Girls weekend.. will update

Who packs this many shoes for a one night hotel stay? My girl! Love her!

A Letter to my Children... & You

Written for my children, for when they are older and will understand it more.  But maybe you {my dear readers} could use this right now, too? I know I would benefit from these words being spoken to me daily.

My Dear Children,
I pray you are clinging tightly to Jesus.  Be ready. Be ready for whatever comes your way, whether you think it to be good or worry it may cause strife. 
I want you to be BOLD in your conversations and in your actions. You can be bold, kindly.
Act as Jesus would.
  Soften your hearts.  Drop your guard, & Be more genuine.  Yes, please, please be more genuine.  And forgiving.  If you aren't forgivin', you aren't livin'. Cheesy? Yes.
Don't be afraid of a disappointment.  Be afraid of regret over the things you didn't do or say.
  Time will run out.  You don't have forever to do it all.  Your life on Earth will end. Make the time for the things that matter.  Quit hiding behind excuses that are inflicted by your insecurities.
They say people will forget what you've said but remember how you made them feel.  I hope you never forget the feeling of being absolutely positively loved by your momma.
Some people will work to twist your words and hurt you, stray from them.  Just stray.
Make your mark on the world & shine brightly.
Take time to heal your soul.  It needs refreshing more than you'd think.
If you think things are fine, they probably aren't.  Address the internal problem and move on.  Yes, it's internal, trust me.
Always be ready to move on.
You don't get a warning for when your time comes to meet our heavenly Father, so just be ready.
Never forget to work in face to face conversations. I don't care how easy our cool social media is, it's not the same.
Know how to play at least one tune on guitar or piano.  Never turn down an opportunity to perform.
Smile, please?
When you meet "the one" never forget that they are the ONE. Do what you have to do to make it work. Pray often for them. And don't be afraid to ask them to pray for you.  Love them fully and passionately.
Wherever there is bad, there is also GOOD.  Seek it out. 
Regularly step out of your comfort zone and see how much you'll grow.
Make time for fun!
  When you need spiritual help, get it.
Don't go this life alone.  Keep Jesus in your heart and good deeds on your mind.

I.Love.You. 
Momma

Home organization: A New Bookshelf

Oh, Happy Day!  Mr. Awesome & the kids assembled this bookshelf for me while I was at a movie with friends this week.  He knows how the piles of books on the floor {& everywhere} drive me batty. 

Maybe he's looking out for me, maybe he's tired of hearing me complain? 

 Either way, he ROCKS for doing this! 

Don't get me wrong, I love seeing the big kids reading..  I just can't stand seeing them leave their nice books laying out and their little sister doing with them what she wishes... This usually means chewing the covers or folding/tearing the pages.  Then somehow it's mom's fault?  Yeah, it probably is.  But still, come on kids, help a girl out!
So today we are compiling the stacks of books from around the house onto this ONE bookshelf.  I'm keeping my expectations low, but hoping this gets organized and stays organized for at least the summer.  Once we get our groove for where the books go I'm going to borrow my dad's label maker and mark the shelves. 

Do you have any spectacular book organization methods to share? 

I haven't checked for inspiration online.  You see, I'm still kinda-sorta-anti-Pinterest right now.  I love it, too much.. SO much in fact, that it's stealing my joy of being creative and coming up with ideas on my own.  So I'm using it in a different way right now that is working better for my current mood. :)

This bookshelf is from the KALLAX line at IKEA.  You can see the details of the shelving unit on their web-site by clicking HERE. 

Yes, No, Well Maybe?

I've been struggling with this verse  I bookmarked on my Bible App awhile back.  It was about your Yes being Yes and your NO being No.  I went to look it up on the computer to be sure I had the right wording before processing it and found another very similar verse, but it still didn't make me feel any better about it.  In fact, it made me feel worse! 

So here is what I found, and I checked it against many different translations and they all mean the same thing.  YIKES!

Matthew 5:37

New Living Translation

Just say a simple, 'Yes, I will,' or 'No, I won't.' Anything beyond this is from the evil one.

 

International Standard Version

Instead, let your message be 'Yes' for 'Yes' and 'No' for 'No.' Anything more than that comes from the evil one."

 

The Message (MSG) Empty Promises

33-37 “And don’t say anything you don’t mean. This counsel is embedded deep in our traditions. You only make things worse when you lay down a smoke screen of pious talk, saying, ‘I’ll pray for you,’ and never doing it, or saying, ‘God be with you,’ and not meaning it. You don’t make your words true by embellishing them with religious lace. In making your speech sound more religious, it becomes less true. Just say ‘yes’ and ‘no.’ When you manipulate words to get your own way, you go wrong.

 

 

But what I was looking for was actually James 5:12, which says "But above all, my brethren, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or with any other oath; but your yes is to be yes, and your no, no, so that you may not fall under judgment".

 

Either way you look at it, the simple fact is this.  Let your YES be YES and your NO be NO. 

So, here's where I'm stuck.  What do you do when you're really caught in a "maybe" mind set?  I mean, how do you know that your YES or NO are coming from God and where he wants you to be?  And not from a place of where is comfortable or fun for YOU? 

On Mother's Day

Hey, can we talk?  I know it's Mother's Day. How are you feeling about that? Be honest.
I hope no matter what your answer  comes out like, it means that you are feeling content. I know that may not be the case though.
Being a mom looks really different to each of us.  Some of us came by it young, others later in life.  Some are going it alone, others with help. Some through pregnancy and birth, some by adoption, others may have a more painful story to tell. Even more may still waiting.  {To you I say, Be faithful to the Lord.  Your strength will rise as you wait for His prefect timing}.  No matter your story, Just own it.  It's yours.

So if you aren't feeling so great about this day, for a materialistic reason, like:
The gifts weren't your first choice, or maybe never arrived. Despite your obvious hints!
The kids keep fighting.
You're spending the day with your in-laws & that was the one thing you requested NOT to do.
No one is helping with anything.
You're cooking for yourself and everyone else when YOU want to be the one to be waited on.

Whatever, okay.  I get it, I do.  It stinks to not get your way.  I just ask that you'd choose joy in this day.  To me it's not a day so much to be honored by my husband and kids, but a day to honor myself in  positive thoughts and spreading good cheer. A day to feel blessed to be a blessing to my blessings (did you follow that one??)

If you're struggling, repeat after me:
"I will not whine today...I will not whine today... For crying outloud I'm the mom here and I said I will not whine today!"

Alright, do whatever works for you.

Now if this day is tough because you've got emotional hurt.  That's another story.  There is some very real pain in miscarriage, or having your child removed from your care or waiting for a child to enter your life.  To that I say turn to God.  He is the only one who can fully heal your pain.  It's worth it.  You're worth it. I can't blog something on this that would be worthy of your reading.  It's too deep.  You need Him.  And He's there for you, ready to purify your heavy heart and heal you so you can move on, once and for all.

Ps.  One last request, which will probably go unanswered, but I will not whine... ;) Could you keep the social media to a minimum? Relish in the day, not the # of likes and comments a picture of your gift gets you or whatev. Be fully engaged with the real-life activities you are doing, not what is happening in the virtual world. K. Thanks!

& HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!

One last thing.  It's almost 1am & I'm sure this is full of typos.  If you're new here, I'll let you in on a secret.  I write quick and from the heart.  Days later I reread & find the mistakes.  I fix them promptly...sometimes.

Intentional Parenting

Let’s talk about being intentional in our parenting. Although many great things do happen spontaneously, I believe that even greater things can happen when we are joyfully being intentional.   

What are you doing to intentionally spend time with your kiddos?  I’ll go first.

 

Well for starters, we are recognizing “screen free week” in our house.  Notice I say recognizing, not fully celebrating.  I’d like to say I’m 100% on board, but to be honest, I’m missing out on too much!  No joke, two days off of Facebook and I feel like I don’t have a clue what is going on in real life conversations because everyone is talking about what they read on Facebook… & I have obligations to fulfill through FB and e-mail.  So I check my FB about once or twice a day strictly for messages or about something someone mentioned needed my attention.  That's not anywhere near as often as I was getting online.  It's been a good cleanse and I hope to continue in this new pattern. 

This week to be intentional I’m busting out the craft supplies!  We painted {in our carpeted dining room} twice this week!  I put my phone aside, ignored any beeps for new text messages until we were done, and just focused on my kids.  It was so much fun!  Like more fun than getting out of the house kid free.  I’m not joking here.  I really adored the time with my littles.  We laughed, we talked, we created.  We looked back at what we made and talked some more about our time together.  Oh it’s been so fun! 

My kids are 11, 6 and 1.  Normally this would be tough to do with a little toddler. I got lucky, two days in a row!  The 1 year old happily sat in her stroller in the house, looking out the sliding door and occasionally chiming in to our conversation with a “puh-puh”, “ba” or any other words she thought fit right in with what we were saying.  She doesn’t sit as well in her highchair, so that’s why I used the stroller.  When we were finished painting the stroller got put away and I read stories from their Children’s Bible.  They climbed all over me and begged me for more.. and although I had really had enough and wanted 5 seconds to myself, I kept reading! 

We also got outside each day.  Even if only for a short time, we were out there, and we were together.  It’s pure joy, raising these little people.  I just can’t quite explain it, but I am as happy as can be to be their momma.

These are a few of my favorite things!

• A morning walk with my blessings.
• A bouquet of dandelions.
• Hanging clothes to dry by His gentle breeze.
• A no-frills lunch with a beautiful friend in my favorite hometown.
• A shopping trip strictly for the purpose of planting a surprise blessing on someone else.
• Words with friends.
• Dinner, although rushed and over too quick, was spent outdoors with the whole family. 
• Nourished bellies.
• Nourished souls.
• The chance to teach little ones of His sweet words.
• Church nursery.
• A pastor with a passion for awakening our spirits and filling us full of truth.
• An evening jog with my love.
• A warm shower with water clearer than some people will ever see.
• Laying down for bed, and holding hands with my guy as we drift off to sleep.

These are a few of my favorite things.

#journal #100happydays

Go-To Summer Supper Ideas?

I know it's technically still spring.  My goodness, it sure feels like summer though, doesn't it?

Right now we have meetings and practices each night, so we usually snack around 4pm. 

 It's something simple like fruit smoothies, or string cheese & a handful of nuts. 

 Then we eat WAY later, since we're having too much fun playing outdoors to stop and deal with supper.

See all that beauty?  This is seriously where I live.  I'm so lucky to see such glorious colors each day!

 I like crock-pot cooking because our meals are ready whenever we are. The down side?  

Hot day + Hot Meals= Hot Momma... Not the good kinda hot either.. The sticky, sweaty kind. ewww!

Question: What do your {low maintenance} summer suppers look like?

Once our garden is in full bloom we will just eat dinner out of there and add an occasional grilled burger or something.  But for now, during this in-between time, I need your ideas!