a Teenage Bride, and Breaking Free of Warren Jeffs." Yes, once you get through the title, you're almost 3/4 of the way done. Still - intriguing.

* Got so excited about a new sprayer from my mother-in-law, I was Spray-n-Growing blindly and hopped right onto a red ant bed. 20+ bites later I was doing the ant-bite-dance and screaming for the boys to bring me some aloe vera (we have them all over the place down here and they truly are the most amazing healing plants - ever). I'm now enjoying some Benadryl side effects. In a few days when they all get those nice little pustules, I get to reclaim my title as Best Circus Freak Show. Well, my feet do, anyway.

* The boys are having SO MUCH FUN. With the work getting the utilities hooked up, they are enjoying hours of ditch digging and mud and more mud and more mud. Our buddy, Rob, is doing the work for us. Yesterday he was trying to locate a pipe in the midst of the mud. Told the boys he would take them out for Chinese food if they found it. Well, he said the magic words. They dove in and found that sucker in a matter of minutes.

* I thoroughly cleaned the kitchen in the house yesterday. Ew, ew, ewwwwwww.

* Ewwww.

* In my quest to care for the earth, I do attempt to recycle what I can. It hit me yesterday - we are recycling a WHOLE HOUSE! Very cool.

* One child is living with some tighter boundaries again.

* I have not yet bragged my hiney off about Leslie and Noah COMING TO VISIT ME AND MY PARK LAST WEEK!! Love Leslie. I really, really, really love Leslie. They were in Austin for Noah's really cool and amazing Autism therapy. Just that morning he learned about Lewis & Clark and worked on his 7 and 8 multiplication tables. Oh, yeah, and he is NONVERBAL. Amazing stuff. He also let me keep his thick cut, healthy potato chips. Sweet kid.

* Going into town to pick up some connectors for the water pipes. Later!

Magical Milk Pic-o-the-Week

Check out the lactation aid!

(photo by an anonymous reader)


Remember: I love submissions from people who actually read my blog. You can always send one to me at christinemoers [at] hotmail [dot] com. I can provide a link to your blog or website, or keep you mum!

BREAKING NEWS

We interrupt "Christine's post on porn" to bring you this very important news story.

At 8:44 am this morning, the Moers heard a loud roar coming down the road. Upon inspection, they discovered this:




They have arrived. The people who literally "have the power."

It is now 8:59 am. One hole has been dug, waiting on the pole. One anchor for the support wires has been drilled into the ground. One very annoying 41 year old cannot stop singing "The Anchor Holds" by Ray Boltz - in falsetto. The wife of this family can tolerat the annoyance, however. BECAUSE THEY ARE GETTING ELECTRICITY!


And just because Christine should not have to suffer alone ...

Is that porn behind your mirror, or are you just happy to see me?

I have started to paint over all the miles of hunter green and mauve wallpaper in our double-wide. God bless primer.

So, I'm standing on the bathroom counter, cutting in along the edges, when I noticed some old scotch tape sticking out from behind the mirror. This is the guest bath, so I assumed there had been some snapshot a kid had taped up. I pulled on the tape and the corner of a photograph pops out. I WAS SO EXCITED. I figured we'd get some really funny glimpse into the lives of the people who once owned this repo. FUN!

Yeah ... um ... well ... I would first like to thank God for keeping me from yelling, "Mar, I found a picture!" the second I started to remove it.

Second, it had not fallen behind the mirror, but was stealthily located there with two pieces of scotch tape aiding in its private retrieval.

Third ... um ... lets just say that someone who once frequented that bathroom had a thing for Asian women.

As I stood there, trying to figure out how long she had to hold that pose to get the picture taken - ouch! trying to figure out where to stash the thing before my boys got their hands on it and stole it were completely appalled, I thought of all the ... um ... DNA I was probably holding in my hand. *shudder*. Now that I've bathed in antibacterial gel, I'll spend tomorrow dousing the entire bathroom with it.

Medika Mamba, Baby!

Are any of you still keeping up?

Cause you should!

WOW!




p.s. - if you don't enjoy medical procedure pictures, don't scroll any farther than the first three pictures.

I voted for the guy - but seriously?

Oh my goodness gracious do I have issues with Obama receiving the Nobel Peace Prize.

It's equivalent to a 35-year-old receiving a lifetime achievement award.

I voted for Obama, but I am not naive enough to believe campaign promises are set in stone. My friend, Paul, pointed out to me this morning that the nominations for this year's Prize closed ten days after the president's inauguration. Makes me do a double, "Huh??"

I think what pains me the most, is how today's award will diminish the amazing accomplishments of those who have received it before this point. I just don't get it.

I. do. not. get. it.



(photo by Kostya Kisleyko)

Camping in an egg

We have a fun couple staying for a long weekend. They planned to camp at a state park, but most of them are flooded right now. So, they found us, and brought in their sweet, little camper this afternoon.



Then, the woman's 84 year old dad arrived. SO ADORABLE! I didn't tell him that. I used words like "cool egg," "spaceship" and "submarine."



I mean, seriously. How cute is THAT? And twice as adorable when you realize he pulls it behind his Lincoln.

Okay, I'm looking out the office window, and he now has his US flag and US Navy flag flying across the front. The flags are as big as the trailer.

Gosh, I love people.

Tell me about your friend, Mar

Even though my attaching kids DO have a great deal of cause-and-effect thinking now, it is still a learning process. We spend a lot of time talking through the consequences of our actions.

Mar has been on a new ... thing. As we expected, she has struggled with her new level of healing. I can't go into all the details right now, but I will say she has been on severe restriction. She has made life quite difficult for the rest of us, so her life is now extremely limited and boring.

Today during lunch, I was walking her through the repercussions of her decisions, if she continues to interact with people like this throughout life. She COULD do this verbally, but just did not want to. She wasn't ready to own her choices and the effects of those choices.

So, the super amazing Creator of my brain just threw something into my old thinker. I said, "Hey, Mar, I want you to pretend you are someone else. Pick any name you want. Violet? Okay, Violet. You are 27 years old. You work at a gas station, and a new girl started working there about a month ago. Her name is Mar and you have become really good friends. She is also 27 So, tell me all about your friend, Mar."

This opened her right up. Putting it into the third person made all the difference for her. At one point I said, "Well, I heard the two of you talking last week. Sounds like her mom was a jerk. She was always having her write sentences and doing extra chores. What a witch!" At which point, "Violet" began to defend Mar's mom, and explain (in wonderful detail) WHY her mother would do certain things.

"Wow. That does make sense. So, she's really a great mom, then. So, does Mar still speak to her? When did that happen? Describe their relationship now. How does Mar discipline her kids? Interesting - where did she learn that?" and on and on and on and on.

Oh, and just because I know you're dying to know: in 17 years, Michael and I will be living in Hawaii and have 35 children at that point. We will have adopted most of them from Haiti.

Magical Milk Pic-o-the-Week

This one is VERY special for me. This sweet baby was born at Heartline in Haiti. Check out the story here. A very special person to our family, Vivien, is now living with the Livesay's and homeschooling their kids this year. This chic was in Michael's youth group for years, and then became just one of our favorite people in the history of - ever. SHE. BREATHES. MISSIONS. So, to know she is spending this year with the Livesay's ... to know her passion and spirit is there with Beth and John ... to know that my friend, Viv, is falling in love with the heritage of two of my children ...

Like I said - this one is VERY special for me!

Queen of My Double Wide Trailer

The ship has landed. By tonight it will be jacked up and in one piece. By tomorrow night we'll be able to start hooking up utilities (ya' know ... like electricity ... which hasn't made its way down from the highway yet). One of our neighbors does construction and we're going to pay him to do all of that for us. Willie has already told me HE will be picking up the ditch digger and any other equipment for FREE, and if we don't let him he will be PISSED.

I happily said, "Yes sir." I'm having to give him his eye drops four times a day ... for a week. So, he's feeling a great obligation to do something for us. In the past week he has made his grandson catch and clean fish for us, taken my boys out on the boat, and given us his leftover ham and cheese sandwich fixings. Now he'll save us about 40 bucks by using his truck to pick up the needed equipment.

Willie's a good guy. Last night I was on the phone with Lisa when I popped in to give him his drops (THANK YOU, Lisa, for your patience). Needless to say, she got some first-hand Willie via telephone. If I remember correctly, I had to ask him to hold his eyebrow hair out of the way. Uh-huh. He thinks it's pretty cool that I write about him. Told me to tell Lisa he'd take her huntin' gators sometime. Ya' know, after his eye heals from the surgery.

"I still can't SEE Christine."

"Willie, they cut into your eye, sucked out the bad part of the lens and put a new fake lens INTO YOUR EYEBALL. It's going to take a few days before it's healed and working great."

"Well, G** d***!! I didn't know they did all that."

"I know. I didn't tell you or you would've chickened out."

He just looked at me. I smiled. Heh. Heh.

I promise I will capture the Will-ster on video one of these days. You all really need to experience the whole package.

When you drain your mother's energy ...

... and you don't like an old man having cataract surgery to get all the attention.

... and you spend the entire day trying to act out and get all eyes, ears and energy on you.

... you get to wake up at the crack of dawn and haul wood, so your mother can sleep in and sip coffee.